Ali-A1 and TPL1 proteins interactively modulate awn development in wheat

The awn can contribute to photosynthesis and carbohydrates, enhancing grain yield in wheat. We mapped QAwn.sxau-5A, a major QTL for awn development in wheat (Triticum aestivum). This QTL was delimited to a 994-kb interval at the B1 locus on chromosome 5A, which included the candidate gene encoding a...

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Main Authors: Linyi Qiao, Tian Li, Shujuan Liu, Xueqi Zhang, Min Fan, Xiaojun Zhang, Xin Li, Zujun Yang, Juqing Jia, Ling Qiao, Zhijian Chang, Liuling Yan
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: KeAi Communications Co., Ltd. 2025-04-01
Series:Crop Journal
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214514125000455
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author Linyi Qiao
Tian Li
Shujuan Liu
Xueqi Zhang
Min Fan
Xiaojun Zhang
Xin Li
Zujun Yang
Juqing Jia
Ling Qiao
Zhijian Chang
Liuling Yan
author_facet Linyi Qiao
Tian Li
Shujuan Liu
Xueqi Zhang
Min Fan
Xiaojun Zhang
Xin Li
Zujun Yang
Juqing Jia
Ling Qiao
Zhijian Chang
Liuling Yan
author_sort Linyi Qiao
collection DOAJ
description The awn can contribute to photosynthesis and carbohydrates, enhancing grain yield in wheat. We mapped QAwn.sxau-5A, a major QTL for awn development in wheat (Triticum aestivum). This QTL was delimited to a 994-kb interval at the B1 locus on chromosome 5A, which included the candidate gene encoding a zinc finger protein (TraesCS5A01G542800) as an awn length inhibitor (ALI). The Ali-A1 allele for the awnless trait showed abundant sequence differences in the promoter regions compared to the ali-A1 allele for the long-awn trait. The results of the swap experiment on the promoters from the two ALI-A1 alleles showed that the two promoters caused a difference in the protein level, indicating the gene was regulated at the transcript level. However, the ali-A1 allele contained an SNP that caused a premature stop codon in its coding region, resulting in a truncated protein compared to the functional Ali-A1 protein. The Ali-A1 protein contained two ethylene-responsive element binding factor-associated amphiphilic repression (EAR) motifs, one at the N terminus (EAR-N) and the other at the C terminus (EAR-C), and they were involved in interactions with the wheat co-repressor protein TOPLESS (TPL1). The ali-A1 protein retained the EAR-N motif but lost the EAR-C motif, resulting in the attenuated ability to interact with TPL1. The tpl1 mutant produced a longer awn compared to the wild type. Ali-A1 repressed the transcription of two downstream genes, TaLRP-A1 and TaARF-B1, involved in endogenous auxin concentrations and auxin responses in wheat. We concluded that the awn length is regulated not only by the ALI-A1 gene at transcript levels but also by Ali-A1 and TPL1 at the protein level in wheat.
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spelling doaj-art-a98be8f077cd4e6c91f7e6d5d3830ac22025-08-20T03:06:17ZengKeAi Communications Co., Ltd.Crop Journal2214-51412025-04-0113246847910.1016/j.cj.2025.01.012Ali-A1 and TPL1 proteins interactively modulate awn development in wheatLinyi Qiao0Tian Li1Shujuan Liu2Xueqi Zhang3Min Fan4Xiaojun Zhang5Xin Li6Zujun Yang7Juqing Jia8Ling Qiao9Zhijian Chang10Liuling Yan11College of Agronomy / Shanxi Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Molecular Improvement, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taiyuan 030031, Shanxi, China; Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078, USAInstitute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, ChinaInstitute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, ChinaCollege of Agronomy / Shanxi Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Molecular Improvement, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taiyuan 030031, Shanxi, ChinaDepartment of Plant and Soil Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078, USACollege of Agronomy / Shanxi Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Molecular Improvement, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taiyuan 030031, Shanxi, ChinaCollege of Agronomy / Shanxi Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Molecular Improvement, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taiyuan 030031, Shanxi, ChinaSchool of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu 610054, Sichuan, ChinaCollege of Agronomy / Shanxi Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Molecular Improvement, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taiyuan 030031, Shanxi, ChinaInstitute of Wheat Research, Shanxi Agricultural University, Linfen 041000, Shanxi, ChinaCollege of Agronomy / Shanxi Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Molecular Improvement, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taiyuan 030031, Shanxi, China; Corresponding authors.Department of Plant and Soil Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078, USA; Corresponding authors.The awn can contribute to photosynthesis and carbohydrates, enhancing grain yield in wheat. We mapped QAwn.sxau-5A, a major QTL for awn development in wheat (Triticum aestivum). This QTL was delimited to a 994-kb interval at the B1 locus on chromosome 5A, which included the candidate gene encoding a zinc finger protein (TraesCS5A01G542800) as an awn length inhibitor (ALI). The Ali-A1 allele for the awnless trait showed abundant sequence differences in the promoter regions compared to the ali-A1 allele for the long-awn trait. The results of the swap experiment on the promoters from the two ALI-A1 alleles showed that the two promoters caused a difference in the protein level, indicating the gene was regulated at the transcript level. However, the ali-A1 allele contained an SNP that caused a premature stop codon in its coding region, resulting in a truncated protein compared to the functional Ali-A1 protein. The Ali-A1 protein contained two ethylene-responsive element binding factor-associated amphiphilic repression (EAR) motifs, one at the N terminus (EAR-N) and the other at the C terminus (EAR-C), and they were involved in interactions with the wheat co-repressor protein TOPLESS (TPL1). The ali-A1 protein retained the EAR-N motif but lost the EAR-C motif, resulting in the attenuated ability to interact with TPL1. The tpl1 mutant produced a longer awn compared to the wild type. Ali-A1 repressed the transcription of two downstream genes, TaLRP-A1 and TaARF-B1, involved in endogenous auxin concentrations and auxin responses in wheat. We concluded that the awn length is regulated not only by the ALI-A1 gene at transcript levels but also by Ali-A1 and TPL1 at the protein level in wheat.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214514125000455ALI proteinTPL proteinAwnAuxinWheat
spellingShingle Linyi Qiao
Tian Li
Shujuan Liu
Xueqi Zhang
Min Fan
Xiaojun Zhang
Xin Li
Zujun Yang
Juqing Jia
Ling Qiao
Zhijian Chang
Liuling Yan
Ali-A1 and TPL1 proteins interactively modulate awn development in wheat
Crop Journal
ALI protein
TPL protein
Awn
Auxin
Wheat
title Ali-A1 and TPL1 proteins interactively modulate awn development in wheat
title_full Ali-A1 and TPL1 proteins interactively modulate awn development in wheat
title_fullStr Ali-A1 and TPL1 proteins interactively modulate awn development in wheat
title_full_unstemmed Ali-A1 and TPL1 proteins interactively modulate awn development in wheat
title_short Ali-A1 and TPL1 proteins interactively modulate awn development in wheat
title_sort ali a1 and tpl1 proteins interactively modulate awn development in wheat
topic ALI protein
TPL protein
Awn
Auxin
Wheat
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2214514125000455
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