Molecular PlantPub Date : 2025-01-08DOI: 10.1016/j.molp.2025.01.007
Maolin Peng, Katja E Jaeger, Yunlong Lu, Zhuping Fan, Wei Zeng, Arun Sampathkumar, Philip A Wigge
{"title":"Activation and memory of the heatshock response is mediated by Prion-like domains of sensory HSFs in Arabidopsis.","authors":"Maolin Peng, Katja E Jaeger, Yunlong Lu, Zhuping Fan, Wei Zeng, Arun Sampathkumar, Philip A Wigge","doi":"10.1016/j.molp.2025.01.007","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.molp.2025.01.007","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Plants are able to sense and remember heat stress. An initial priming heat stress enables plants to acclimate so that they are able to survive a subsequent higher temperature. The heatshock transcription factors (HSFs) play a crucial role in this process, but the mechanisms by which plants sense heat stress are not well understood. By comprehensively analyzing the binding targets of all the HSFs, we find that HSFs act in a network, with upstream sensory acting in a transcriptional cascade to activate downstream HSFs and protective proteins. The upstream sensory HSFs are activated by heat at the protein level via a modular Prion-like Domain (PrD) structure. PrD1 enables HSF sequestration via chaperone binding, allowing release under heatshock. Activated HSFs are recruited into transcriptionally active foci via PrD2, enabling the formation of DNA loops between heat responsive promoters and enhancer motifs, boosting gene expression days after a priming heat stress. The ability of HSFs to respond rapidly to heat via a protein phase change response is likely a conserved mechanism in eukaryotes.</p>","PeriodicalId":19012,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Plant","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":17.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-08","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142952128","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Molecular PlantPub Date : 2025-01-06Epub Date: 2024-11-29DOI: 10.1016/j.molp.2024.11.013
Ruyun Liang, Luna Tan, Xiang Guo, Shangling Lou, Xuming Dan, Yu Han, Cheng Zeng, Han Zhang, Kai Yang, Liyang Chen, Xin Liang, Meng Liu, Mengyun Guo, Kangqun Yin, Si Tang, Yan Song, Xuemeng Gao, Shaobo Gu, Jing Hou, Yingjun Yao, Ruijia Zhang, Jin Yan, Wensen Fu, Xuerui Li, Yongqi Hu, Yao Liu, Wei Liu, Qiusai Wu, Zhen Yan, Weitao Jia, Binhua Hu, Jing Wang, Jianquan Liu, Huanhuan Liu
{"title":"Allelic variation in the promoter of WRKY22 enhances humid adaptation of Arabidopsis thaliana.","authors":"Ruyun Liang, Luna Tan, Xiang Guo, Shangling Lou, Xuming Dan, Yu Han, Cheng Zeng, Han Zhang, Kai Yang, Liyang Chen, Xin Liang, Meng Liu, Mengyun Guo, Kangqun Yin, Si Tang, Yan Song, Xuemeng Gao, Shaobo Gu, Jing Hou, Yingjun Yao, Ruijia Zhang, Jin Yan, Wensen Fu, Xuerui Li, Yongqi Hu, Yao Liu, Wei Liu, Qiusai Wu, Zhen Yan, Weitao Jia, Binhua Hu, Jing Wang, Jianquan Liu, Huanhuan Liu","doi":"10.1016/j.molp.2024.11.013","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.molp.2024.11.013","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Submergence stress tolerance is a complex trait governed by multiple loci. Because of its wide distribution across arid and humid regions, Arabidopsis thaliana offers an opportunity to explore the genetic components and their action mechanisms underlying plant adaptation to submergence stress. In this study, using map-based cloning we identified WRKY22 that activates RAP2.12, a locus previously identified to contribute to the submergence stress response, to regulate plant humid adaptation possibly through ethylene signal transduction in Arabidopsis. WRKY22 expression is inhibited by ARABIDOPSIS RESPONSE REGULATORs (ARRs) but activated by the WRKY70 transcription factor. In accessions from humid environments, a two-nucleotide deletion in the WRKY22 promoter region prevents binding of phosphorylated ARRs, thereby maintaining its high expression. Loss of the ARR-binding element in the WRKY22 promoter underwent strong positive selection during colonization of A. thaliana in the humid Yangtze River basin. However, the WRKY70-binding motif in the WRKY22 promoter shows no variation between accessions from humid and arid regions. These findings together establish a novel signaling axis wherein WRKY22 plays a key role in regulating the adaptive response that enables A. thaliana to colonize contrasting habitats. Notably, we further showed functional conservation of this locus in Brassica napus, suggesting that modulating this axis might be useful in the breeding of flood-tolerant crop varieties.</p>","PeriodicalId":19012,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Plant","volume":" ","pages":"42-58"},"PeriodicalIF":17.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142755455","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"An enhancer-promoter-transcription factor module orchestrates plant immune homeostasis by constraining camalexin biosynthesis.","authors":"Ying Zhang, Meng Tang, Yi Zhang, Qinglin Cheng, Lijiang Liu, Wei Chen, Jiatao Xie, Jiasen Cheng, Yanping Fu, Bo Li, Daohong Jiang, Xiao Yu","doi":"10.1016/j.molp.2024.12.002","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.molp.2024.12.002","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Effective plant defense against pathogens relies on highly coordinated regulation of immune gene expression. Enhancers, as cis-regulatory elements, are indispensable determinants of dynamic gene regulation, but the molecular functions in plant immunity are not well understood. In this study, we identified a novel enhancer, CORE PATTERN-INDUCED ENHANCER 35 (CPIE35), which is rapidly activated upon pathogenic elicitation and negatively regulates antifungal resistance through modulating WRKY15 expression. During immune activation, CPIE35 activates the transcription of WRKY15 by forming chromatin loops with the promoter of WRKY15 in a WRKY18/40/60-, WRKY33-, and MYC2-dependent manner. WRKY15 directly binds to the promoters of PAD3 and GSTU4, suppressing their expression and leading to reduced camalexin synthesis and resistance. Interestingly, CPIE35 region is evolutionarily conserved among Brassicaceae plants, and the CPIE35-WRKY15 module exerts similar functions in Brassica napus to negatively regulate antifungal resistance. Our work reveals the \"enhancer-promoter-transcription factor\" regulatory mechanism in maintenance of immune homeostasis, highlighting the importance and conserved role of enhancers in fine-tuning immune gene expression in plants.</p>","PeriodicalId":19012,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Plant","volume":" ","pages":"95-113"},"PeriodicalIF":17.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142770393","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Molecular PlantPub Date : 2025-01-06Epub Date: 2024-11-26DOI: 10.1016/j.molp.2024.11.010
Rhowell N Tiozon, Nese Sreenivasulu
{"title":"Harmonizing metabolic blueprint of flavor using complementary genomic insights.","authors":"Rhowell N Tiozon, Nese Sreenivasulu","doi":"10.1016/j.molp.2024.11.010","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.molp.2024.11.010","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":19012,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Plant","volume":" ","pages":"19-21"},"PeriodicalIF":17.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142730711","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Molecular PlantPub Date : 2025-01-06Epub Date: 2024-11-26DOI: 10.1016/j.molp.2024.11.012
Yan Li, Jie Luo
{"title":"From steroidal glycoalkaloids to steroidal saponins: Biosynthesis and ecological role in the Solanum genus.","authors":"Yan Li, Jie Luo","doi":"10.1016/j.molp.2024.11.012","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.molp.2024.11.012","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":19012,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Plant","volume":" ","pages":"22-24"},"PeriodicalIF":17.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142730710","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Molecular PlantPub Date : 2025-01-06Epub Date: 2024-12-02DOI: 10.1016/j.molp.2024.11.016
Dali Fu, Hanlin Zhou, Bernhard Grimm, Peng Wang
{"title":"The BCM1-EGY1 module balances chlorophyll biosynthesis and breakdown to confer chlorophyll homeostasis in land plants.","authors":"Dali Fu, Hanlin Zhou, Bernhard Grimm, Peng Wang","doi":"10.1016/j.molp.2024.11.016","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.molp.2024.11.016","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Chlorophyll metabolism has evolved during plant evolution. The strictly light-dependent nature of chlorophyll biosynthesis found in angiosperms requires tight coordination of chlorophyll biosynthesis and breakdown to achieve chlorophyll homeostasis. However, the specific control mechanisms remain largely unclear. Here, we demonstrate that the scaffold protein BALANCE OF CHLOROPHYLL METABOLISM1 (BCM1) has co-evolved with the carboxy-terminal domains of specific enzymes involved in chlorophyll biosynthesis and breakdown, including GENOMES UNCOUPLED 4 (GUN4) and Mg-dechelatase 1 (SGR1). We found that the land plant-specific interaction of BCM1 with the carboxy-terminal domains of GUN4 and SGR1 is indispensable for concurrent stimulation of chlorophyll biosynthesis and suppression of chlorophyll breakdown. The land plant-specific carboxy-terminal domain is essential for the membrane docking and turnover of GUN4, whereas it is key for proteolysis of SGR1. More importantly, we identified the metallopeptidase Gravitropism-deficient and Yellow-green 1 (EGY1) as the proteolytic machinery responsible for BCM1-mediated proteolysis of SGR1. In summary, this study reveals the BCM1-EGY1 module has evolved to maintain chlorophyll homeostasis by the post-translational control of the balance between chlorophyll biosynthesis and breakdown. This mechanism thus represents an evolutionary response to the metabolic demands imposed on plants in terrestrial environments.</p>","PeriodicalId":19012,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Plant","volume":" ","pages":"76-94"},"PeriodicalIF":17.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142770566","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The long noncoding RNA ALEX1 confers a functional phase state of ARF3 to enhance rice resistance to bacterial pathogens.","authors":"Meng-Qi Lei, Rui-Rui He, Yan-Fei Zhou, Lu Yang, Zhen-Fei Zhang, Chao Yuan, Wen-Long Zhao, Yu Cheng, Jian-Ping Lian, Yu-Chan Zhang, Wen-Tao Wang, Yang Yu, Yue-Qin Chen","doi":"10.1016/j.molp.2024.12.005","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.molp.2024.12.005","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Rice bacterial blight is a devastating disease worldwide, causing significant yield losses. Understanding how plants defend against microbial infection is critical for sustainable crop production. In this study, we show that ALEX1, a previously identified pathogen-induced long noncoding RNA, localizes to the nucleus and directly binds AUXIN RESPONSE FACTOR 3 (ARF3). We showed that ARF3 forms the condensates in the nucleus via its intrinsically disordered middle region (MR), and that these ARF3 condensates display solid-like properties. We further revealed that ALEX1 directly binds the MR of ARF3 to regulate ARF3 condensate dynamics and promote ARF3 homodimerization. The dispersed, dimeric form of ARF3, referred to as its functional phase state, enhances its ability to transcriptionally repress the expression of downstream target genes such as JAZ13, thereby modulating the jasmonic acid signaling pathway and enhancing pathogen resistance in rice. Collectively, this study reveals the role of a long noncoding RNA in regulating protein condensation and complex assembly, thus contributing to plant pathogen resistance.</p>","PeriodicalId":19012,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Plant","volume":" ","pages":"114-129"},"PeriodicalIF":17.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142807741","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Molecular PlantPub Date : 2025-01-06Epub Date: 2024-12-19DOI: 10.1016/j.molp.2024.12.012
Na Wang, Xiang Li, Jun Zhu, Zhong-Nan Yang
{"title":"Molecular and cellular mechanisms of photoperiod- and thermo-sensitive genic male sterility in plants.","authors":"Na Wang, Xiang Li, Jun Zhu, Zhong-Nan Yang","doi":"10.1016/j.molp.2024.12.012","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.molp.2024.12.012","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Photoperiod- and thermo-sensitive genic male sterile (P/TGMS) lines display male sterility under high-temperature/long-day light conditions and male fertility under low-temperature/short-day light conditions. P/TGMS lines are the fundamental basis for the two-line hybrid breeding, which has notably increased the yield potential and grain quality of rice cultivars. In this review, we focus on the research progress on photoperiod- and thermo-sensitive genic male sterility in plants. The essence of P/TGMS line is their ability to produce viable pollen under varying conditions. We overview the processes involved in anther and pollen development, as well as the molecular, cellular, and genetic mechanisms underlying P/TGMS in Arabidopsis, rice, and other crops. Slow development has been identified as a common mechanism of P/TGMS fertility restoration in both Arabidopsis and rice, while reactive oxygen species homeostasis has been implicated in rice P/TGMS. Furthermore, we discuss the prospective applications of P/TGMS and potential solutions to the challenges in this field. This review deepens the understanding of the mechanisms underlying P/TGMS and its utilization in two-line hybrid breeding across diverse crops.</p>","PeriodicalId":19012,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Plant","volume":" ","pages":"26-41"},"PeriodicalIF":17.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142864901","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"N<sup>6</sup>-methyladenosine on the natural antisense transcript of NIA1 stabilizes its mRNA to boost NO biosynthesis and modulate stomatal movement.","authors":"Jie Li, Wen Tian, Ting Chen, Qing-Yan Liu, Hua-Wei Wu, Chuan-Hui Liu, Yuan-Yuan Fang, Hui-Shan Guo, Jian-Hua Zhao","doi":"10.1016/j.molp.2024.12.011","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.molp.2024.12.011","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Nitric oxide (NO) is a crucial signaling molecule that regulates a wide range of metabolic pathways in different strata of organisms. In plants, nitrate reductase (NR) is a key enzyme for NO biosynthesis. There are two NR-encoding genes in Arabidopsis genome, NIA1 and NIA2, which are precisely regulated and expressed in a tissue-specific manner. In this study, we found that the natural antisense transcript as-NIA1, transcribed from the 3' UTR of NIA1, stabilizes NIA1 mRNA to maintain its circadian oscillation in plants grown under the light/dark cycle. Importantly, as-NIA1-dependent NIA1 mRNA stability is indispensable for NIA1-mediated NO biosynthesis in guard cells and natural stomatal closure. Moreover, we revealed that polypyrimidine tract-binding 3 (PTB3) regulates the stabilization of NIA1 mRNA by directly binding to UC-rich elements of as-NIA1. We further found that MTA deposits N<sup>6</sup>-methyladenosine (m<sup>6</sup>A) on as-NIA1, facilitating the as-NIA1-PTB3 interaction in vivo, in agreement with RNA structure prediction in that m<sup>6</sup>A-mediated structural alterations expose the UC-rich elements to enhance the accessibility of PTB3. Taken together, these findings reveal a novel molecular mechanism by which plants precisely manipulate NO biosynthesis to modulate light/dark-regulated stomatal movement, highlighting the coupling of RNA epigenetic modifications and structures shaping RNA-protein interactions in the regulation of hormone biosynthesis.</p>","PeriodicalId":19012,"journal":{"name":"Molecular Plant","volume":" ","pages":"151-165"},"PeriodicalIF":17.1,"publicationDate":"2025-01-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142854978","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}