MACROCALYX and JOINTLESS Interact in the Transcriptional Regulation of Tomato Fruit Abscission Zone Development
Open Access
- 21 November 2011
- journal article
- Published by Oxford University Press (OUP) in Plant Physiology
- Vol. 158 (1), 439-450
- https://doi.org/10.1104/pp.111.183731
Abstract
Abscission in plants is a crucial process used to shed organs such as leaves, flowers, and fruits when they are senescent, damaged, or mature. Abscission occurs at predetermined positions called abscission zones (AZs). Although the regulation of fruit abscission is essential for agriculture, the developmental mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we describe a novel transcription factor regulating the development of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) pedicel AZs. We found that the development of tomato pedicel AZs requires the gene MACROCALYX (MC), which was previously identified as a sepal size regulator and encodes a MADS-box transcription factor. MC has significant sequence similarity to Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) FRUITFULL, which is involved in the regulation of fruit dehiscent zone development. The MC protein interacted physically with another MADS-box protein, JOINTLESS, which is known as a regulator of fruit abscission; the resulting heterodimer acquired a specific DNA-binding activity. Transcriptome analyses of pedicels at the preabscission stage revealed that the expression of the genes involved in phytohormone-related functions, cell wall modifications, fatty acid metabolism, and transcription factors is regulated by MC and JOINTLESS. The regulated genes include homologs of Arabidopsis WUSCHEL, REGULATOR OF AXILLARY MERISTEMS, CUP-SHAPED COTYLEDON, and LATERAL SUPPRESSOR. These Arabidopsis genes encode well-characterized transcription factors regulating meristem maintenance, axillary meristem development, and boundary formation in plant tissues. The tomato homologs were specifically expressed in AZs but not in other pedicel tissues, suggesting that these transcription factors may play key roles in pedicel AZ development.Keywords
This publication has 55 references indexed in Scilit:
- Signaling Pathways Mediating the Induction of Apple Fruitlet AbscissionPlant Physiology, 2010
- Microarray Analysis of the Abscission-Related Transcriptome in the Tomato Flower Abscission Zone in Response to Auxin DepletionPlant Physiology, 2010
- Ripening-associated ethylene biosynthesis in tomato fruit is autocatalytically and developmentally regulatedJournal of Experimental Botany, 2009
- The flowering hormone florigen functions as a general systemic regulator of growth and terminationProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2009
- Ethylene-induced differential gene expression during abscission of citrus leavesJournal of Experimental Botany, 2008
- Stamen Abscission Zone Transcriptome Profiling Reveals New Candidates for Abscission Control: Enhanced Retention of Floral Organs in Transgenic Plants Overexpressing ArabidopsisZINC FINGER PROTEIN2Plant Physiology, 2008
- The Arabidopsis EIN3 Binding F-Box Proteins EBF1 and EBF2 Have Distinct but Overlapping Roles in Ethylene SignalingTHE PLANT CELL ONLINE, 2007
- Plant separation: 50 ways to leave your motherCurrent Opinion in Plant Biology, 2006
- Analysis of Relative Gene Expression Data Using Real-Time Quantitative PCR and the 2−ΔΔCT MethodMethods, 2001
- The war of the whorls: genetic interactions controlling flower developmentNature, 1991