A conserved RNA recognition motif (RRM) domain of Brassica napus FCA improves cotton fiber quality and yield by regulating cell size

Abstract

Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) is an important crop that is used to produce both natural textile fiber and cottonseed oil. Cotton fiber is a unicellular trichome, whose length is critical to fiber quality and yield but difficult to modify. FCA was originally identified based on flowering time control in Arabidopsis. The function of the second RNA recognition motif (RRM) domain of Oryza sativa FCA in rice cell-size regulation has been previously reported, showing it to be highly conserved across dicotyledonous and monocotyledonous plants. The present study showed that the second RRM domain of Brassica napus FCA functioned in Gossypium hirsutum, leading to enlargement of multiple cell types, such as pollen, cotyledon petiole, and cotton fiber. In the resulting transgenic cotton, fiber length increased by ~10% and fiber yield per plant showed a dramatic increase, ranging from 35 to 66% greater than controls. Thus, this RRM domain may be a cell-size regulator and have great economic value in the cotton industry.