Interactions between ShPP2-1, an F-box family gene, and ACR11A regulate cold tolerance of tomato

Jianwen Song,Shiwei Chen,Lele Shang,Junhong Zhang,Zhibiao Ye,Bo Ouyang,Yongen Lu,Yuyang Zhang

doi:10.1038/s41438-021-00582-3

Jianwen Song, Shiwei Chen + Show 6 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1038/s41438-021-00582-3

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Journal: Horticulture Research	Publication Date: Jul 1, 2021
Citations: 8	License type: open-access

Affiliation: Huazhong Agricultural University

Abstract

There is a critical need to identify germplasm resources and genes that promote cold tolerance of tomato because global tomato production is threatened by cold stress. We found that the expression of an F-box gene family member named ShPP2-1 from Solanum habrochaites is cold inducible and studied its contribution to cold tolerance. Overexpression of ShPP2-1 in cultivated tomato (AC) reduced cold tolerance by intensifying damage to cell membranes. To explore the underlying molecular mechanism, we conducted a yeast two-hybrid library screen and found that a protein containing ACT domain repeats named ACR11A interacts with PP2-1. Overexpression of SlACR11A in AC enhanced the cold tolerance of seedlings and germinating seeds. Cold tolerance decreased in tomato plants that overexpressed both of these genes. Additionally, we performed seed germination experiments in the cold with 177 tomato accessions and identified two alleles of SlACR11A that differ in one single-nucleotide polymorphism. We found that one of these alleles, SlACR11AG, is significantly enriched in cold-tolerant tomato plants. Taken together, our findings indicate that the combination of low expression levels of PP2-1 and high expression levels of ACR11A can promote cold tolerance. These genes may therefore serve as direct targets for both genetic engineering and improvement projects that aim to enhance the cold tolerance of tomato.

Highlights

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) originated in theAndes region of South America, and it was domesticated in Central America and has since been distributed worldwide
Response of phloem protein 2 (PP2)-1 expression to different stresses In our previous microarray analysis, we found that the expression of an F-box gene, PP2-1, was strongly induced by cold stress in two cold-tolerant accessions of tomato, LA1777 (S. habrochaites) and LA3969 (S. lycopersicum), relative to a cold-sensitive accession, LA4024 (S. lycopersicum)[26]
To independently evaluate our microarray results, the transcript levels of PP2-1 were analyzed in LA1777 and AC that were subjected to cold stress

Summary

Introduction

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) originated in theAndes region of South America, and it was domesticated in Central America and has since been distributed worldwide. Cold stress is a major environmental stress that severely attenuates the vegetative and reproductive growth of tomato plants and restricts the geographic distribution of tomato. Cold stress causes tremendous losses of tomato crops every year[1]. Plants have evolved complex mechanisms that help them sense, respond, and Previous studies have thoroughly elucidated complex cold-responsive signaling mechanisms in Arabidopsis thaliana[2,3,4]. The genetic variation and regulatory mechanisms that promote cold tolerance of tomato remain poorly understood. The indicators used to assess cold tolerance of plants include seed germination, seedling survival and growth, vegetative growth, and reproduction[6]. By the use of near-isogenic lines (NILs), COLD1 was found to promote chilling tolerance in rice seedlings[7].

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