Novel R2R3-MYB Transcription Factor LiMYB75 Enhances Leaf Callus Regeneration Efficiency in Lagerstroemia indica

Abstract

Lagerstroemia indica is an important woody ornamental plant worldwide. However, the application of many technologies, such as transgenic breeding and genome editing, has been severely hampered due to the lack of efficient calli induction and regeneration technology. Here, we discussed a reliable and efficient calli induction and regeneration protocol using whole-leaf explants. This protocol’s effectiveness for the calli induction and regeneration systems in crape myrtle were up to 70.33% and 44.33%, respectively. Next, an efficient and stable Agrobacterium-mediated genetic transformation system was created from leaf calli, and the green fluorescent protein (GFP) was able to detect up to 90% of its positive frequency. Meanwhile, two positive lines’ transfer DNA insertion sites and directions were identified using whole genome sequencing. LiMYB75, a novel R2R3-MYB transcription factor, was identified and transferred to the L. indica genome to enhance the leaf calli regeneration frequency. Surprisingly, overexpressing LiMYB75 increased the frequency of calli regeneration in the leaf by 1.27 times and the number of regenerated plantlets per callus by 4.00 times compared to the wild type, by regulating the expression levels of genes involved in callus formation, such as SHOOT MERISTEMLESS (STM). Overall, our findings revealed a simple, reliable, and highly efficient transformation approach and identified the desirable candidate gene LiMYB75, which improves L. indica’s calli regeneration efficiency.