ETHYLENE RESPONSE FACTOR6, A Central Regulator of Plant Growth in Response to Stress.

ETHYLENE RESPONSE FACTOR6 (ERF6) has emerged as a central player in stress-induced plant growth inhibition. It orchestrates complex pathways that enable plants to acclimate and thrive in challenging environments. In response to various abiotic and biotic stresses, ERF6 is promptly activated through both ethylene-dependent and -independent pathways, and contributes to enhanced stress tolerance mechanisms by activating a broad spectrum of genes at various developmental stages.

Triple gene mutations boost amylose and resistant starch content in rice: insights from //OE- mutants.

Previous studies have modified rice's resistant starch (RS) content by mutating single and double genes. These mutations include knocking out or reducing the expression of or genes, as well as overexpressing . However, the impact of triple mutant //OE- on RS contents remained unknown.

C-TERMINAL DOMAIN PHOSPHATASE-LIKE 3 contributes to GA-mediated growth and flowering by interaction with DELLA proteins.

Gibberellic acid (GA) plays a central role in many plant developmental processes and is crucial for crop improvement. DELLA proteins, the core suppressors in the GA signaling pathway, are degraded by GA via the 26S proteasomal pathway to release the GA response. However, little is known about the phosphorylation-mediated regulation of DELLA proteins.

Generation of aroma in three-line hybrid rice through CRISPR/Cas9 editing of BETAINE ALDEHYDE DEHYDROGENASE2 (OsBADH2).

Aroma or fragrance in rice is a genetically controlled trait; Its high appreciation by consumers increases the rice market price. Previous studies have revealed that the rice aroma is controlled by a specific gene called BETAINE ALDEHYDE DEHYDROGENASE (OsBADH2), and mutation of this gene leads to the accumulation of an aromatic substance 2-acetyl-1-pyrroline (2-AP). The use of genetic engineering to produce aroma in commercial and cultivated hybrids is a contemporary need for molecular breeding.

HCC1, a Polygalacturonase, Regulates Chlorophyll Degradation via the Ethylene Synthesis Pathway.

Chlorophyll degradation is an important physiological process and is essential for plant growth and development. However, how chlorophyll degradation is controlled at the cellular and molecular level remains largely elusive. Pectin is a main component of the primary cell wall, and polygalacturonases (PGs) is a group of pectin-hydrolases that cleaves the pectin backbone and release oligogalacturonide.

Histone chaperones AtChz1A and AtChz1B are required for H2A.Z deposition and interact with the SWR1 chromatin-remodeling complex in Arabidopsis thaliana.

The histone variant H2A.Z plays key functions in transcription and genome stability in all eukaryotes ranging from yeast to human, but the molecular mechanisms by which H2A.Z is incorporated into chromatin remain largely obscure.

Structural insights into molecular mechanism for N-adenosine methylation by MT-A70 family methyltransferase METTL4.

METTL4 belongs to a subclade of MT-A70 family members of methyltransferase (MTase) proteins shown to mediate N-adenosine methylation for both RNA and DNA in diverse eukaryotes. Here, we report that Arabidopsis METTL4 functions as U2 snRNA MTase for N-2'-O-dimethyladenosine (mAm) in vivo that regulates flowering time, and specifically catalyzes N-methylation of 2'-O-methyladenosine (Am) within a single-stranded RNA in vitro. The apo structures of full-length Arabidopsis METTL4 bound to S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAM) and the complex structure with an Am-containing RNA substrate, combined with mutagenesis and in vitro enzymatic assays, uncover a preformed L-shaped, positively-charged cavity surrounded by four loops for substrate binding and a catalytic center composed of conserved residues for specific Am nucleotide recognition and N-methylation activity.

Structural insights into partner selection for MYB and bHLH transcription factor complexes.

MYB and basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factors form complexes to regulate diverse metabolic and developmental processes in plants. However, the molecular mechanisms responsible for MYB-bHLH interaction and partner selection remain unclear. Here, we report the crystal structures of three MYB-bHLH complexes (WER-EGL3, CPC-EGL3 and MYB29-MYC3), uncovering two MYB-bHLH interaction modes.

H3K36 methyltransferase SDG708 enhances drought tolerance by promoting abscisic acid biosynthesis in rice.

Chromatin modifications play important roles in plant adaptation to abiotic stresses, but the precise function of histone H3 lysine 36 (H3K36) methylation in drought tolerance remains poorly evaluated. Here, we report that SDG708, a specific H3K36 methyltransferase, functions as a positive regulator of drought tolerance in rice. SDG708 promoted abscisic acid (ABA) biosynthesis by directly targeting and activating the crucial ABA biosynthesis genes NINE-CIS-EPOXYCAROTENOID DIOXYGENASE 3 (OsNCED3) and NINE-CIS-EPOXYCAROTENOID DIOXYGENASE 5 (OsNCED5).

NAP1-Related Protein 1 (NRP1) has multiple interaction modes for chaperoning histones H2A-H2B.

Nucleosome Assembly Protein 1 (NAP1) family proteins are evolutionarily conserved histone chaperones that play important roles in diverse biological processes. In this study, we determined the crystal structure of NAP1-Related Protein 1 (NRP1) complexed with H2A-H2B and uncovered a previously unknown interaction mechanism in histone chaperoning. Both in vitro binding and in vivo plant rescue assays proved that interaction mediated by the N-terminal α-helix (αN) domain is essential for NRP1 function.

OsChz1 acts as a histone chaperone in modulating chromatin organization and genome function in rice.

While the yeast Chz1 acts as a specific histone-chaperone for H2A.Z, functions of CHZ-domain proteins in multicellular eukaryotes remain obscure. Here, we report on the functional characterization of OsChz1, a sole CHZ-domain protein identified in rice.

Rice stripe1-2 and stripe1-3 Mutants Encoding the Small Subunit of Ribonucleotide Reductase Are Temperature Sensitive and Are Required for Chlorophyll Biosynthesis.

We induced mutants, stripe1-2 (st1-2) and stripe1-3 (st1-3), from rice (Oryza sativa L.) Indica 9311 using Ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS). Both st1-2 and st1-3 mutants encoded the small subunit of ribonucleotide reductase 1 (RNRS1), differed in the location of the mutated base, and displayed white-stripe from the L2 stage through maturity.