Sequence diversity and enzyme activity of ferric-chelate reductase LeFRO1 in tomato

Ferric-chelate reductase which functions in the reduction of ferric to ferrous iron on root surface is a critical protein for iron homeostasis in strategy I plants. LeFRO1 is a major ferric-chelate reductase involved in iron uptake in tomato. To identify the natural variations of LeFRO1 and to assess their effect on the ferric-chelate reductase activity, we cloned the coding sequences of LeFRO1 from 16 tomato varieties collected from different regions, and detected three types of LeFRO1 (LeFRO1(MM), LeFRO1(Ailsa) and LeFRO1(Monita)) with five amino acid variations at the positions 21, 24, 112, 195 and 582. Enzyme activity assay revealed that the three types of LeFRO1 possessed different ferric-chelate reductase activity (LeFRO1(Ailsa) > LeFRO1(MM) > LeFRO1(Monita)). The 112th amino acid residue Ala of LeFRO1 is critical for maintaining the high activity of ferric-chelate reductase, because modification of this amino acid resulted in a significant reduction of enzyme activity. Further, we showed that the combination of the amino acid residue Ile at the site 24 with Lys at the site 582 played a positive role in the enzyme activity of LeFRO1. In conclusion, the findings are helpful to understand the natural adaptation mechanisms of plants to iron-limiting stress, and may provide new knowledge to select and manipulate LeFRO1 for improving the iron deficiency tolerance in tomato.