TCP Transcription Factors Associate with PHYTOCHROME INTERACTING FACTOR 4 and CRYPTOCHROME 1 to Regulate Thermomorphogenesis in Arabidopsis thaliana
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Updated: Jan 25, 2026

Describing a Transcription Factor Dependent Regulation of the MicroRNA Transcriptome
Published on: June 15, 2016
Yu Zhou1, Qingqing Xun1, Dongzhi Zhang1
1Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Cell Activities and Stress Adaptations, School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou 730000, P.R. China.
Abstract:
Temperature, one of the most critical environmental cues, greatly affects plant growth, development, and reproduction. PHYTOCHROME-INTERACTING FACTOR 4 (PIF4), a key transcription factor in light signaling pathway, plays a central role in temperature-mediated growth responses. How higher temperature regulates the function of PIF4, however, is not well understood. Here we demonstrate that three phylogenetically related TEOSINTE BRANCHED 1/CYCLOIDEA/PCF (TCP) transcription factors, TCP5, TCP13, and TCP17, play fundamental roles in promoting thermoresponsive hypocotyl growth by positively regulating the activity of PIF4. TCP17 was found to interact with a blue light receptor, CRYPTOCHROME 1 (CRY1), at lower temperature, leading to reduced activity of TCP17. Higher temperature can increase the stability of TCP17, and release TCP17 from the CRY1-TCP17 complex, allowing it to upregulate the expression of PIF4 and enhance the transcriptional activity of PIF4. This study revealed the important roles of TCPs in regulating the activity of PIF4 in thermomorphogenesis.
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