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Published on: May 10, 2016
The mechanism for brassinosteroids suppressing climacteric fruit ripening.
Yinglin Ji1, Yi Qu1, Zhongyu Jiang1
1Key Laboratory of Fruit Postharvest Biology, Liaoning Province, College of Horticulture, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 110866, China.
Brassinosteroids (BR) suppress ethylene production and delay fruit ripening in pears by regulating key genes involved in ethylene biosynthesis. This brassinosteroid-activated mechanism, involving PuBZR1, appears conserved in climacteric fruits like apples.
Area of Science:
- Plant Molecular Biology
- Hormone Signaling
- Fruit Ripening Physiology
Background:
- Ethylene is a crucial plant hormone regulating climacteric fruit ripening.
- Brassinosteroids (BRs) influence ethylene biosynthesis, but the molecular mechanism remains unclear.
- BRs are known to affect various plant growth and development processes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To elucidate the molecular mechanism by which brassinosteroids (BRs) regulate ethylene biosynthesis during pear fruit ripening.
- To investigate the role of BRASSINAZOLE-RESISTANT 1 (BZR1) in BR-mediated suppression of ethylene production.
- To determine if this mechanism is conserved in other climacteric fruits.
Main Methods:
- Exogenous BR treatment and BR biosynthesis inhibitor application in pear (Pyrus ussuriensis) fruits.
- Analysis of ethylene production, fruit ripening, and gene expression.
- Yeast one-hybrid assays to confirm protein-protein interactions.
- Promoter-binding assays and quantitative PCR to assess transcriptional regulation.
Main Results:
- BR treatment suppressed ethylene production and delayed ripening; BR inhibitor promoted them.
- BR treatment upregulated PuBZR1 expression in pear fruits.
- BR-activated PuBZR1 directly suppressed PuACO1 and PuACS1a transcription and indirectly suppressed them via PuERF2.
- Similar effects were observed in apple (Malus domestica) homologs, indicating conserved mechanisms.
Conclusions:
- Brassinosteroids act as ripening suppressors in climacteric fruits by inhibiting ethylene biosynthesis.
- BR-activated BZR1 plays a key role by suppressing ACO1 activity and the transcription of ethylene biosynthesis genes (ACO1, ACS1).
- This BR-mediated suppression of ethylene production represents a conserved regulatory mechanism in climacteric fruit ripening.
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