A lateral root primordium1(LRP1) gene regulates fruit wart in cucumber

Fruit wart density critically determines cucumber marketability, yet its regulatory mechanisms remain poorly understood. In this study, EMS mutagenesis generated the high-wart mutant 'mc-mu', which was crossed with the low-wart inbred line 'CR' for genetic analysis. Through MutMap-based mapping, we identified CsaV3_5G036780 (CsLRP1) on chromosome 5 as the causal gene regulating wart density. CsLRP1 encodes a SHI/STY-family protein implicated in auxin biosynthesis. We developed a CRISPR/Cas9 editing system to investigate CsLRP1's role, generating knockout lines via Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. Phenotypic analysis revealed that CsLRP1-deficient plants exhibited significantly increased wart density and reduced basal fruit diameter compared to wild-type, without other morphological alterations. Yeast two-hybrid assays demonstrated physical interaction between CsLRP1 and CsSCZ-21. qRT-PCR analysis further indicated that CsLRP1 negatively regulates wart density, while bioinformatic analyses suggest its potential modulation of auxin signaling pathways. These findings advance our understanding of cucumber wart formation and provide practical targets for breeding programs focused on improving fruit quality traits.