Key Laboratory for Bio-Resource and Eco-Environment of Ministry of Education & Sichuan Zoige Alpine Wetland Ecosystem National Observation and Research Station, College of Life Science, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610065, China.
Key Laboratory for Bio-Resource and Eco-Environment of Ministry of Education & Sichuan Zoige Alpine Wetland Ecosystem National Observation and Research Station, College of Life Science, Sichuan University, Chengdu, Sichuan 610065, China.
J Genet Genomics. 2023 Dec;50(12):993-1003. doi: 10.1016/j.jgg.2023.08.004. Epub 2023 Aug 24.
Coordinated plant adaptation involves the interplay of multiple traits driven by habitat-specific selection pressures. Pleiotropic effects, wherein genetic variants of a single gene control multiple traits, can expedite such adaptations. Until present, only a limited number of genes have been reported to exhibit pleiotropy. Here, we create a recombinant inbred line (RIL) population derived from two Arabidopsis thaliana (A. thaliana) ecotypes originating from divergent habitats. Using this RIL population, we identify an allelic variation in a MADS-box transcription factor, SHORT VEGETATIVE PHASE (SVP), which exerts a pleiotropic effect on leaf size and drought-versus-humidity tolerance. Further investigation reveals that a natural null variant of the SVP protein disrupts its normal regulatory interactions with target genes, including GRF3, CYP707A1/3, and AtBG1, leading to increased leaf size, enhanced tolerance to humid conditions, and changes in flowering time of humid conditions in A. thaliana. Remarkably, polymorphic variations in this gene have been traced back to early A. thaliana populations, providing a genetic foundation and plasticity for subsequent colonization of diverse habitats by influencing multiple traits. These findings advance our understanding of how plants rapidly adapt to changing environments by virtue of the pleiotropic effects of individual genes on multiple trait alterations.
协调的植物适应涉及到受特定栖息地选择压力驱动的多种性状的相互作用。多效性效应是指单个基因的遗传变异控制多个性状，这可以加速这种适应。直到现在，仅报道了少数几个表现出多效性的基因。在这里，我们创建了一个源自两个源自不同栖息地的拟南芥（Arabidopsis thaliana）生态型的重组近交系（RIL）群体。利用这个 RIL 群体，我们鉴定出一个 MADS 框转录因子 SHORT VEGETATIVE PHASE（SVP）的等位基因变异，它对叶片大小和耐旱性与耐湿性具有多效性影响。进一步的研究表明，SVP 蛋白的天然缺失变体破坏了其与目标基因（包括 GRF3、CYP707A1/3 和 AtBG1）的正常调控相互作用，导致叶片大小增加、对潮湿条件的耐受性增强以及开花时间变化在潮湿条件下的拟南芥。值得注意的是，该基因中的多态性变异可以追溯到早期的拟南芥群体，为随后通过影响多个性状的单个基因的多效性效应在不同栖息地的殖民化提供了遗传基础和可塑性。这些发现增进了我们对植物如何通过单个基因对多个性状改变的多效性效应来快速适应不断变化的环境的理解。
