Meng Fanyi, Ma Mengqiu, Li Shanshan, Liang Pan, Liang Yunfei, Shi Hongyan, Huang Shudi, Su Huai, Deng Yilin, Akram Muhammad Asif, Shen Xiaoxia, Feng Ru, Zhan Xiangqiang, Ma Fang
State Key Laboratory for Crop Stress Resistance and High-Efficiency Production and College of Horticulture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shanxi 712100, China.
Ulanqab Agricultural Technology and Popularization Center, Ulanqab, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region 012000, China.
Genomics. 2025 Mar;117(2):111022. doi: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2025.111022. Epub 2025 Feb 26.
Light-harvesting chlorophyll a/b-binding (LHC) proteins, as the antenna complex, collect and transfer light energy to the reaction centers of PSII. They are crucial for abiotic stress responses, especially in the photoprotection under cold stress. However, members of the LHC gene family in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) have not yet been identified. In this study, a total of 39 SlLHC proteins containing the chlorophyll a/b binding domain or light-harvesting-like domain were identified, and classified into four subfamilies: Lhc, Lil, PsbS, and FCII. Further qRT-PCR analysis showed SlLhcb1.11 was inhibited and SlELIP1 was induced at low temperature (4 °C). Subsequently, the result of VIGS experiment showed that silencing SlLhcb1.11 or SlELIP1 genes resulted in lighter leaf color, reduced chlorophyll content, compromised photosynthesis, and decreased cold tolerance in tomato plants. These findings offer novel insights into the structure and function of SlLHC genes, thereby contributing to genetic resources for the development of cold-tolerant tomato germplasm.
捕光叶绿素a/b结合（LHC）蛋白作为天线复合体，收集光能并将其传递到光系统II的反应中心。它们对于非生物胁迫响应至关重要，尤其是在低温胁迫下的光保护过程中。然而，番茄（Solanum lycopersicum L.）中LHC基因家族的成员尚未得到鉴定。在本研究中，共鉴定出39个含有叶绿素a/b结合结构域或类捕光结构域的SlLHC蛋白，并将其分为四个亚家族：Lhc、Lil、PsbS和FCII。进一步的qRT-PCR分析表明，低温（4°C）下SlLhcb1.11受到抑制，而SlELIP1被诱导。随后，VIGS实验结果表明，沉默SlLhcb1.11或SlELIP1基因会导致番茄植株叶片颜色变浅、叶绿素含量降低、光合作用受损以及耐寒性下降。这些发现为SlLHC基因的结构和功能提供了新的见解，从而为耐寒番茄种质资源的开发提供了遗传资源。
