Centipedegrass [Eremochloa ophiuroides (Munro) Hack.] EoPGP1 is involved in auxin transport and modifies plant architecture.

Centipedegrass [Eremochloa ophiuroides (Munro) Hack.] is the best warm-season grass that originated from China with high ornamental value, but with a large leaf angle and long internode, the density of centipedegrass is low, which limits the application of centipedegrass. To improve the density of centipedegrass, novel genes that are involved in plant architecture need to be identified and interpreted. In this study, we cloned and elucidated the function of EoPGP1 in centipedegrass. The results showed that EoPGP1 encodes a clade I P-Glycoprotein (PGP) protein consisting of two transmembrane domains (TMDs) and two nucleotide-binding domains (NBDs), arranged as TMD1-NBD1-Linker-TMD2-NBD2. The EoPGP1 gene is ubiquitously expressed in multiple tissues, and the EoPGP1 protein localizes to the plasma membrane. EoPGP1 could transport auxin in yeast cell. Under dim, red and blue light, EoPGP1 complemented the phenotypes induced by the loss-of-function of AtPGP1. Overexpression of EoPGP1 in rice increased leaf angle, free Indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) content and sensitivity to 1-N-naphthylphthalamic acid (NPA). In this study, we verified that EoPGP1 is involved in auxin transport and modifying plant architecture, providing a potential gene that is applicable for improving the density of centipedegrass.