RRC ID 84994
Author Ruifang Gao, Yueqing Li, Xiaotong Shan, Yanan Wang, Siqi Yang, Saiyu Ma, Ziyi Xia, Huibo Zheng, Chao Wei, Linna Tong, Jianchun Qin, Xiang Gao, Quentin Cronk
Title A single nucleotide polymorphism affects protein translation and leads to post‐anthesis color change variation in closely related Lotus species
Journal The Plant Journal
Abstract SUMMARYFlower color change, a common phenomenon that is important in pollination ecology, has intrigued scientists for decades. While previous flower color studies have mainly focused on color diversity among different plant species, our focus is on unraveling the mechanism of post‐anthesis color change (PACC) and the molecular basis for its presence and absence, respectively, in two closely related species of Lotus, Lotus filicaulis and Lotus japonicus MG20. Metabolomic analysis reveals anthocyanins as the key metabolites responsible for the observed PACC. Differential expression of anthocyanin biosynthetic and transport genes causes the variation in PACC between the two Lotus species. Crucially, the significant upregulation of a functionally characterized MYB regulator, LfPAP1, is linked to the accumulation of anthocyanins and visible color alterations in L. filicaulis flowers. Notably, we uncover a nucleotide polymorphism in the initiation codon of LjPAP1. Although this mutation does not affect transcription, we show that it has a major effect in attenuating protein translation, reducing its capacity to activate anthocyanin biosynthesis, and leading to a failure of PACC in L. japonicus MG20. Our study sheds light on mechanisms of PACC phenomenon and highlights the potential for mutations in initiation sequences to generate phenotypic differences between species in evolution.
Volume 121
Published 2025-1-1
DOI 10.1111/tpj.17188
PMID 39636691
MeSH Anthocyanins* / genetics Anthocyanins* / metabolism Flowers* / genetics Flowers* / metabolism Gene Expression Regulation, Plant* Lotus* / genetics Lotus* / metabolism Lotus* / physiology Pigmentation / genetics Plant Proteins* / genetics Plant Proteins* / metabolism Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide* Protein Biosynthesis / genetics
IF 6.141
Resource
Lotus / Glycine Miyakojima MG-20