Understanding of how ZmJAZ genes contribute to drought adaptation in maize is advanced, offering a conceptual framework that links molecular responses to climate-resilient traits essential for sustainable crop production under water-limited conditions in the face of climate change.
Abstract
The hormone jasmonic acid (JA) regulates plant growth and development, acts as a stress-tolerant signaling molecule, and ensures tolerance to drought stressors. The jasmonate zim-domain (JAZ) functions as a transcriptional repressor by directly interacting with transcription factors, regulating the activity of JA pathway transcription factors when JA signaling is absent. We systematically identified
JAZ
gene family members using a maize pangenome comprising 26 high-quality genomes. We analyzed evolutionary pressure and structural variation (SV), and reanalyzed public RNA-seq data under drought stress. Sequential expression patterns were further validated using qRT-PCR. In this study, 112
JAZ
genes were identified by pan-genomic analysis of 26 high-quality maize genomes, including 12 core genes (present in all 26 lines), 33 non-core genes (in 2–22 lines), 5 near-core genes (in 23–25 lines), and 62 endemic genes (in 1 line). Analysis of Ka/Ks values showed that some varieties were under positive selection for the
JAZ19
gene. Among these, 15
ZmJAZ
genes had Ka/Ks values < 1, indicating they were subject to purifying selection. There were significant differences in the expression of
ZmJAZ19
between genes affected by structural variation (SV) and those not affected by SV. SV altered the conserved structural domains in some varieties, resulting in a significant number of atypical genes. RNA-seq analysis of drought treatment data revealed seven differentially expressed
ZmJAZ
genes, four of which were core genes. However, atypical genes were identified in numerous response genes across multiple genomes. This study advances our understanding of how
ZmJAZ
genes contribute to drought adaptation in maize, offering a conceptual framework that links molecular responses to climate-resilient traits essential for sustainable crop production under water-limited conditions in the face of climate change.
AP2/ERF (APETALA2/ethylene-responsive factor) represents one of the largest transcription factor superfamilies in plants, playing crucial roles in regulating plant growth and development as well as responding to abiotic stresses. Investigating the functions of maize (Zea mays L.) AP2/ERF family genes will provide novel genetic resources for maize genetic improvement. In this study, the AP2/ERF transcription factor superfamily member ZmEREB54 (GRMZM2G020054, Gene ID: 100,278,463) was cloned from maize and was systematically analyzed functionally. The full-length CDS of ZmEREB54 gene was 561 bp, encoding 186 amino acids with a typical AP2/ERF conserved domain. Its promoter region contained cis-acting elements associated with responses to various abiotic stresses and hormones. Maize expression pattern analysis revealed that ZmEREB54 was highly expressed in V12 roots, with significant expression changes under osmotic stress, drought, high salinity, and treatments with abscisic acid (ABA) and jasmonic acid (JA). Phenotypic analysis showed that transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana over-expressing ZmEREB54 exhibited significantly longer roots compared to wild-type plants under high salinity, drought, osmotic stress, and hormone treatments (JA, ABA). Stress-responsive marker genes RD29A and RD22 were upregulated in the transgenic A. thaliana lines. The significantly decreased malondialdehyde (MDA) accumulation and markedly increased peroxidase (POD) activity in transgenic A. thaliana further demonstrate the improvement of its stress tolerance. Yeast two-hybrid (Y2H) assays revealed an interaction between ZmEREB54 and ZmMADS24.6, suggesting potential cooperative regulation of ZmEREB54 and ZmMADS24.6 in maize root development and stress responses. This study establishes a solid foundation for further clarifying the biological functions and molecular mechanisms of ZmEREB54 in regulating maize root growth and development, as well as responding to drought and salt stresses.
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The TIFY gene family comprises plant-specific transcriptional regulators central to jasmonic acid (JA) signaling and responses to biotic and abiotic stresses. Despite the economic importance of the banana (Musa spp.), the TIFY family remains largely uncharacterized in this crop. Here, we conducted a genome-wide identification and comprehensive analysis of the MaTIFY gene family in Musa acuminata. A total of 47 MaTIFY genes were identified, distributed across all 11 chromosomes. Phylogenetic analysis classified these into four subfamilies (TIFY, ZIZ/ZML, PPD, and JAZ), and conserved motif and domain analyses revealed a core TIFY domain architecture with subfamily-specific structural features. Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment and cis-acting regulatory element analyses suggested potential involvement in JA-mediated signaling, defense response, and hormone cross-talk. Expression profiling under drought, Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. cubense race 4 (Foc 4), and cold stress revealed distinct transcriptional responses, with MaTIFY5, MaTIFY16, MaTIFY20, MaTIFY26, and MaTIFY30 exhibiting enhanced induction in resistant cultivars compared to their susceptible counterparts. Functional characterization of MaTIFY20 confirmed its significant upregulation under drought stress and its ability to confer enhanced osmotic tolerance when heterologously expressed in yeast. These findings provide novel insights into the evolutionary dynamics and stress-responsive functions of banana TIFY genes and identify candidate targets for molecular breeding to improve abiotic and biotic stress resilience in banana.
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