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CaAP2 transcription factor is a candidate gene for a flowering repressor and a candidate for controlling natural variation of flowering time in Capsicum annuum

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The APETALA2 transcription factor homolog CaAP2 is a candidate gene for a flowering repressor in pepper, as revealed by induced-mutation phenotype, and a candidate underlying a major QTL controlling natural variation in flowering time.

Abstract

To decipher the genetic control of transition to flowering in pepper (Capsicum spp.) and determine the extent of gene function conservation compared to model species, we isolated and characterized several ethyl methanesulfonate (EMS)-induced mutants that vary in their flowering time compared to the wild type. In the present study, we report on the isolation of an early-flowering mutant that flowers after four leaves on the primary stem compared to nine leaves in the wild-type ‘Maor’. By genetic mapping and sequencing of putative candidate genes linked to the mutant phenotype, we identified a member of the APETALA2 (AP2) transcription factor family, CaAP2, which was disrupted in the early-flowering mutant. CaAP2 is a likely ortholog of AP2 that functions as a repressor of flowering in Arabidopsis. To test whether CaAP2 has an effect on controlling natural variation in the transition to flowering in pepper, we performed QTL mapping for flowering time in a cross between early and late-flowering C. annuum accessions. We identified a major QTL in a region of chromosome 2 in which CaAP2 was the most significant marker, explaining 52 % of the phenotypic variation of the trait. Sequence comparison of the CaAP2 open reading frames in the two parents used for QTL mapping did not reveal significant variation. In contrast, significant differences in expression level of CaAP2 were detected between near-isogenic lines that differ for the flowering time QTL, supporting the putative function of CaAP2 as a major repressor of flowering in pepper.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Aharon Bellalou for technical support, Arnon Brand for graphic design and Hanita Zemach for assistance with microscopic analyses. We thank Dr. Zach Lippman (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) for contributing the digital expression data of CaAP2 in ‘Maor’. This research was supported by The Israel Science Foundation (Grant No. 1349/10).

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

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Author notes

  1. Vinod K. Sharma

    Present address: Indian Agricultural Research Institute, Regional Station Katrain, Kullu Valley, HP, 175129, India

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Plant Science, Agricultural Research Organization, The Volcani Center, P.O. Box 6, 50250, Bet Dagan, Israel

    Yelena Borovsky, Vinod K. Sharma & Ilan Paran

  2. Nunhems Netherlands BV, Bayer CropScience Vegetable Seeds, PO Box 4005, 6080 AA, Haelen, The Netherlands

    Henk Verbakel

Authors
  1. Yelena Borovsky
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Correspondence to Ilan Paran.

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Communicated by J. Dubcovsky.

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Borovsky, Y., Sharma, V.K., Verbakel, H. et al. CaAP2 transcription factor is a candidate gene for a flowering repressor and a candidate for controlling natural variation of flowering time in Capsicum annuum . Theor Appl Genet 128, 1073–1082 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00122-015-2491-3

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