Abstract
Key message
Lower ethylene production in sugarcane results in plants with higher stature, expression of growth-promoting genes, higher photosynthetic rate, and increased antioxidant compounds.
Abstract
The hormone ethylene is involved in critical processes in sugarcane, such as the growth and accumulation of sucrose. The lack of mutants for ethylene biosynthesis or signaling genes makes it difficult to understand the role of this phytohormone throughout sugarcane development. This study aimed to evaluate the physiology and development of sugarcane plants with low ethylene production. To achieve this goal, we used RNA interference to silence three genes, ScACS1, ScACS2, and ScACS3, encoding 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid synthases (ACS), responsible for a limiting step of the ethylene biosynthesis pathway. Sugarcane plants with reduced ethylene levels presented increased growth, faster germination of lateral gems, and activation of non-enzymatic antioxidant mechanisms. We observed an augmentation in the expression of ScACO5, which encodes the final enzyme regulating ethylene biosynthesis, and ScERF1, encoding a transcription factor, linked to the ethylene response. The increase in plant height was correlated with higher expression of ScPIF3, ScPIF4, and ScPIF5, which encode for transcription factors related to growth induction. Interestingly, there was also an increase in the expression of the ScGAI gene, which encodes a DELLA protein, a growth repressor. The final content of sucrose in the stems was not affected by the low levels of ethylene, although the rate of CO2 assimilation was reduced. This study reports for the first time the impacts of low endogenous production of ethylene in sugarcane and provides helpful insights on the molecular mechanisms behind ethylene responses.
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Acknowledgements
We thank the staff from PangeiaBiotech for the assistance in plant transformation and in vitro culture. This work was funded by Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) and Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES).
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The research was funded by Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP) and Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES).
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DN executed most of the evaluations in the transgenic plants. LM designed and constructed the vectors, produced the transgenic plants and conducted in vitro evaluations. GZ performed the non-enzymatic assays. EP performed ethylene quantification and data processing. MM supervised the work. DN, LM, and MM wrote the manuscript. All authors reviewed the manuscript before submission.
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Neris, D., Mattiello, L., Zuñiga, G. et al. Reduction of ethylene biosynthesis in sugarcane induces growth and investment in the non-enzymatic antioxidant apparatus. Plant Cell Rep 41, 979–993 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00299-022-02832-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00299-022-02832-7