Abstract
Main conclusion
Blue light exposure delays tomato seed germination by decreasing endosperm-degrading hydrolase activities, a process regulated by CRY1a-dependent signaling and the hormonal balance between ABA and GA.
Abstract
The germination of tomato seeds (Solanum lycopersicum L.) is tightly controlled by an internal hormonal balance, which is also influenced by environmental factors such as light. In this study, we investigated the blue light (BL)-mediated impacts on physiological, biochemical, and molecular processes during the germination of the blue light photoreceptor CRYPTOCHROME 1a loss-of-function mutant (cry1a) and of the hormonal tomato mutants notabilis (not, deficient in ABA) and procera (pro, displaying a GA-constitutive response). Seeds were germinated in a controlled chamber in the dark and under different intensities of continuous BL (ranging from 1 to 25 µmol m−2 s−1). In general, exposure to BL delayed tomato seed germination in a fluency rate-dependent way due to negative impacts on the activities of endosperm-degrading hydrolases, such as endo-β-mannanase, β-mannosidase, and α-galactosidase. However, not and pro mutants presented higher germination speed index (GSI) compared to WT despite the BL influence, associated with higher hydrolase activities, especially evident in pro, indicating that the ABA/GA hormonal balance is important to diminish BL inhibition over tomato germination. The cry1a germination percentage was higher than in WT in the dark but its GSI was lower under BL exposure, suggesting that functional CRY1a is required for BL-dependent germination. BL inhibits the expression of GA-biosynthetic genes, and induces GA-deactivating and ABA-biosynthetic genes. The magnitude of the BL influence over the hormone-related transcriptional profile is also dependent upon CRY1a, highlighting the complex interplay between light and hormonal pathways. These results contribute to a better understanding of BL-induced events behind the photoregulation of tomato seed germination.
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Data availability
The experimental datasets are available upon reasonable request to the corresponding author.
Abbreviations
- BL:
-
Blue light
- CRY:
-
Cryptochrome
- G%:
-
Germination percentage
- GSI:
-
Germination speed index
- T50:
-
Time to reach 50% total germination
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Acknowledgements
Ph.D. fellowship granted to Reginaldo de Oliveira was financed by the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel–Brazil (CAPES) (Finance Code 001) and the financial support was obtained through São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) (grant number 2018/20748-3).
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RO and RFC conceived and designed the experiments. RO conducted the experiments and analyses. ERP, LDLG and LF provided experimental assistance. RO and FRRA analyzed the data. RO wrote the first draft of the manuscript. FRRA, LAG, and RFC revised the manuscript. RFC is the corresponding author. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
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de Oliveira, R., Alves, F.R.R., da Rocha Prado, E. et al. CRYPTOCHROME 1a-mediated blue light perception regulates tomato seed germination via changes in hormonal balance and endosperm-degrading hydrolase dynamics. Planta 257, 67 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-023-04100-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-023-04100-8