Plant Diversity ›› 2022, Vol. 44 ›› Issue (02): 201-212.DOI: 10.1016/j.pld.2021.06.008

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Genome-wide analysis of the B3 transcription factors reveals that RcABI3/VP1 subfamily plays important roles in seed development and oil storage in castor bean (Ricinus communis)

Wen-Bo Wanga,e,f, Tao Aod, Yan-Yu Zhangb, Di Wue,f, Wei Xue, Bing Hane, Ai-Zhong Liuc   

  1. a Sino-Danish College, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China;
    b Northwest A&F University, Yangling, 712100, China;
    c Key Laboratory for Forest Resources Conservation and Utilization in the Southwest Mountains of China (Ministry of Education), Southwest Forestry University, Kunming, 650224, China;
    d Key Laboratory of Tropical Plant Resources and Sustainable Use, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Science, Mengla, 666303, China;
    e Kunming Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 132 Lanhei Road, Kunming, 650204, China;
    f University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101, China
  • Received:2021-04-01 Revised:2021-06-19 Online:2022-04-25 Published:2022-04-24
  • Contact: Ai-Zhong Liu,E-mail:liuaizhong@mail.kib.ac.cn
  • Supported by:
    Authors gave many thanks to Zibo Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shandong, China for providing the seeds of castor bean var. ZB306 elite inbred line. This work was supported by National Natural Science Foundation of China (31661143002, 81760507, 31571709, 31771839, 31701123 and 31501034), Yunnan Applied Basic Research Projects (2016FA011, 2016FB060 and 2016FB040), the National R&D Infrastructure and Facility development Program of China “Fundamental Science Data Sharing Platform (DKA 2017-12-02-16) and the 13th Five-year informatization Plan of Chinese Academy of Sciences (No. XXH13506).

Abstract: The B3 transcription factors (TFs) in plants play vital roles in numerous biological processes. Although B3 genes have been broadly identified in many plants, little is known about their potential functions in mediating seed development and material accumulation. Castor bean (Ricinus communis) is a non-edible oilseed crop considered an ideal model system for seed biology research. Here, we identified a total of 61 B3 genes in the castor bean genome, which can be classified into five subfamilies, including ABI3/VP1, HSI, ARF, RAV and REM. The expression profiles revealed that RcABI3/VP1 subfamily genes are significantly up-regulated in the middle and later stages of seed development, indicating that these genes may be associated with the accumulation of storage oils. Furthermore, through yeast one-hybrid and tobacco transient expression assays, we detected that ABI3/VP1 subfamily member RcLEC2 directly regulates the transcription of RcOleosin2, which encodes an oil-body structural protein. This finding suggests that RcLEC2, as a seed-specific TF, may be involved in the regulation of storage materials accumulation. This study provides novel insights into the potential roles and molecular basis of B3 family proteins in seed development and material accumulation.

Key words: B3 transcription factor, Castor bean, Gene expression, ABI3/VP1 subfamily, Seed development, Seed oil