English (United Kingdom)

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/featured_content/oa?rat=en

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/highlighted_journal/

Zendy Plus

Presents the access of premium content as premium feature

Premium Content

Presents the keyphrase highlighting as premium feature

Keyphrase Highlighting

Presents the summarisation as premium feature

Summarisation

Insights

Presents the pdf analysis as premium feature

PDF Analysis

Presents the zaia usage as premium feature

ZAIA

Zendy Tools

Zendy Open

Summary  Lettuce ( Lactuca sativa ) is one of the most important vegetables worldwide and an ideal plant for producing protein drugs. Both well‐functioning chloroplasts that perform robust photosynthesis and small leaf angles that enable dense planting are essential for high yields. In this study, we used an F 2  population derived from a cross between a lettuce cultivar with pale‐green leaves and large leaf angles to a cultivar with dark‐green leaves and small leaf angles to clone  LsNRL4 , which encodes an NPH3/RPT2‐Like (NRL) protein. Unlike other NRL proteins in lettuce, the LsNRL4 lacks the BTB domain. Knockout mutants engineered using CRISPR/Cas9 and transgenic lines overexpressing  LsNRL4  verified that  LsNRL4  contributes to chloroplast development, photosynthesis and leaf angle. The  LsNRL4  gene was not present in the parent with pale‐green leaves and enlarged leaf angles. Loss of  LsNRL4  results in the enlargement of chloroplasts, decreases in the amount of cellular space allocated to chloroplasts and defects in secondary cell wall biosynthesis in lamina joints. Overexpressing  LsNRL4  significantly improved photosynthesis and decreased leaf angles. Indeed, the plant architecture of the overexpressing lines is ideal for dense planting. In summary, we identified a novel  NRL  gene that enhances photosynthesis and influences plant architecture. Our study provides new approaches for the breeding of lettuce that can be grown in dense planting in the open field or in modern plant factories.  LsNRL4  homologues may also be used in other crops to increase photosynthesis and improve plant architecture.

LsNRL4 enhances photosynthesis and decreases leaf angles in lettuce