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The zinc‐finger transcription factor Cc LOL 1 controls chloroplast development and immature pepper fruit color in Capsicum chinense and its function is conserved in tomato
Author(s) -
Borovsky Yelena,
Monsonego Noam,
Mohan Vijee,
Shabtai Sara,
Kamara Itzhak,
Faigenboim Adi,
Hill Theresa,
Chen Shiyu,
Stoffel Kevin,
Van Deynze Allen,
Paran Ilan
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
the plant journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.058
H-Index - 269
eISSN - 1365-313X
pISSN - 0960-7412
DOI - 10.1111/tpj.14305
Subject(s) - pepper , biology , quantitative trait locus , solanaceae , chloroplast , chlorophyll , gene , mutant , capsicum chinense , botany , genetics , horticulture
Summary Chloroplast development and chlorophyll content in the immature fruit has a major impact on the morphology and quality in pepper ( Capsicum spp.) fruit. Two major quantitative trait loci ( QTL s), pc1 and pc10 that affect chlorophyll content in the pepper fruit by modulation of chloroplast compartment size were previously identified in chromosomes 1 and 10, respectively. The pepper homolog of GOLDEN 2‐ LIKE transcription factor ( Ca GLK 2 ) has been found as underlying pc10 , similar to its effect on tomato chloroplast development. In the present study, we identified the pepper homolog of the zinc‐finger transcription factor LOL 1 ( LSD ONE LIKE 1 ; Cc LOL 1 ) as the gene underlying pc1 . LOL 1 has been identified in Arabidopsis as a positive regulator of programmed cell death and we report here on its role in controlling fruit development in the Solanaceae in a fruit‐specific manner. The light‐green C. chinense parent used for QTL mapping was found to carry a null mutation in Cc LOL 1 . Verification of the function of the gene was done by generating CRISPR /Cas9 knockout mutants of the orthologous tomato gene resulting in light‐green tomato fruits, indicating functional conservation of the orthologous genes in controlling chlorophyll content in the Solanaceae. Transcriptome profiling of light and dark‐green bulks differing for pc1 , showed that the QTL affects multiple photosynthesis and oxidation‐reduction associated genes in the immature green fruit. Allelic diversity of three known genes Cc LOL 1 , Ca GLK 2 , and Cc APRR 2 that influence pepper immature fruit color, was found to be associated with variation in chlorophyll content primarily in C. chinense .