A Zea genus-specific micropeptide controls kernel dehydration in maize

Yanhui Yu; Wenqiang Li; Yuanfang Liu; Yanjun Liu; Qinzhi Zhang; Yidan Ouyang; Wenya Ding; Yu Xue; Yilin Zou; Junjun Yan; Anqiang Jia; Jiali Yan; Xinfei Hao; Yujie Gou; Zhaowei Zhai; Longyu Liu; Yang Zheng; Bao Zhang; Jieting Xu; Ning Yang; Yingjie Xiao; Lin Zhuo; Zhibing Lai; Ping Yin; Hai-Jun Liu; Alisdair R Fernie; David Jackson; Jianbing Yan

doi:10.1016/j.cell.2024.10.030

A Zea genus-specific micropeptide controls kernel dehydration in maize

Cell. 2024 Nov 7:S0092-8674(24)01212-1. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2024.10.030. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Yanhui Yu¹, Wenqiang Li¹, Yuanfang Liu¹, Yanjun Liu¹, Qinzhi Zhang², Yidan Ouyang², Wenya Ding², Yu Xue³, Yilin Zou², Junjun Yan², Anqiang Jia⁴, Jiali Yan², Xinfei Hao², Yujie Gou³, Zhaowei Zhai², Longyu Liu¹, Yang Zheng¹, Bao Zhang¹, Jieting Xu⁵, Ning Yang¹, Yingjie Xiao¹, Lin Zhuo¹, Zhibing Lai¹, Ping Yin¹, Hai-Jun Liu⁴, Alisdair R Fernie⁶, David Jackson⁷, Jianbing Yan⁸

Affiliations

¹ National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China; Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China.
² National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China.
³ Key Laboratory of Molecular Biophysics of Ministry of Education, Hubei Bioinformatics and Molecular Imaging Key Laboratory, Center for Artificial Intelligence Biology, College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, Hubei 430074, China.
⁴ Yazhouwan National Laboratory, Sanya 572024, China.
⁵ WIMI Biotechnology Co., Ltd., Changzhou, Jiangsu 213000, China.
⁶ Department of Root Biology and Symbiosis, Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology, Potsdam-Golm 14476, Germany.
⁷ National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China; Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA.
⁸ National Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China; Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Wuhan, Hubei 430070, China; Yazhouwan National Laboratory, Sanya 572024, China. Electronic address: yjianbing@mail.hzau.edu.cn.

PMID: 39536747
DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2024.10.030

Abstract

Kernel dehydration rate (KDR) is a crucial production trait that affects mechanized harvesting and kernel quality in maize; however, the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we identified a quantitative trait locus (QTL), qKDR1, as a non-coding sequence that regulates the expression of qKDR1 REGULATED PEPTIDE GENE (RPG). RPG encodes a 31 amino acid micropeptide, microRPG1, which controls KDR by precisely modulating the expression of two genes, ZmETHYLENE-INSENSITIVE3-like 1 and 3, in the ethylene signaling pathway in the kernels after filling. microRPG1 is a Zea genus-specific micropeptide and originated de novo from a non-coding sequence. Knockouts of microRPG1 result in faster KDR in maize. By contrast, overexpression or exogenous application of the micropeptide shows the opposite effect both in maize and Arabidopsis. Our findings reveal the molecular mechanism of microRPG1 in kernel dehydration and provide an important tool for future crop breeding.

Keywords: de novo origination; ethylene-insensitive3-like; kernel dehydration rate; maize; mechanized harvesting; micropeptide; non-coding sequence; silencer.