Dan Zhang, Sanyuan Tang, Junyu Chen, Fangyuan Liu, Kangxu Zhao, Lu Kang, Chao Li, Ran Xia, Fang Yang, Feifei Yu, Cheng-Guo Duan, Peng Xie, Qi Xie
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
The phenomenon of multiple-grain spikelets is frequently observed in gramineous crops. In the case of dual-floret spikelets, the upper fertile floret develops normally to form a single grain, while the lower sterile floret undergoes abortion. Here we elucidate the role of Double-Grain 1 (DG1), a gene encoding a homeobox-domain-containing protein, in regulating the lower floret meristem activity and double-grain spikelet trait in sorghum. A 35.7-kb paracentric inversion in the DG1 promoter region leads to increased DG1 expression, probably by reducing repressive histone modifications. This increase in DG1 expression transforms the degenerated lower floret into a fertile one. The use of the superior DG1 allele results in an increase of approximately 40.7% to 46.1% in grain number per panicle and a 10.1% to 14.3% increase in overall grain yield. Our findings shed light on the sorghum double-grain spikelet characteristic, offering valuable insights for high-yield breeding designs in cereals.
期刊介绍:
Nature Plants is an online-only, monthly journal publishing the best research on plants — from their evolution, development, metabolism and environmental interactions to their societal significance.