1. Academic Validation
  2. PIF7 is a master regulator of thermomorphogenesis in shade

PIF7 is a master regulator of thermomorphogenesis in shade

  • Nat Commun. 2022 Aug 29;13(1):4942. doi: 10.1038/s41467-022-32585-6.
Yogev Burko 1 2 3 Björn Christopher Willige 4 5 Adam Seluzicki 4 5 Ondřej Novák 6 7 Karin Ljung 7 Joanne Chory 8 9
Affiliations

Affiliations

  • 1 Institute of Plant Sciences, ARO, Volcani Institute, HaMaccabbim Road 68, Rishon LeZion, 7505101, Israel. [email protected].
  • 2 Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA. [email protected].
  • 3 Plant Biology Laboratory, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, 10010 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA. [email protected].
  • 4 Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA.
  • 5 Plant Biology Laboratory, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, 10010 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA.
  • 6 Laboratory of Growth Regulators, Faculty of Science, Palacký University and Institute of Experimental Botany, The Czech Academy of Sciences, Šlechtitelů 27, CZ-78371, Olomouc, Czech Republic.
  • 7 Umeå Plant Science Centre, Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, SE-901 83, Umeå, Sweden.
  • 8 Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA. [email protected].
  • 9 Plant Biology Laboratory, Salk Institute for Biological Studies, 10010 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA. [email protected].
Abstract

The size of plant organs is highly responsive to environmental conditions. The plant's embryonic stem, or hypocotyl, displays phenotypic plasticity, in response to LIGHT and temperature. The hypocotyl of shade avoiding species elongates to outcompete neighboring Plants and secure access to sunlight. Similar elongation occurs in high temperature. However, it is poorly understood how environmental LIGHT and temperature cues interact to effect plant growth. We found that shade combined with warm temperature produces a synergistic hypocotyl growth response that dependent on PHYTOCHROME-INTERACTING FACTOR 7 (PIF7) and Auxin. This unique but agriculturally relevant scenario was almost totally independent on PIF4 activity. We show that warm temperature is sufficient to promote PIF7 DNA binding but not transcriptional activation and we demonstrate that additional, unknown factor/s must be working downstream of the phyB-PIF-auxin module. Our findings will improve the predictions of how Plants will respond to increased ambient temperatures when grown at high density.

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