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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Plant Systems and Synthetic Biology
Volume 15 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1477278

Rosa rugosa R2R3-MYB transcription factors RrMYB12 and RrMYB111 regulate the accumulation of flavonols and anthocyanins

Provisionally accepted
Yufeng Shi Yufeng Shi 1,2Taoran Lu Taoran Lu 1*Sanyan Lai Sanyan Lai 3*Song Li Song Li 1*Ling Zhang Ling Zhang 1*Rong Liu Rong Liu 1,2*Lin Ouyang Lin Ouyang 1,2*Xinxin Zhao Xinxin Zhao 1,2Yuqin Jiang Yuqin Jiang 2*Zhen Yan Zhen Yan 1,2Ju Zhang Ju Zhang 1,2*Baohe Miao Baohe Miao 1,2*
  • 1 Institute of Urban Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Chengdu, China
  • 2 Chengdu National Agricultural Science and Technology Center, Chengdu, China
  • 3 State Key Laboratory of Tea Plant Biology and Utilization, School of Tea and Food Science and Technology, Anhui Agriculture University, Anhui, Zhejiang Province, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Roses (Rosa rugosa) are a famous flower with high ornamental and economic value. But the petals of roses are usually pink and purple, which restricted its application in garden settings. Flavonols and anthocyanins are crucial secondary metabolites related to flower pigmentation in plants. While MYB transcription factors involved in the biosynthesis pathway of anthocyanins have been identified in roses, the functional characterization of the MYB transcription factor regulating flavonol synthesis in R. rugosa remains unexplored. In this study, we isolated and characterized the R2R3-MYB transcription factors RrMYB12 and RrMYB111 involved in regulation of the flavonol biosynthetic pathway from R. rugosa. The bioinformatics analysis indicated that both the RrMYB12 and RrMYB111 belong to the R2R3-MYB subgroup 7 family. qRT-PCR analysis showed that RrMYB12 and RrMYB111 were expressed at low levels in roots and flowers. And Y1H showed that RrMYB12 and RrMYB111 function as transcriptional activator. The overexpression of RrMYB12 and RrMYB111 in tobacco resulted in an elevation of flavonol levels and a reduction in anthocyanin levels in flowers due to the upregulation of structural genes involved in flavonol synthesis, while the biosynthesis genes for the anthocyanin pathway were significantly downregulated. The transient reporter assay demonstrated that RrMYB12 exhibited strong activation of the promoters of RrCHS and RrFLS in Nicotiana benthamiana leaves following transient transformation. Furthermore, it was observed that RrMYBs displayed binding specificity to the promoter region of CsFLS.The functional characterization of the flavonol synthesis regulatory factors RrMYB12 and RrMYB111 offers a deeper understanding of the regulatory mechanism governing flavonol biosynthesis in roses, while also presenting an effective tool for genetic manipulation aimed at creating new varieties.

    Keywords: Rosa rugosa, R2R3 MYB, gene regulation, Flavonols, Anthocyanin

    Received: 07 Aug 2024; Accepted: 02 Dec 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Shi, Lu, Lai, Li, Zhang, Liu, Ouyang, Zhao, Jiang, Yan, Zhang and Miao. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Taoran Lu, Institute of Urban Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Chengdu, China
    Sanyan Lai, State Key Laboratory of Tea Plant Biology and Utilization, School of Tea and Food Science and Technology, Anhui Agriculture University, Anhui, Zhejiang Province, China
    Song Li, Institute of Urban Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Chengdu, China
    Ling Zhang, Institute of Urban Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Chengdu, China
    Rong Liu, Chengdu National Agricultural Science and Technology Center, Chengdu, China
    Lin Ouyang, Institute of Urban Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Chengdu, China
    Yuqin Jiang, Chengdu National Agricultural Science and Technology Center, Chengdu, China
    Ju Zhang, Chengdu National Agricultural Science and Technology Center, Chengdu, China
    Baohe Miao, Institute of Urban Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Chengdu, China

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