title: A PP2C-1 Allele Underlying a Quantitative Trait Locus Enhances Soybean 100-Seed Weight.
abstract: Cultivated soybeans may lose some useful genetic loci during domestication. Introgression of genes from wild soybeans could broaden the genetic background and improve soybean agronomic traits. In this study, through whole-genome sequencing of a recombinant inbred line population derived from a cross between a wild soybean ZYD7 and a cultivated soybean HN44, and mapping of quantitative trait loci for seed weight, we discovered that a phosphatase 2C-1 (PP2C-1) allele from wild soybean ZYD7 contributes to the increase in seed weight/size. PP2C-1 may achieve this function by enhancing cell size of integument and activating a subset of seed trait-related genes. We found that PP2C-1 is associated with GmBZR1, a soybean ortholog of Arabidopsis BZR1, one of key transcription factors in brassinosteroid (BR) signaling, and facilitate accumulation of dephosphorylated GmBZR1. In contrast, the PP2C-2 allele with variations of a few amino acids at the N-terminus did not exhibit this function. Moreover, we showed that GmBZR1 could promote seed weight/size in transgenic plants. Through analysis of cultivated soybean accessions, we found that 40% of the examined accessions do not have the PP2C-1 allele, suggesting that these accessions can be improved by introduction of this allele. Taken together, our study identifies an elite allele PP2C-1, which can enhance seed weight and/or size in soybean, and pinpoints that manipulation of this allele by molecular-assisted breeding may increase production in soybean and other legumes/crops.
authors.affiliation: State Key Lab of Plant Genomics, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
authors.forename: Xiang
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.affiliation: State Key Lab of Plant Genomics, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
authors.forename: Qing
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Xiong
authors.affiliation: State Key Lab of Plant Genomics, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
authors.forename: Tong
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.affiliation: State Key Lab of Plant Genomics, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.
authors.forename: Qing-Tian
authors.initials: QT
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Institute of Soybean Research, Heilongjiang Provincial Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150086, China.
authors.forename: Xin-Lei
authors.initials: XL
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Institute of Farming and Cultivation, Heilongjiang Provincial Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150086, China.
authors.forename: Ying-Dong
authors.initials: YD
authors.lastname: Bi
authors.affiliation: Institute of Farming and Cultivation, Heilongjiang Provincial Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150086, China.
authors.forename: Wei
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: State Key Lab of Plant Genomics, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
authors.forename: Wan-Ke
authors.initials: WK
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: State Key Lab of Plant Genomics, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China.
authors.forename: Biao
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: Institute of Farming and Cultivation, Heilongjiang Provincial Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150086, China.
authors.forename: Yong-Cai
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Lai
authors.affiliation: Institute of Soybean Research, Heilongjiang Provincial Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150086, China.
authors.forename: Wei-Guang
authors.initials: WG
authors.lastname: Du
authors.affiliation: Institute of Soybean Research, Heilongjiang Provincial Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150086, China. Electronic address: manweiqun@163.com.
authors.forename: Wei-Qun
authors.initials: WQ
authors.lastname: Man
authors.affiliation: State Key Lab of Plant Genomics, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China. Electronic address: sychen@genetics.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Shou-Yi
authors.initials: SY
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: State Key Lab of Plant Genomics, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100101, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China. Electronic address: jszhang@genetics.ac.cn.
authors.forename: Jin-Song
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Zhang
mesh_terms: D000483:Alleles; D002874:Chromosome Mapping; D018556:Crops, Agricultural / Q000235:genetics; D003433:Crosses, Genetic; D018744:DNA, Plant; D017343:Genes, Plant; D010766:Phosphorylation; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified; D000071636:Protein Phosphatase 2C / Q000235:genetics*; D040641:Quantitative Trait Loci; D012639:Seeds / Q000235:genetics*; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D013025:Glycine max / Q000235:genetics*; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D018744:DNA, Plant; D010940:Plant Proteins; D014157:Transcription Factors; D000071636:Protein Phosphatase 2C
keywords: 100-seed weight; BZR1; PP2C-1; soybean