MdSnRK1.1 interacts with MdGLK1 to regulate abscisic acid-mediated chlorophyll accumulation in apple

Abstract

Abscisic acid (ABA), as a plant hormone, plays a positive role in leaf chlorosis; however, the underlying molecular mechanism is less known. Our findings provide ABA treatment reduced the chlorophyll accumulation in apple, and Malus × domestica Sucrose Non-fermenting 1-Related Protein Kinase 1.1 (MdSnRK1.1) participates in the process. MdSnRK1.1 interacts with MdGLK1, a GOLDEN2-like transcription factor that orchestrates development of the chloroplast. Furthermore, MdSnRK1.1 affects MdGLK1 protein stability through phosphorylation. We found that Ser468 of MdGLK1 is target site of MdSnRK1.1 phosphorylation. MdSnRK1.1-mediated phosphorylation was critical for MdGLK1 binding to the target gene MdHEMA1 promoters. Collectively, our results demonstrate that ABA activates MdSnRK1.1 to degrade MdGLK1 and inhibit the accumulation of chlorophyll. These findings extend our understanding on how MdSnRK1.1 balances normal growth and hormone response.

Acknowledgements

We thank Professor Zhi-Hong Zhang of Shenyang Agricultural University for supplying the GL-3 apple. This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (32172538, 32272683), the National Key Research and Development Program (2018YFD1000200), China Agriculture Research System of MOF and MARA (CARS-27), Taishan Scholar Foundation of Shandong Province (LJNY202026), the Natural Science Foundation of Hebei Province (C2021204134).

Author Contributions

C.-X.Y., X.-F.W., and Y.-Y.Y. conceived the research; X.-F.W. and C.-X.Y. performed the experiments; Y.-Y.Y., X.-H.A., L.R., G.-D.L. and Y.T. analysed most data of the experiments; X.-F.W. and Y.-Y.Y. wrote the article.

Data availability statement

All relevant data can be found within the paper and its supporting materials.

Conflict of interests

The authors have no conflicts of interest.

Supplementary information

Supplementary data is available at Horticulture Research online.

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