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Article|11 Feb 2022|OPEN
CmABF1 and CmCBF4 cooperatively regulate putrescine synthesis to improve cold tolerance of melon seedlings
Meng Li1,2,3 , Xiaoyu Duan1,2,3 , Ge Gao1,2,3 , Tao Liu1,2,3 , Hongyan Qi,1,2,3 ,
1College of Horticulture, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 110866, Liaoning, China
2Key Laboratory of Protected Horticulture of Education Ministry and Liaoning Province, Shenyang 110866, Liaoning, China
3National and Local Joint Engineering Research Centre of Northern Horticultural, Facilities Design and Application Technology (Liaoning), Shenyang 110866, Liaoning, China
*Corresponding author. E-mail: qihongyan@syau.edu.cn

Horticulture Research 9,
Article number: uhac002 (2022)
doi: https://doi.org/10.1093/hr/uhac002
Views: 480

Received: 30 Jan 2021
Accepted: 30 Nov 2021
Published online: 11 Feb 2022

Abstract

Low temperatures severely restrict melon seedling growth. However, the mechanisms by which melon adapts to cold stress are poorly understood. Arginine decarboxylase (ADC), a key synthetase, catalyzes putrescine biosynthesis in plants. In this study, we found that CmADC functions as a positive regulator of melon seedling cold tolerance. In addition, two transcription factors, abscisic acid-responsive element (ABRE)-binding factor 1 (CmABF1) and C-repeat binding factor 4 (CmCBF4), directly target CmADC to trigger its expression. Consistently, virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) of CmABF1 or CmCBF4 downregulated CmADC abundance, decreased putrescine accumulation, and reduced cold tolerance. Furthermore, some other CBF and ABF members show at least partial functional redundancy and complementarity with CmABF1 and CmCBF4. Overall, our work reveals that the ABA, CBF, and polyamine pathways may form a cooperative regulatory network to participate in plant cold stress response.