Serine carboxypeptidase 46 Regulates Grain Filling and Seed Germination in Rice (Oryza sativa L.)

PLoS One. 2016 Jul 22;11(7):e0159737. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0159737. eCollection 2016.

Abstract

Serine carboxypeptidase (SCP) is one of the largest groups of enzymes catalyzing proteolysis for functional protein maturation. To date, little is known about the function of SCPs in rice. In this study, we present a comprehensive analysis of the gene structure and expression profile of 59 rice SCPs. SCP46 is dominantly expressed in developing seeds, particularly in embryo, endosperm and aleurone layers, and could be induced by ABA. Functional characterization revealed that knock-down of SCP46 resulted in smaller grain size and enhanced seed germination. Furthermore, scp46 seed germination became less sensitive to the ABA inhibition than the Wild-type did; suggesting SCP46 is involved in ABA signaling. As indicated by RNA-seq and qRT-PCR analysis, numerous grain filling and seed dormancy related genes, such as SP, VP1 and AGPs were down-regulated in scp46. Yeast-two-hybrid assay also showed that SCP46 interacts with another ABA-inducible protein DI19-1. Taken together, we suggested that SCP46 is a master regulator of grain filling and seed germination, possibly via participating in the ABA signaling. The results of this study shed novel light into the roles of SCPs in rice.

MeSH terms

  • Carboxypeptidases / genetics*
  • Carboxypeptidases / metabolism*
  • Cluster Analysis
  • Gene Expression Profiling
  • Gene Expression Regulation, Plant / drug effects
  • Genome, Plant
  • Germination* / genetics
  • Organ Specificity / genetics
  • Oryza / physiology*
  • Plant Growth Regulators / pharmacology
  • Seeds / physiology*
  • Transcriptome
  • Zea mays / genetics

Substances

  • Plant Growth Regulators
  • Carboxypeptidases
  • serine carboxypeptidase

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the Agricultural Sciences and Technologies Innovation Program of Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS) to Rice Reproductive Developmental Biology Group (No grant numbers) (http://www.caas.cn/kjcxgczl/index.shtml), the “Elite Youth” program (CAAS) to JZ (No grant number) (http://www.caas.cn/rc/qnyc1/index.shtml), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China to JZ (grant number: 31401366) (http://www.nsfc.gov.cn/). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.