Phytochrome-interacting factors integrate environmental signals to regulate tomato growth and development

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ID: 317527
2026
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Abstract
Abstract Plants respond to environmental cues, such as light and temperature, which regulate their growth and development. In the model plant Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana), PHYTOCHROME-INTERACTING FACTORS (PIFs) are central regulators of both shade-avoidance and thermomorphogenesis. However, their functional roles in crop species are less well known. Here, we generated a tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) mutant lacking all eight known PIF genes (slpifo), to investigate their roles under controlled and field conditions. We showed that SlPIFs are essential for shade responses, while thermomorphogenesis-induced elongation is largely independent of SlPIFs, revealing species-specific differences in regulatory mechanisms. Under low-red to far-red light (low R/FR), slpifo plants failed to exhibit characteristic wild-type responses, including shoot elongation, expansion and thinning of leaf blades, and depletion of leaf chlorophyll. We further identified redundant roles for SlPIF1a, SlPIF4, and SlPIF8a in regulating stem elongation and chlorophyll depletion in response to low R/FR. In addition, slpifo plants exhibited reduced overall growth, fruit size, fruit number, and seed dormancy under field conditions, highlighting broader roles for SlPIFs beyond neighbor detection. These findings provide insights into how PIFs orchestrate organ-specific developmental plasticity in tomato, offering avenues to optimize light responsiveness for crop improvement.
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openalex_W7164895299 Use this key to autocite in the manuscript while using SciMatic Manuscript Manager or Thesis Manager
Authors Srinivas Kunta, Abigail Aryee-Atta, Yardena Dahan, Zeenu Singh, Shlomi Aharon, Asher Pasha, I. Nir, Ran Nisim Lati, Nicholas J. Provart, Yogev Burko
Journal Plant physiology and biochemistry : PPB
Year 2026
DOI
10.1093/plphys/kiag379
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