Glucose- and sucrose-signaling modules regulate the Arabidopsis juvenile-to-adult phase transition

• Main Authors: Lai-Sheng Meng, Qin-Xin Bao, Xin-Rong Mu, Chen Tong, Xiao-Ying Cao, Jin-Jin Huang, Li-Na Xue, Chang-Yue Liu, Yue Fei, Gary J. Loake
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier 2021-07-01
• Series: Cell Reports
• Subjects: glucose signaling; major photosynthate sucrose; juvenile-to-adult transition; glucose feed-forward loop; production of anthocyanin pigment 1; PAP1
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2211124721007245

Summary: CINV1, converting sucrose into glucose and fructose, is a key entry of carbon into cellular metabolism, and HXK1 functions as a pivotal sensor for glucose. Exogenous sugars trigger the Arabidopsis juvenile-to-adult phase transition via a miR156A/SPL module. However, the endogenous factors that regulate this process remain unclear. In this study, we show that sucrose specifically induced the PAP1 transcription factor directly and positively controls CINV1 activity. Furthermore, we identify a glucose feed-forward loop (sucrose-CINV1-glucose-HXK1-miR156-SPL9-PAP1-CINV1-glucose) that controls CINV1 activity to convert sucrose into glucose signaling to dynamically control the juvenile-to-adult phase transition. Moreover, PAP1 directly binds to the SPL9 promoter, activating SPL9 expression and triggering the sucrose-signaling-mediated juvenile-to-adult phase transition. Therefore, a glucose-signaling feed-forward loop and a sucrose-signaling pathway synergistically regulate the Arabidopsis juvenile-to-adult phase transition. Collectively, we identify a molecular link between the major photosynthate sucrose, the entry point of carbon into cellular metabolism, and the plant juvenile-to-adult phase transition.