Recognizing The Plant Cell author Chenxia Cheng

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Chenxia Cheng, first author of Ethylene-regulated asymmetric growth of petal base promotes flower opening in rose (Rosa hybrida)

Current Position: Lecturer, College of Horticulture, Qingdao Agricultural University

Education: Ph.D. in College of Horticulture, China Agricultural University, Beijing, China; Master and Bachelor in College of Horticulture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, China

Non-scientific Interests: Badminton

Brief bio: After finishing my master’s degree, I joined Department of Ornamental Horticulture at China Agricultural University in 2014, studied for my doctoral degree under the direction of Prof. Nan Ma. My PhD project focused on the molecular mechanisms underlying petal movement and flower opening in rose. We found that asymmetric growth of the petal base, rather than expansion of the petal lamina, drives petal movement. We showed that the phytohormone ethylene can accelerate petal movement by enhancing asymmetric growth of the petal base. A HD-Zip I subfamily transcript factor (TF), RhPMP1 (PETAL MOVEMENT-RELATED PROTEIN 1) acts as a direct target of the ETHYLENE INSENSITIVE 3 (EIN3) protein, a TF in ethylene signaling. RhPMP1 induces expression of ANAPHASE-PROMOTING COMPLEX 3b (RhAPC3b), thereby increasing the endoreduplication level of parenchyma cells on the adaxial side, resulting in asymmetric growth of the petal base. We conclude that in rose, petal movement is driven by asymmetric growth of the petal base and is controlled by an RhPMP1-RhAPC3b module in an ethylene-dependent manner, shedding light on the underlying mechanism of regulated flower opening.

 

姓名：程晨霞

职位：青岛农业大学园艺学院，讲师

教育背景：2014/09-2019/01 中国农业大学，园艺学院，博士

2007/09-2014/07 西北农林科技大学，园艺学院，硕士和学士

兴趣爱好：羽毛球

个人简介：我于2014年加入中国农业大学园艺学院观赏园艺系，在马男教授的指导下攻读博士学位。攻读博士学位期间主要研究月季花朵开放和花瓣运动的分子机制。我们发现花瓣运动是由花瓣基部的不对称增长而不是花瓣的扩张驱动。研究结果表明植物激素乙烯可以通过增强花瓣基部的不对称生长来加速花瓣运动，且HD-Zip I亚家族转录因子RhPMP1（PETAL MOVEMENT-RELATED PROTEIN 1）是乙烯信号下游转录因子ETHYLENE INSENSITIVE 3（EIN3）蛋白的直接靶标。RhPMP1通过诱导ANAPHASE-PROMOTING COMPLEX 3b（RhAPC3b）的表达，促进了花瓣上表面薄壁细胞的内源复制和细胞扩展，从而导致了花瓣基部的不对称生长。据此，我们认为，月季花瓣运动由花瓣基部的不对称生长驱动，而花瓣基部的不对称生长以乙烯依赖的方式受RhPMP1-RhAPC3b模块控制。这一发现为理解花朵开放的内在机制提供了新的线索。