Genome-wide Identification and Characterization of FCS-Like Zinc Finger (FLZ) Family Genes in Maize (Zea mays) and Functional Analysis of ZmFLZ25 in Plant Abscisic Acid Response

Abstract

FCS-like zinc finger family proteins (FLZs), a class of plant-specific scaffold of SnRK1 complex, are involved in the regulation of various aspects of plant growth and stress responses. Most information of FLZ family genes was obtained from the studies in Arabidopsis thaliana, whereas little is known about the potential functions of FLZs in crop plants. In this study, 37 maize FLZ (ZmFLZ) genes were identified to be asymmetrically distributed on 10 chromosomes and can be divided into three subfamilies. Protein interaction and subcellular localization assays demonstrated that eight typical ZmFLZs interacted and partially co-localized with ZmKIN10, the catalytic α-subunit of the SnRK1 complex in maize leaf mesophyll cells. Expression profile analysis revealed that several ZmFLZs were differentially expressed across various tissues and actively responded to diverse abiotic stresses. In addition, ectopic overexpression of ZmFLZ25 in Arabidopsis conferred hypersensitivity to exogenous abscisic acid (ABA) and triggered higher expression of ABA-induced genes, pointing to the positive regulatory role of ZmFLZ25 in plant ABA signaling, a scenario further evidenced by the interactions between ZmFLZ25 and ABA receptors. In summary, these data provide the most comprehensive information on FLZ family genes in maize, and shed light on the biological function of ZmFLZ25 in plant ABA signaling.

Genome-Wide Identification, Expression and Functional Analysis Reveal the Involvement of FCS-Like Zinc Finger Gene Family in Submergence Response in Rice

“…The essential role of SnRK1A in rice submergence tolerance has been well established (Lu et al 2007 ; Lee et al 2009 ; Cho et al 2012 ). Previous studies showed that FLZs could interact with the subunits of the SnRK1 kinase complex in Arabidopsis and maize (Arabidopsis Interactome Mapping Consortium 2011 ; Nietzsche et al 2014 , 2016 ; Jamsheer et al 2018a , b ; Chen et al 2021 ). To see whether OsFLZs can also interact with SnRK1A to regulate rice response to submergence stress, we selected the above eight representative OsFLZ genes to perform a yeast two-hybrid assay (Fig.…”

“…So far, 757 FLZ proteins have been identified from 41 plant genomes including 29 members in rice through genome-wide identification, and they were plant-specific zinc finger proteins involved in protein–protein interaction (Jamsheer and Laxmi 2014 ; Jamsheer et al 2015 ). Until now, most information on FLZ family genes were obtained from studies in Arabidopsis and maize (He and Gan 2004 ; Chen et al 2013 , 2021 ; Hou et al 2013 ; Jamsheer and Laxmi 2014 , 2015 ; Nietzsche et al 2014 , 2016 ; Jamsheer et al 2018a , b ), and FLZ proteins in other plants have not yet been characterized. In the present study, we have provide the gene and protein attributes, and phylogenetic relationships among the 29 OsFLZ proteins (Additional file 1 : Table S1, Fig.…”

“…It has been reported that AtFLZ genes are transcriptionally regulated by multiple biotic and abiotic stress treatments in Arabidopsis and maize (Jamsheer and Laxmi 2015 ; Jamsheer et al 2018a ; Chen et al 2021 ), and plays important roles during plant growth or stress response (He and Gan 2004 ; Chen et al 2013 , 2021 ; Hou et al 2013 ; Jamsheer et al 2018a ). However, the roles of OsFLZ genes in rice growth and development or their responses to environmental stresses are totally unknown.…”

“…Gene expression analysis showed that AtFLZ genes were significantly regulated by sugars, ABA, and environmental cues, including hypoxia and light, which could actively affect the activity of SnRK1 (Nietzsche et al 2014 ; Jamsheer and Laxmi 2015 ; Jamsheer et al 2018a ). Since the central role of SnRK1 in regulating plant response to submergence stress has been well established (Lu et al 2007 ; Lee et al 2009 ; Cho et al 2012 ; Chen et al 2017 ), and there are strong interactions between FLZ proteins and SnRK1 in Arabidopsis and maize (Arabidopsis Interactome Mapping Consortium 2011 ; Nietzsche et al 2014 , 2016 ; Jamsheer et al 2018a , b ; Chen et al 2021 ), we reason that the FLZ proteins might also function in submergence stress in rice by interacting with SnRK1A. However, the characterization of FLZ proteins in rice has not yet been reported.…”

Shedding Light on the Role of Phosphorylation in Plant Autophagy

“…Similar to the architecture of AMPK, SnRK1 exhibits a highly conserved heterotrimeric structure comprising a catalytic a subunit (two isoforms in Arabidopsis, KIN10 and KIN11) and regulatory b and c subunits [57,58]. FCS-like zinc finger proteins (FLZs) are identified as the plant-specific adaptors of SnRK1, which might be involved in the regulation of TOR signalling through affecting the interaction between SnRK1 and RAPTOR in plants [59][60][61].…”