CmFSI8/CmOFP13 encoding an OVATE family protein controls fruit shape in melon

Abstract

Summary Fruit shape is an important quality and yield trait in melon. Although some fruit shape-related QTLs have been reported in melon, the target genes and the underlying mechanism remain poorly understood. Here, we identified and characterized a gene controlling fruit shape from two melon inbred lines B8 and HP22. Genetic analysis suggests that the fruit shape was controlled by a single and incompletely dominant locus, designated CmFSI8/CmOFP13. The CmFSI8/CmOFP13 gene was finely mapped to a 53.7 kb interval on chromosome 8 based on BSA-seq and map-based cloning strategies. CmFSI8/CmOFP13 encodes an OVATE family protein (OFP) and is orthologous to AtOFP1 and SlOFP20. The transcription level of CmFSI8/CmOFP13 in the ovary of HP22 was significantly higher than that in B8. Sequence analysis showed that a 12.5 kb genomic variation with retrotransposon insertion identified in the promoter was responsible for elevating the expression of CmFSI8/CmOFP13, which ultimately caused the differences in fruit shape. Moreover, ectopic overexpression of CmFSI8/CmOFP13 in Arabidopsis led to multiple phenotypic changes, including kidney-shaped leaves and shortened siliques. Taken together, we have demonstrated the involvement of an OFP protein in regulating melon fruit shape, and understanding the molecular mechanism will enable us to better manipulate melon fruit shape in breeding.

QTL Mapping for Ovary- and Fruit-Related Traits in Cucumis sativus-C. hystrix Introgression Line IL52

“…This QTL was assigned as a consensus FS4.1 [ 1 ] due to the fact that it has been reported in a number of populations, including Gy14 × 9930 RILs [ 2 ], S1000 × S1002 F 2:3 families [ 28 ], WI7167 × WI7200 F 2:3 families [ 29 ], and CS-PMR1 × Santou RILs [ 30 ]. The cucumber FS4.1 is syntenic to the melon CmFSI8, whose underlying causal gene is CmOFP1a/CmOFP13 [ 1 , 7 , 31 ]. Thus, the CsOFP1a might be considered a top candidate for FS4.1 .…”

Genome-wide characterization of ovate family protein gene family associated with number of seeds per silique in Brassica napus

“…Ectopic expression of CsOFP12-16c from cucumber ( Cucumis sativus ) in Arabidopsis affects the silique development and causes blunt and shorter siliques ( Han et al, 2022 ). Previous studies have also suggested that CmOFP13 may control the fruit shape in melon ( Cucumis melo ) ( Monforte et al, 2014 ; Ma et al, 2021 ). Also, the expression of MaOFP1 was reported to be negatively associated with fruit ripening in banana ( Musa paradisiaca ) ( Liu et al, 2015b ).…”

Form and contour: breeding and genetics of organ shape from wild relatives to modern vegetable crops

“…This cellular mechanism of shape explains why the morphology of disparate organs such as tubers and grains are controlled by genes of the same three families. As highlighted above, natural variation of organ shape in diverse crops including rice ( GW7/GL7 (orthologue of AtTRM1 , Wang et al, 2015c ; Wang et al, 2015d ), maize (maize ZmLNG1 , homolog of Arabidopsis TRMs ; Wang et al., 2022b ), potato tuber ( StOFP20 ( Wu et al., 2018 ), cucumber CsTRM5 ( Wu et al., 2018 ; Wang et al, 2020a, b ), CsSun ( Pan et al., 2017 , Wang et al, 2020a, b ), pepper CaOvate ( Tsaballa et al, 2011 ), CaOFP20 ( Borovsky et al 2022 ), CaTRM25 ( Taitano, 2020 ), melon CmOFP13 ( Wu et al, 2018 , Ma et al, 2022a , Martínez-Martínez et al., 2022 ), watermelon ClSUN25-26-27a ( Dou et al., 2018 ; Legendre et al., 2020 ), pummelo CitOFP19 ( Wu et al., 2022 ) and peach PpOFP2 ( Guan et al., 2021 ).…”