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Journal of Integrative Agriculture  2025, Vol. 24 Issue (11): 4242-4254    DOI: 10.1016/j.jia.2025.03.015
Horticulture Advanced Online Publication | Current Issue | Archive | Adv Search |
Mutation in CmGhc1 confers the white hypocotyl phenotype in melon (Cucumis melo L.)

Yong Yang1, 2, Rong Fan2, Xuejun Zhang2, Meihua Li2, Yongbing Zhang2, Hongping Yi2, Manrui Ma2, Yun Yang2, Bin Liu2#, Xingwang Liu1#, Huazhong Ren1# 

College of Horticulture, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China

Biological Breeding Laboratory, Xinjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Urumqi 830091, China

 Highlight

The white hypocotyl trait in melon was controlled by a single recessive gene, designated CmGhc1.
A single-base deletion in the fifth exon of CmGhc1 led to a truncated CmGhc1 lacking the HTH-MYB DNA binding domain.
CmGhc1 was localized in the nucleus and functions as a transcription repressor.


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摘要  

甜瓜是一种全球种植的重要园艺作物,在中国商品化生产中所用的种子近100%为杂交种。幼苗形态,特别是下胚轴颜色,可作为快速评价F1杂交种子纯度的重要标记。绿色的下胚轴很常见,但白色的下胚轴在甜瓜种质中很少见。在本研究中,从重离子束突变体文库中鉴定了一个下胚轴为白色但叶片为绿色的突变体。遗传分析表明,白色下胚轴受单个隐性基因CmGhc1控制。CmGhc15外显子上单碱基缺失导致翻译蛋白提前终止,进而使得HTH-MYB DNA结合域丧失,可能影响了基因功能。CmGhc1定位于细胞核中,酵母双杂交分析和双荧光素酶试验表明该基因具有转录抑制活性。基于单碱基缺失位点,成功开发了KASP标记hc1,可作为甜瓜白色下胚轴种质选育的功能标记。RNA-seq数据显示,CmGhc1显著影响了叶绿素代谢和光合作用相关基因的表达水平。本研究为进一步加深对叶绿素合成代谢的分子调控机制的认知奠定了重要基础,同时为甜瓜白色下胚轴的转育和应用提供了重要标记和理论支持。



Abstract  

Melon is a globally cultivated horticultural crop with a predominantly hybrid commercial seed market in China.  Seedling morphology, particularly hypocotyl color, is a valuable trait for rapid F1 hybrid seed purity assessment.  While green hypocotyls are common, white hypocotyls are rare in melon germplasm.  This study identified a mutant with white hypocotyl but green leaves from the heavy ion beam mutant library.  Genetic analysis revealed that a single recessive gene controlled the white hypocotyl, designated CmGhc1.  A single-base deletion in the fifth exon of CmGhc1 led to a truncated CmGhc1 lacking the HTH-MYB DNA binding domain, likely affecting its transcriptional activity.  CmGhc1 was localized in the nucleus, and yeast two-hybrid analysis and a dual-LUC assay demonstrated it as a transcription repressor.  Furthermore, a KASP marker (hc1) was developed and verified as a functional marker for breeding white hypocotyl germplasms in melon.  RNA-seq data revealed that CmGhc1 significantly affected the transcription of genes related to chlorophyll metabolism and photosynthesis in hypocotyl.  In summary, these findings contribute to our understanding of chloroplast biogenesis and provide a valuable tool for melon breeding.

Keywords:  melon       hypocotyl color       fine mapping       functional marker       RNA-seq  
Received: 20 August 2024   Accepted: 26 February 2025 Online: 22 March 2025  
Fund: 

This work was financially supported by the grants from the earmarked fund for Xinjiang Agriculture Research System, China (XJARS-06), the Key Research and Development Task Special Project of Xinjiang, China (2022B02002-3), the Tianshan Talent Training Program, China (2023TSYCLJ0015), the Key Research and Development Program of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, China (2023B02017).

About author:  #Correspondence Bin Liu, E-mail: liubincau@163.com; Xingwang Liu, E-mail: liuxw01@cau.edu.cn; Huazhong Ren, E-mail: renhuazhong@cau.edu.cn

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Yong Yang, Rong Fan, Xuejun Zhang, Meihua Li, Yongbing Zhang, Hongping Yi, Manrui Ma, Yun Yang, Bin Liu, Xingwang Liu, Huazhong Ren. 2025. Mutation in CmGhc1 confers the white hypocotyl phenotype in melon (Cucumis melo L.). Journal of Integrative Agriculture, 24(11): 4242-4254.

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