Proper activity of the age-dependent miR156 is required for leaf heteroblasty and extrafloral nectary development in Passiflora spp

Jessica Soares, Kerly Robledo, Vinicius de Souza, Lana Dias, Lazara Silva, Emerson da Silveira, Claudinei Souza, Elisandra Sousa, Pedro Sodrzeieski, Yoan Sarmiento, Elyabe de Matos, Thais Falcao, Lilian Fialho, Valeria Guimaraes, Lyderson Viccini, Flaviani Pierdona, Elisson Romanel, Jim P Fouracre, Wagner Campos Otoni*, Fabio Tebaldi Silveira Nogueira*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticle (Academic Journal)peer-review

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Abstract

Passion flower extrafloral nectaries (EFNs) protrude from leaves and facilitate mutualistic interactions with insects; however, how age cues control EFN growth remains poorly under- stood.

Here, we examined leaf and EFN morphology and development of two Passiflora species with distinct leaf shapes, and compared the phenotype of these to transgenics with manipulated activity of the age-dependent miR156, which targets several SQUAMOSA PROMOTER-BINDING PROTEIN-LIKE (SPL) transcription factors.

Low levels of miR156 correlated with leaf maturation and EFN formation in Passiflora edulis and P. cincinnata. Accordingly, manipulating miR156 activity affected leaf heteroblasty and EFN development. miR156-overexpressing leaves exhibited less abundant and tiny EFNs in both Passiflora species. EFN abundance remained mostly unchanged when miR156 activity was reduced, but it led to larger EFNs in P. cincinnata. Transcriptome analysis of young leaf primordia revealed that miR156-targeted SPLs may be required to properly express leaf and EFN-associated genes. Importantly, altered miR156 activity impacted sugar profiles of the nectar and modified ecological relationships between EFNs and ants.

Our work provides evidence that the miR156/SPL module indirectly regulates EFN development in an age-dependent manner and that the EFN development program is closely associated with the heteroblastic developmental program of the EFN-bearing leaves.
Original languageEnglish
Number of pages18
JournalNew Phytologist
Early online date12 Dec 2024
DOIs
Publication statusE-pub ahead of print - 12 Dec 2024

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Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Author(s). New Phytologist © 2024 New Phytologist Foundation.

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