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Touch induces marked morphological changes in plants, including reduced rosette diameters and delayed flowering, a process called thigmomorphogenesis. Previous studies have revealed that thigmomorphogenesis in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) results from touch-induced accumulation of jasmonic acid (JA) and GIBBERELLIN 2-OXIDASE7 (GA2ox7) transcripts, which encode a gibberellin (GA) catabolism enzyme, leading to reduced levels of active GAs. However, the mechanisms underlying thigmomorphogenesis remain uncharacterized. Here, we showed that touch induces ethylene (ET) production in Arabidopsis. After touch treatment, ET biosynthesis and signaling mutants exhibited even greater thigmomorphogenic changes and more decreased GA4 contents than did wild-type (WT) plants. Biochemical analysis indicated that the transcription factor ETHYLENE INSENSITIVE3 (EIN3) of the ET pathway binds to the promoter of GA2ox8 (encoding another GA 2-oxidase performing the same GA modification as GA2ox7) and represses GA2ox8 transcription. Moreover, MYC2, the master regulator of JA signaling, directly promoted GA2ox7 expression by binding the G-box motif on GA2ox7 promoter. Further genetic analysis suggested that the ET and JA pathways independently control the expression of GA2ox8 and GA2ox7, respectively. This study reveals that the ET pathway is a novel repressor of touch-induced thigmomorphogenesis and highlights that the ET and JA pathways converge on GA catabolism but play opposite roles to fine-tune GA4 content during thigmomorphogenesis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Both herbivory and jasmonic acid (JA) activate the biosynthesis of defensive metabolites in maize, but the mechanism underlying this remains unclear. We generated maize mutants in which ZmMYC2a and ZmMYC2b, two transcription factor genes important in JA signaling, were individually or both knocked out. Genetic and biochemical analyses were used to elucidate the functions of ZmMYC2 proteins in the maize response to simulated herbivory and JA. Compared with the wild‐type (WT) maize, the double mutant myc2ab was highly susceptible to insects, and the levels of benzoxazinoids and volatile terpenes, and the levels of their biosynthesis gene transcripts, were much lower in the mutants than in the WT maize after simulated insect feeding or JA treatment. Moreover, ZmMYC2a and ZmMYC2b played a redundant role in maize resistance to insects and JA signaling. Transcriptome and Cleavage Under Targets and Tagmentation‐Sequencing (CUT&Tag‐Seq) analysis indicated that ZmMYC2s physically targeted 60% of the JA‐responsive genes, even though only 33% of these genes were transcriptionally ZmMYC2‐dependent. Importantly, CUT&Tag‐Seq and dual luciferase assays revealed that ZmMYC2s transactivate the benzoxazinoid and volatile terpene biosynthesis genes IGPS1/3, BX10/11/12/14, and TPS10/2/3/4/5/8 by directly binding to their promoters. Furthermore, several transcription factors physically targeted by ZmMYC2s were identified, and these are likely to function in the regulation of benzoxazinoid biosynthesis. This work reveals the transcriptional regulatory landscapes of both JA signaling and ZmMYC2s in maize and provides comprehensive mechanistic insight into how JA signaling modulates defenses in maize responses to herbivory through ZmMYC2s. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transposable elements exist widely throughout plant genomes and play important roles in plant evolution. Auxin is an important regulator that is traditionally associated with root development and drought stress adaptation. The DEEPER ROOTING 1 (DRO1) gene is a key component of rice drought avoidance. Here, we identified a transposon that acts as an autonomous auxin‐responsive promoter and its presence at specific genome positions conveys physiological adaptations related to drought avoidance. Rice varieties with a high and auxin‐mediated transcription of DRO1 in the root tip show deeper and longer root phenotypes and are thus better adapted to drought. The INDITTO2 transposon contains an auxin response element and displays auxin‐responsive promoter activity; it is thus able to convey auxin regulation of transcription to genes in its proximity. In the rice Acuce, which displays DRO1‐mediated drought adaptation, the INDITTO2 transposon was found to be inserted at the promoter region of the DRO1 locus. Transgenesis‐based insertion of the INDITTO2 transposon into the DRO1 promoter of the non‐adapted rice variety Nipponbare was sufficient to promote its drought avoidance. Our data identify an example of how transposons can act as promoters and convey hormonal regulation to nearby loci, improving plant fitness in response to different abiotic stresses. Role of auxin regulating drought avoidance remains unclear. In this study, an INDITTO2 transposon inserted at a DRO1 locus conveys auxin‐regulated transcription of the DRO1 and thus enhances rice root drought avoidance. It shows that the interaction of transposon and auxin can improve plant fitness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: 2,4‐Dihydroxy‐7‐methoxy‐1,4‐benzoxazin‐3‐one (DIMBOA) and DIMBOA‐glucoside (DIMBOA‐Glc) are anti‐insect benzoxazinoids in maize, yet very little information is known about how they are regulated.Reverse genetics, kinase activity analysis, phytohormone and DIMBOA/DIMBOA‐Glc quantification, bioassays and transcriptome analysis were employed to study the function of ZmMPK6, a mitogen‐activated protein kinase, in maize response to herbivory.ZmMPK6 was rapidly activated by wounding and simulated herbivory. Silencing ZmMPK6 in maize A188 compromised simulated herbivory‐induced ethylene levels but not those of jasmonic acid or salicylic acid, and the ZmMPK6‐silenced plants exhibited elevated DIMBOA/DIMBOA‐Glc and insect resistance. An ethylene complementation experiment revealed that ZmMPK6 repressed the accumulation of DIMBOA/DIMBOA‐Glc in an ethylene‐dependent manner. Transcriptome analysis revealed that ZmMPK6 might meditate the transcription of BX1 by controlling a MYB transcription factor that is likely to be located in the ethylene signalling pathway and, furthermore, ZmMPK6 and ethylene signalling also specifically and commonly regulate the transcription of other benzoxazinoid biosynthetic genes. We also show that different maize lines have very different responses to simulated herbivory in terms of ZmMPK6 activation, ethylene emission and benzoxazinoid levels.These results uncover that ZmMPK6 and ethylene pathway are novel repressors of DIMBOA/DIMBOA‐Glc and provide new insight into the regulatory mechanisms underlying these two pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Regulation of responses induced by herbivory and jasmonic acid (JA) remains poorly understood in the important staple crop maize (Zea mays). MYC2 is the key transcription factor regulating many aspects of JA signaling, while mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPKs or MPKs) play important roles in various plant physiological processes. Using a combination of reverse genetics, transcriptome analysis, and biochemical assays, we elucidated the important role of MPK4 in maize resistance to insects and in JA signaling. Silencing MPK4 increased the JA and jasmonoyl-isoleucine levels elicited by wounding or simulated herbivory but decreased maize resistance to armyworm (Mythimna separata) larvae. We showed that MPK4 is required for transcriptional regulation of many genes responsive to methyl jasmonate, indicating the important role of maize MPK4 in JA signaling. Biochemical analyses indicated that MPK4 directly phosphorylates MYC2s at Thr115 of MYC2a and Thr112 of MYC2b. Compared with nonphosphorylated MYC2s, phosphorylated MYC2s were more prone to degradation and exhibited enhanced transactivation activity against the promoters of several benzoxazinoid biosynthesis genes, which are important for maize defense against insects. This study reveals the essential role of maize MPK4 in JA signaling and provides insights into the functions of MAPKs in maize., (© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of American Society of Plant Biologists. All rights reserved. For commercial re-use, please contact reprints@oup.com for reprints and translation rights for reprints. All other permissions can be obtained through our RightsLink service via the Permissions link on the article page on our site—for further information please contact journals.permissions@oup.com.)