Abstract
Genes involved in cell number regulation may affect plant growth and organ size and, ultimately, crop yield. The tomato (genus Solanum) fruit weight gene fw2.2, for instance, governs a quantitative trait locus that accounts for 30% of fruit size variation, with increased fruit size chiefly due to increased carpel ovary cell number. To expand investigation of how related genes may impact other crop plant or organ sizes, we identified the maize (Zea mays) gene family of putative fw2.2 orthologs, naming them Cell Number Regulator (CNR) genes. This family represents an ancient eukaryotic family of Cys-rich proteins containing the PLAC8 or DUF614 conserved motif. We focused on native expression and transgene analysis of the two maize members closest to Le-fw2.2, namely, CNR1 and CNR2. We show that CNR1 reduced overall plant size when ectopically overexpressed and that plant and organ size increased when its expression was cosuppressed or silenced. Leaf epidermal cell counts showed that the increased or decreased transgenic plant and organ size was due to changes in cell number, not cell size. CNR2 expression was found to be negatively correlated with tissue growth activity and hybrid seedling vigor. The effects of CNR1 on plant size and cell number are reminiscent of heterosis, which also increases plant size primarily through increased cell number. Regardless of whether CNRs and other cell number-influencing genes directly contribute to, or merely mimic, heterosis, they may aid generation of more vigorous and productive crop plants.
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Claims 6
Claim · model-written summary
Ectopic overexpression of CNR1 reduced overall maize plant size
Zea maysNot reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“Plant and Organ Size in Maize”
e1“We show that CNR1 reduced overall plant size when ectopically overexpressed and that plant and organ size increased when its expression was cosuppressed or silenced”
Claim · model-written summary
Cosuppression or silencing of CNR1 increased maize plant and organ size
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“Plant and Organ Size in Maize”
e1“We show that CNR1 reduced overall plant size when ectopically overexpressed and that plant and organ size increased when its expression was cosuppressed or silenced”
Claim · model-written summary
Changes in transgenic maize plant and organ size were due to changes in cell number, not cell size
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“Plant and Organ Size in Maize”
e1“We show that CNR1 reduced overall plant size when ectopically overexpressed and that plant and organ size increased when its expression was cosuppressed or silenced”
e2“Leaf epidermal cell counts showed that the increased or decreased transgenic plant and organ size was due to changes in cell number, not cell size”
Claim · model-written summary
CNR2 expression is negatively correlated with tissue growth activity and hybrid seedling vigor in maize
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“Plant and Organ Size in Maize”
e3“CNR2 expression was found to be negatively correlated with tissue growth activity and hybrid seedling vigor”
Claim · model-written summary
Effects of CNR1 on plant size and cell number are reminiscent of heterosis
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“Plant and Organ Size in Maize”
e4“The effects of CNR1 on plant size and cell number are reminiscent of heterosis, which also increases plant size primarily through increased cell number”
Claim · model-written summary
CNR genes may help generate more vigorous and productive crop plants
Verbatim
e5“they may aid generation of more vigorous and productive crop plants”
The same questions in other papers
loss of function · growth · Zea mays (maize)Positive and negative results
5 papers in the same direction as this paper · 32 in the opposite direction
- no effect
- negative
- negative
34 papers more in this group
See all 38 papers →Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.