Heat-stable protein PGSL1 enhances pollen germination and tube growth at high temperature

Dong Qian, Tian Li, Chen Zheng, Muxuan Wang, Shuyuan Chen, Chengying Li, Jiale An, Yang Yang, Yue Niu, Lizhe An and Yun Xiang ()
Additional contact information
Dong Qian: Lanzhou University
Tian Li: Lanzhou University
Chen Zheng: Lanzhou University
Muxuan Wang: Lanzhou University
Shuyuan Chen: Lanzhou University
Chengying Li: Lanzhou University
Jiale An: Lanzhou University
Yang Yang: Lanzhou University
Yue Niu: Lanzhou University
Lizhe An: Lanzhou University
Yun Xiang: Lanzhou University

Nature Communications, 2025, vol. 16, issue 1, 1-17

Abstract: Abstract Global warming intensifies extreme heat events, threatening crop reproduction by impairing pollen development, germination, and tube growth. However, the mechanisms underlying pollen heat responses remain elusive. The actin cytoskeleton and actin-binding proteins (ABPs) are crucial in these processes, yet their roles under heat stress are poorly understood. Here, we identify a mutant, pollen germination sensitive to LatB (pgsl1), via forward genetic screening. PGSL1 encodes a heat-stable, plant-specific ABP that binds and stabilizes actin filaments (F-actin), preventing heat-induced denaturation. High temperatures reduce F-actin content but promote bundling in pollen tubes. Notably, pgsl1 mutants exhibit decreased F-actin abundance and bundling under heat stress compared to wild-type plants. These findings highlight PGSL1 as a key regulator of actin dynamics, essential for pollen heat tolerance, offering potential strategies to enhance crop resilience in a warming climate.

Date: 2025
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-025-58869-1 Abstract (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:nat:natcom:v:16:y:2025:i:1:d:10.1038_s41467-025-58869-1

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
https://www.nature.com/ncomms/

DOI: 10.1038/s41467-025-58869-1

Access Statistics for this article

Nature Communications is currently edited by Nathalie Le Bot, Enda Bergin and Fiona Gillespie

More articles in Nature Communications from Nature
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().