Search PubMed⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search PubMed

Results for “morphogenic regulators”

Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

6 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2026

Impact of wheat GRF4-GIF1 morphogenic regulators on transformation and genome editing efficiency in elite barley cultivars.

INTRODUCTION: Efficient genetic transformation is essential for the delivery of the CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing system and thus represents an important technology for breeding-oriented research in barley (Hordeum vulgare L.). However, transformation and plant regeneration from tissue culture remain challenging in non-model barley genotypes. Previous studies demonstrated that expression of a chimeric fusion between two interacting transcription factors, GROWTH-REGULATING FACTOR 4 (GRF4) and GRF-INTERACTING FACTOR 1 (GIF1), enhances regeneration capacity in wheat and other species. METHODS: In this study, we evaluated the effect of the wheat-derived GRF4-GIF1 morphogenic regulators on biolistic transformation and genome editing efficiency in three commercial barley cultivars: Tselinniy 5, Aley, and G-23035. RESULTS: The JD633 construct carrying GRF4-GIF1 enabled recovery of stable transformants in all three genotypes, with efficiencies ranging from 2.5% to 5%, whereas the control construct lacking morphogenic regulators resulted in no transgenic events in any of the tested varieties. Among transformed T0 plantlets, genome editing efficiency reached 64.3%, with predominantly biallelic mutations that were stably inherited in the T1 generation. Molecular screening revealed the presence of plasmid-free edited plants in the T0 generation, likely arising from transient Cas9 expression, and provided evidence of tissue chimerism. DISCUSSION: These results demonstrate that the GRF-GIF system facilitates genome editing, providing a practical framework for accelerating precision breeding in barley.

CRISPR/Cas9↗
PubMed2026

The combination of morphogenic regulators BABY BOOM and GRF-GIF improves maize transformation efficiency and promotes leaf regeneration.

Transformation is an indispensable tool for plant genetics and functional genomics. Although stable transformation in maize is no longer a major obstacle, there remains a need for accessible and efficient methods for academic laboratories. Here, we present the GGB system, a rapid and efficient approach optimized for immature embryo transformation in B104 and other maize lines. This system combines two distinct morphogenetic regulators, the wheat GRF4-GIF1 chimera and the maize BABY BOOM (BBM) transcription factor (hence the name "GGB") with a modified QuickCorn protocol, enabling regeneration of transformed maize plantlets in c. 2 months with an efficiency 7-fold higher than when compared to either morphogenic factor used in isolation. Expression of both regulators did not significantly affect development, eliminating the need to excise them after regeneration. However, transmission of the transgenic GGB construct through pollen was significantly reduced, potentially aiding transgenic line containment. We show that the GGB system is adaptable for CRISPR-Cas9 editing and reporter line generation. Furthermore, stable GGB transformants exhibited high leaf regeneration capacity via somatic embryogenesis. RNA-seq time-course profiling of GGB leaf cultures identified additional factors that could promote regeneration and led to the discovery of asparagine and trehalose as additional media components that significantly enhanced leaf regeneration.

Zea mays↗
PubMed2025

An elegant co-transformation strategy for recalcitrant wheat using morphogenic regulators.

Common wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) is a vital global crop, but many elite cultivars remain recalcitrant to genetic transformation, hindering functional genomics and crop improvement. Here, we developed an efficient co-transformation strategy for recalcitrant wheat varieties (e.g., Aikang58 and Xinong979) using the morphogenic gene mTaGRF4-TaGIF1. This approach entails mixing Agrobacterium tumefaciens cultures carrying two separate vectors: a standard gene-of-interest (GOI) vector (containing a selectable marker) and a gene-of-co-transformation vector (GOC, expressing mTaGRF4-TaGIF1 without a selectable marker). Co-transformation enhanced regeneration efficiency to ~37.38% in AK58, a marked improvement over conventional methods, enabling consistent recovery of transgenic plants. Among regenerants, ~63.25% carried both GOI and GOC (GOI&GOC), while ~11.92% contained only the GOI. Only-GOI plants could also be obtained through progeny segregation from GOI&GOC lines. We successfully generated GUS- and RUBY-expressing transgenic lines, as well as CRISPR-Cas9-edited mutants targeting Q and Ph1 genes, confirming the method's efficacy for both gain-of-function and genome editing application. Furthermore, the strategy was successfully extended to another recalcitrant variety Xinong979, demonstrating its potential for broad applicability. Unlike existing methods dependent on complex excision systems or tissue-specific promoters, our co-transformation methodology significantly simplifies both vector design and procedural workflow while maintaining high efficiency. Collectively, these findings establish a technically advanced yet operationally simplified transformation platform that addresses the long-standing challenge of genetic transformation in recalcitrant wheat varieties, providing researchers with a powerful tool for functional genomics studies and accelerating precision breeding programs in elite wheat cultivars.

Triticum↗
PubMed2025

Systematic Optimization Enables Near-Perfect In Vitro Transformation Efficiencies for Spirodela polyrhiza (Greater Duckweed).

The in vitro transformation of plants, or the delivery of foreign genetic material that is incorporated into their genomes, represents a powerful tool both for elucidating genotype-phenotype relationships and for generating plant cultivars which have desirable traits for agriculture and/or biotechnological applications. However, outside of a few model species, the processes involved in transformation are often inefficient and can take months to perform for many plant species, with several bottlenecks occurring at the different stages of calli induction, genetic transfection, and plant regeneration. While duckweeds - aquatic monocots whose species include some of the smallest and fastest-growing flowering plants on the planet - have distinguished themselves with several emerging biotechnological applications, they too are the subject of conflicting reports regarding their transformation potential and ability to be genetically manipulated. Here, we synthesized and optimized the protocols for in vitro transformation of duckweed Spirodela polyrhiza (Greater Duckweed) from start-to-finish: achieving >90% - 100% efficiencies for each of calli induction; transient and stable genetic transformation; visual marker-free selection of transformants; and regeneration of genetically modified plants with stable transgene expression for over 100 generations - and which in S. polyrhiza can be achieved over the course of weeks instead of months. The integrated, streamlined approaches for all stages of in vitro transformation overcome many bottlenecks and can help to pave the way for high-throughput functional genomics studies and synthetic biology applications in this biotechnologically-important species.

CRISPR/Cas9↗
PubMed2025

Dual transcriptional activities of PAX3 and PAX7 spatially encode spinal cell fates through distinct gene networks.

Understanding how transcription factors regulate organized cellular diversity in developing tissues remains a major challenge due to their pleiotropic functions. We addressed this by monitoring and genetically modulating the activity of PAX3 and PAX7 during the specification of neural progenitor pools in the embryonic spinal cord. Using mouse models, we show that the balance between the transcriptional activating and repressing functions of these factors is modulated along the dorsoventral axis and is instructive to the patterning of spinal progenitor pools. By combining loss-of-function experiments with functional genomics in spinal organoids, we demonstrate that PAX-mediated repression and activation rely on distinct cis-regulatory genomic modules. This enables both the coexistence of their dual activity in dorsal cell progenitors and the specific control of two major differentiation programs. PAX promote H3K27me3 deposition at silencers to repress ventral identities, while at enhancers, they act as pioneer factors, opening and activating cis-regulatory modules to specify dorsal-most identities. Finally, we show that this pioneer activity is restricted to cells exposed to BMP morphogens, ensuring spatial specificity. These findings reveal how PAX proteins, modulated by morphogen gradients, orchestrate neuronal diversity in the spinal cord, providing a robust framework for neural subtype specification.

Animals↗
PubMed2026

A retinoic acid autoregulatory loop governing prefrontal-motor arealization.

The frontal lobe comprises the prefrontal association cortex (PFC), which supports complex cognition and goal-directed behaviour, and the motor cortex (MC), which executes movement1-14. The establishment of distinct regional identities and connections along the sensorimotor-to-association axis provides a fundamental scaffold for cortical areal organization and function15-19. Retinoic acid (RA) signalling has emerged as a key regulator of PFC development19-26. However, the mechanisms that spatially confine RA signalling within the developing PFC, and the downstream RA-responsive gene networks, remain poorly understood. Here we define an RA-associated gene regulatory network in the developing human PFC and identify MEIS2, which encodes a transcription factor linked to intellectual disability and autism spectrum disorder, as a key hub of this network. Conditional deletion of Meis2 in postmitotic cortical excitatory neurons in mice results in a partial respecification of prospective prefrontal association territories towards motor-like molecular and connectivity features, highlighting a critical role of postmitotic neurons in establishing and maintaining cortical areal identities. Concomitant with Meis2 loss, the population of excitatory neurons expressing the RA-synthesizing enzyme ALDH1A3, and consequently RA signalling itself, is substantially reduced in the developing medial PFC (mPFC). These findings reveal a conserved autoregulatory loop, RA → MEIS2 → ALDH1A3 → RA, that reinforces a PFC-enriched RA gradient and organizes the MC-PFC axis. Together, our findings reveal a postmitotic mechanism by which specific features of neuronal identity reinforce RA signalling to define key features of prefrontal and motor cortical territories, linking a classic morphogen to transcriptional identity, neural circuit formation and function, and potentially to neuropsychiatric disorders.

Journal Article↗