Fig. 8: SLRL2 directly activates the transcription of MFT2 to inhibit rice PHS.

a Expression analysis of MFT2 in slrl2 mutant and SLRL2 overexpression transgenic rice. OsActin1 was used as an internal control to normalize gene expression. The expression level of MFT2 in WT was set to 1. Data are means ± SD (n = 3 biological replicates). b Dual-luciferase reporter assay showed that SLRL2 activates the expression of MFT2. The value of the 62-SK and MFT2pro-LUC co-transfection group was set to 1. Data are means ± SD (n = 5 biological replicates). A two-sided Student’s t test was performed for statistical analysis. c Structural diagram of the SLRL2-binding cis-acting element on the MFT2 promoter. d Yeast one-hybrid experiments showing the direct interaction between SLRL2 and the MFT2 promoter. e EMSA experiment confirming the direct interaction between SLRL2 and the MFT2 promoter. The hot probe is a biotin-labeled MFT2 promoter fragment with a CTCC motif, while the competition probe is unlabeled. The experiments were independently repeated three times with similar results. Source data are provided in a Source Data file. f The ChIP-qPCR assay shows the enrichment of the MFT2 promoter by SLRL2 in vivo. Data are means ± SD (n = 3 independent experiments). Statistical analysis was performed using two-tailed Student’s t test. Panicle phenotypes (g) and quantification curve (h) of PHS analysis of the mft2 mutant and its WT. The scale bar is 1 cm. Error bars represent SD (n = 5 biological replicates).