The role of transcription factor MdGeBP3 in Modulating cold stress tolerance and anthocyanin biosynthesis in apple.

Authors

Ming-Kun Wang, Ran-Xin Liu, Cong-Yu Xu, Yue-Ning Wang, Xiao-Han Qin, Shan-Shan Li, Ying-Xue Lv, Du Liu, Jie Lu, Xiao-Fei Wang

Published in

Journal of plant physiology. Volume 324. Pages 154841. Jul 08, 2026. Epub Jul 08, 2026.

Abstract

Cold stress is a major environmental constraint limiting crop productivity and quality. Here, we identify a transcription factor MdGeBP3 in apple, which responds to cold stress at both transcriptional and post-translational levels. Functional analysis revealed that overexpression of MdGeBP3 significantly enhances cold tolerance in both apple calli and the model plant Arabidopsis, and the transcript levels of cold-responsive genes were induced in MdGeBP3 overexpression plants. Furthermore, MdGeBP3 was found to participate in anthocyanin biosynthesis. Overexpression of MdGeBP3 in Arabidopsis and apple calli promoted anthocyanin accumulation. Moreover, temporary overexpression of MdGeBP3 in both apple leaves and fruit peel led to increased anthocyanin accumulation, while silencing the MdGeBP3 gene via a virus-induced method decreased anthocyanin content. Collectively, these findings demonstrate that MdGeBP3 acts as a positive regulator of cold tolerance and anthocyanin biosynthesis, providing new insights into the coordination between stress responses and secondary metabolism in apple.

PMID:
42430815
Bibliographic data and abstract were imported from PubMed on 11 Jul 2026.

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