TY  - JOUR
AU  - Ge, Min
AU  - Wang, Yuancong
AU  - Liu, Yuhe
AU  - Ning, Lihua
AU  - Zhou, Ling
AU  - Liang, Shuaiqiang
AU  - Wu, Yibo
AU  - Zhang, Tifu
AU  - Zhao, Han
PY  - 2025
TI  - The transcription factor ZmNLP5 increases maize grain yield by regulating nitrogen assimilation genes
JO  - The Crop Journal
SN  - 2095-5421
SP  - 1762
EP  - 1772
VL  - 13
IS  - 6
AB  - Nitrogen (N) is crucial for maize (Zea mays L.) growth, development and yield. Dysfunction of the maize NIN-like protein 5 (ZmNLP5) reduces N assimilation, but the precise mechanism by which ZmNLP5 modulates N metabolism and its contribution to agricultural applications are not well understood. In this study, our transcriptomic profiling and chromatin immunoprecipitation followed by sequencing (ChIP-seq) analyses reveal 581 ZmNLP5-modulated target genes. We confirmed that ZmNLP5 physically interacted and transactivated contributors to N assimilation, including ZmNRT1.1D, ZmNIR1.1, ZmNR2.1, ZmGS4, ZmAS1, and ZmLBD6. Overexpression of ZmNLP5 upregulated N metabolism genes, and enhanced the enzymatic activities of nitrate reductase and glutamine synthase. Furthermore, overexpressing ZmNLP5 increased grain yield under both normal-N and low-N conditions. Introgression of the overexpressed ZmNLP5 allele into Zhengdan 958 resulted in comparable yield increases in field trials. Our study unveiled that ZmNLP5 is a potential genetic target for increasing nitrogen use efficiency and grain yield in maize.
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cj.2025.07.011
DO  - 10.1016/j.cj.2025.07.011