ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Plant Breeding
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpls.2025.1654238
A naturally occurring promoter variation of BrGSL-OHa contributes to the conversion of gluconapin to progoitrin in Brassica rapa L. leaves
Provisionally accepted
- 1Molecular Biology of Vegetable Laboratory, College of Horticulture, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang, China
- 2Molecular Genetics and Genomics Lab, Department of Horticulture, Chungnam National University, Yuseong-gu, Republic of Korea
- 3Dalian Modern Agriculture Development Service Center, Dalian, China
Select one of your emails
You have multiple emails registered with Frontiers:
Notify me on publication
Please enter your email address:
If you already have an account, please login
You don't have a Frontiers account ? You can register here
Glucosinolates (GSLs) are sulfur-rich secondary metabolites that play important roles in human health, plant defenses against pathogens and insects, and flavor. The genetic architecture of GSL biosynthesis in Brassica rapa L. remains poorly understood despite several mapping and gene prediction studies. This study conducted a conventional quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis to identify putative genes regulating GSL biosynthesis in B. rapa in two field trials. Four consensus QTL clusters were identified for various GSL compounds. Six QTLs exhibited effects of QTL–environment interactions (Q×E), reflecting the genetic variation underlying phenotypic plasticity. QTL-Cluster2 and QTL-Cluster3 on chromosome A03 represented two genetically stable regions for major aliphatic GSLs (Ali-GSLs) without Q×E effects. Interestingly, variation in the expression of BrGSL-OHa, rather than gene sequence variation, explained the association between QTL-Cluster2 and gluconapin and progoitrin accumulation in B. rapa. Further function analysis indicated that the lack of an MYB binding site in the oil-type B. rapa BrGSL-OHa promoter region represented a rare non-functional allele among B. rapa genotypes, which prevented binding with the MYB transcription factor BrMYB29b, thereby repressing BrGSL-OHa transcription and inhibiting progoitrin biosynthesis. This study provides new insights regarding the molecular regulatory mechanism of GSL biosynthesis in B. rapa.
Keywords: Brassica rapa, Glucosinolates, QTL, BrGSL-OHa, BrMYB29b
Received: 26 Jun 2025; Accepted: 08 Sep 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Zheng, Choi, Jing, Zhang, Sun, Li and Lim. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Xiaonan Li, Molecular Biology of Vegetable Laboratory, College of Horticulture, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang, China
Yong Pyo Lim, Molecular Genetics and Genomics Lab, Department of Horticulture, Chungnam National University, Yuseong-gu, Republic of Korea
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.