Functional dissection of phytochrome A in plants
- PMID: 38344182
- PMCID: PMC10853449
- DOI: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1340260
Functional dissection of phytochrome A in plants
Abstract
Plants lack behavioral responses to avoid dramatic environmental changes associated with the annual seasons. For survival, they have evolved complex sensory systems to sense fluctuations in light and optimize their architecture in response to changes in these cues. Phytochrome A (phyA) was initially identified as a photoreceptor that senses far-red light signals. It was then identified as playing a central role in promoting hypocotyl growth, fiber development, and flowering time in a variety of plants including Arabidopsis, rice, soybean and cotton. Under dark conditions, phyA is present in the cytoplasm in the physiologically inactive (Pr) form. Far-red light signals induce the transformation of Pr into the physiologically active (Pfr) form, after which Pfr-phyA is recognized by FAR-RED ELONGATED HYPOCOTYL 1 (FHY1) and FHY1-LIKE (FHL) and translocated to the nucleus, initiating a series of signaling cascades. The current review comprehensively summarizes recent advances in understanding the function of phyA in plants, including phyA-mediated shade avoidance and flowering time. Remaining issues and possible directions for future research on phyA are also discussed.
Keywords: far-red light signaling; flowering time; light signaling; phytochrome A; shade avoidance.
Copyright © 2024 Lei, Ma, Zhang, Li, Ning, Wang, Ge, Zhao and Lin.
Conflict of interest statement
The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest.
Figures


Similar articles
-
Arabidopsis FHY1 and FHY1-LIKE Are Not Required for Phytochrome A Signal Transduction in the Nucleus.Plant Commun. 2019 Nov 9;1(2):100007. doi: 10.1016/j.xplc.2019.100007. eCollection 2020 Mar 9. Plant Commun. 2019. PMID: 33404546 Free PMC article.
-
FHY1 and FHL act together to mediate nuclear accumulation of the phytochrome A photoreceptor.Plant Cell Physiol. 2006 Aug;47(8):1023-34. doi: 10.1093/pcp/pcj087. Epub 2006 Jul 22. Plant Cell Physiol. 2006. PMID: 16861711
-
Arabidopsis fhl/fhy1 double mutant reveals a distinct cytoplasmic action of phytochrome A.Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2007 Jun 19;104(25):10737-42. doi: 10.1073/pnas.0703855104. Epub 2007 Jun 12. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2007. PMID: 17566111 Free PMC article.
-
Molecular mechanisms and ecological function of far-red light signalling.Plant Cell Environ. 2017 Nov;40(11):2509-2529. doi: 10.1111/pce.12915. Epub 2017 Mar 27. Plant Cell Environ. 2017. PMID: 28102581 Review.
-
Molecular mechanisms for mediating light-dependent nucleo/cytoplasmic partitioning of phytochrome photoreceptors.New Phytol. 2015 May;206(3):965-71. doi: 10.1111/nph.13207. Epub 2014 Dec 15. New Phytol. 2015. PMID: 26042244 Free PMC article. Review.
Cited by
-
Complex Signaling Networks Underlying Blue-Light-Mediated Floral Transition in Plants.Plants (Basel). 2025 May 20;14(10):1533. doi: 10.3390/plants14101533. Plants (Basel). 2025. PMID: 40431098 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Genome-wide identification and expression analysis of phytochrome gene family in Aikang58 wheat (Triticum aestivum L.).Front Plant Sci. 2025 Jan 21;15:1520457. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1520457. eCollection 2024. Front Plant Sci. 2025. PMID: 39906238 Free PMC article.
-
Mining candidate genes for maize plant height based on a GWAS, Meta-QTL, and WGCNA.Front Plant Sci. 2025 Jun 23;16:1587217. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2025.1587217. eCollection 2025. Front Plant Sci. 2025. PMID: 40625872 Free PMC article.
References
Publication types
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Research Materials