Biotechnology Bulletin ›› 2026, Vol. 42 ›› Issue (9): 70-81.doi: 10.13560/j.cnki.biotech.bull.1985.2025-0914

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Roles of TIFY Transcription Factors in Plant Growth, Development and Stress Adaptation

SONG Wen-qing1,2, CHEN Zhi-xiang1, LI Yu-qian1,2, WANG Hai-long1, XING Guo-fang2(), ZHANG Jie-wei1()   

  1. 1.Beijing Key Laboratory of Agricultural Genetic Resources and Biotechnology, Beijing Key Laboratory of Crop Molecular Design and Intelligent Breeding, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Beijing 100097
    2.College of Agriculture, Shanxi Agricultural University, Jinzhong 030801
  • Received:2025-08-23 Online:2026-09-26 Published:2026-09-16
  • Contact: XING Guo-fang, ZHANG Jie-wei E-mail:sxauxgf@126.com;jwzhang919@163.com

Abstract:

TIFY transcription factors are a class of regulators unique to plants, which harbor a highly conserved TIF[F/Y]XG motif and can be divided into four sub-families: TIFY, JAZ, PPD and ZML. Driven by advances in plant genomics and functional genomics, TIFY transcription factor genes have been systematically identified in a wide range of plant species, and the size of this gene family varies markedly among different plants. Here we summarize the structural features of TIFY transcription factors and systematically delineate their roles in growth and development (e.g., leaf morphogenesis, floral organ, etc.), hormonal signal transduction (especially jasmonic acid, ABA, etc.), and responses to diverse environmental stresses, including biotic attack as well as cold, drought. Although TIFY proteins have been conclusively implicated in plant growth, development, and stress responses, their precise mechanistic actions remain elusive, and the fine-tuning of their functions by post-translational modifications (e.g., methylation, phosphorylation, and ubiquitination) awaits further dissection. In the future, comparative genomics can be integrated to systematically analyze the collinear blocks and evolutionary trajectories of TIFY genes across different families, genera, and ploidy levels, thereby uncovering their functional differentiation rules. Leveraging structural biology techniques such as X-ray crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy, the three-dimensional structures of TIFY core domains (e.g., TIFY and JAS) can be resolved to pinpoint their interaction interfaces with target proteins and hormonal ligands. Coupled with CRISPR-Cas9-mediated gene editing, this will enable in-depth dissection of TIFY regulatory mechanisms and facilitate directed genetic improvement via genetic-engineering strategies, ultimately providing important candidate genes for breeding next-generation crops with robust stress tolerance and superior high-yield traits.

Key words: TIFY, gene family, transcription factor, growth and development, hormone signal, JA, stress response, three-dimensional structure