A Co-Opted Steroid Synthesis Gene, Maintained in Sorghum but Not Maize, Is Associated with a Divergence in Leaf Wax Chemistry
A co-opted steroid synthesis gene, maintained in sorghum but not maize, is associated with a divergence in leaf wax chemistry Lucas Bustaa,b,1,2,3, Elizabeth Schmitza,b,1, Dylan K. Kosmac, James C. Schnableb,d, and Edgar B. Cahoona,b,3 aDepartment of Biochemistry, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588; bCenter for Plant Science Innovation, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68588; cDepartment of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Nevada, Reno, NV 89557; and dDepartment of Agronomy and Horticulture, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Lincoln, NE 68583 Edited by Julian I. Schroeder, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA, and approved February 1, 2021 (received for review November 17, 2020) Virtually all land plants are coated in a cuticle, a waxy polyester Though plants deploy diverse mechanisms to protect them- that prevents nonstomatal water loss and is important for heat selves against drought and heat, one of the most widespread and drought tolerance. Here, we describe a likely genetic basis for (found in essentially all land plants), is a hydrophobic, aerial a divergence in cuticular wax chemistry between Sorghum bicolor, surface coating called the cuticle. This structure is composed of a a drought tolerant crop widely cultivated in hot climates, and its fatty acid-derived polyester scaffold called cutin, inside and on close relative Zea mays (maize). Combining chemical analyses, het- top of which accumulates wax, a mixture of hydrophobic com- erologous expression, and comparative genomics,
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