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Thermomorphogenesis and the heat shock (HS) response are distinct thermal responses in plants that are regulated by PHYTOCHROME‐INTERACTING FACTOR 4 (PIF4) and HEAT SHOCK FACTOR A1s (HSFA1s), respectively. Little is known about whether these responses are interconnected and whether they are activated by similar mechanisms. An analysis of transcriptome dynamics in response to warm temperature (28°C) treatment revealed that 30 min of exposure activated the expression of a subset of HSFA1 target genes in Arabidopsis thaliana. Meanwhile, a loss‐of‐function HSFA1 quadruple mutant (hsfa1‐cq) was insensitive to warm temperature‐induced hypocotyl growth. In hsfa1‐cq plants grown at 28°C, the protein and transcript levels of PIF4 were greatly reduced, and the circadian rhythm of many thermomorphogenesis‐related genes (including PIF4) was disturbed. Additionally, the nuclear localization of HSFA1s and the binding of HSFA1d to the PIF4 promoter increased following warm temperature exposure, whereas PIF4 overexpression in hsfa1‐cq partially rescued the altered warm temperature‐induced hypocotyl growth of the mutant. Taken together, these results suggest that HSFA1s are required for PIF4 accumulation at a warm temperature, and they establish a central role for HSFA1s in regulating both thermomorphogenesis and HS responses in Arabidopsis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Brassinosteroids (BRs) play important roles in regulating plant reproductive processes. BR signaling or BR biosynthesis null mutants do not produce seeds under natural conditions, but the molecular mechanism underlying this infertility is poorly understood. In this study, we report that outer integument growth and embryo sac development were impaired in the ovules of the Arabidopsis thaliana BR receptor null mutant bri1‐116. Gene expression and RNA‐seq analyses showed that the expression of INNER NO OUTER (INO), an essential regulator of outer integument growth, was significantly reduced in the bri1‐116 mutant. Increased INO expression due to overexpression or increased transcriptional activity of BRASSINAZOLE‐RESISTANT 1 (BZR1) in the mutant alleviated the outer integument growth defect in bri1‐116 ovules, suggesting that BRs regulate outer integument growth partially via BZR1‐mediated transcriptional regulation of INO. Meanwhile, INO expression in bzr‐h, a null mutant for all BZR1 family genes, was barely detectable; and the outer integument of bzr‐h ovules had much more severe growth defects than those of the bri1‐116 mutant. Together, our findings establish a new role for BRs in regulating ovule development and suggest that BZR1 family transcription factors might regulate outer integument growth through both BRI1‐dependent and BRI1‐independent pathways. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]