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Pineapple is a globally significant tropical fruit, but its cultivation faces numerous challenges due to abiotic and biotic stresses, affecting its quality and quantity. WRKY transcription factors are known regulators of stress responses, however, their specific functions in pineapple are not fully understood. This study investigates the role of AcWRKY31 by overexpressing it in pineapple and Arabidopsis. Transgenic pineapple lines were obtained using Agrobacterium-mediated transformation methods and abiotic and biotic stress treatments. Transgenic AcWRKY31-OE pineapple plants showed an increased sensitivity to salt and drought stress and an increased resistance to biotic stress from pineapple mealybugs compared to that of WT plants. Similar experiments in AcWRKY31-OE, AtWRKY53-OE, and the Arabidopsis Atwrky53 mutant were performed and consistently confirmed these findings. A comparative transcriptomic analysis revealed 5357 upregulated genes in AcWRKY31-OE pineapple, with 30 genes related to disease and pathogen response. Notably, 18 of these genes contained a W-box sequence in their promoter region. A KEGG analysis of RNA-Seq data showed that upregulated DEG genes are mostly involved in translation, protein kinases, peptidases and inhibitors, membrane trafficking, folding, sorting, and degradation, while the downregulated genes are involved in metabolism, protein families, signaling, and cellular processes. RT-qPCR assays of selected genes confirmed the transcriptomic results. In summary, the AcWRKY31 gene is promising for the improvement of stress responses in pineapple, and it could be a valuable tool for plant breeders to develop stress-tolerant crops in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In eukaryotes, genetic material is packaged into a dynamic but stable nucleoprotein structure called chromatin. Post-translational modification of chromatin domains affects the expression of underlying genes and subsequently the identity of cells by conveying epigenetic information from mother to daughter cells. SWI/SNF chromatin remodelers are ATP-dependent complexes that modulate core histone protein polypeptides, incorporate variant histone species and modify nucleotides in DNA strands within the nucleosome. The present review discusses the SWI/SNF chromatin remodeler family, its classification and recent advancements. We also address the involvement of SWI/SNF remodelers in regulating vital plant growth and development processes such as meristem establishment and maintenance, cell differentiation, organ initiation, flower morphogenesis and flowering time regulation. Moreover, the role of chromatin remodelers in key phytohormone signaling pathways is also reviewed. The information provided in this review may prompt further debate and investigations aimed at understanding plant-specific epigenetic regulation mediated by chromatin remodeling under continuously varying plant growth conditions and global climate change. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The cellulose synthase (Ces) and cellulose synthase-like (Csl) gene families belonging to the cellulose synthase gene superfamily, are responsible for the biosynthesis of cellulose and hemicellulose of the plant cell wall, and play critical roles in plant development, growth and evolution. However, the Ces/Csl gene family remains to be characterized in pineapple, a highly valued and delicious tropical fruit. Here, we carried out genome-wide study and identified a total of seven Ces genes and 25 Csl genes in pineapple. Genomic features and phylogeny analysis of Ces/Csl genes were carried out, including phylogenetic tree, chromosomal locations, gene structures, and conserved motifs identification. In addition, we identified 32 pineapple AcoCes/Csl genes with 31 Arabidopsis AtCes/Csl genes as orthologs by the syntenic and phylogenetic approaches. Furthermore, a RNA-seq investigation exhibited the expression profile of several AcoCes/Csl genes in various tissues and multiple developmental stages. Collectively, we provided comprehensive information of the evolution and function of pineapple Ces/Csl gene superfamily, which would be useful for screening out and characterization of the putative genes responsible for tissue development in pineapple. The present study laid the foundation for future functional characterization of Ces/Csl genes in pineapple., Competing Interests: 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.