REVEILLE1 promotes NADPH: protochlorophyllide oxidoreductase A expression and seedling greening in Arabidopsis

Chlorophyll biosynthesis plays a crucial role in the greening process and survival of etiolated seedlings and yet the mechanism underlying the regulation of this process is poorly understood. Upon light stimulation, NADPH: protochlorophyllide oxidoreductase (POR) catalyzes the reduction of protochlorophyllide (Pchlide) to chlorophyllide. Whereas this represents a key step in the chlorophyll biosynthetic pathway, the regulation of POR remains largely unknown. Three POR isoforms exist in Arabidopsis thaliana, i.e., PORA, PORB, and PORC. In this study, we identified a transcription factor, REVEILLE1 (RVE1), that binds directly to the PORA promoter through the EE-box cis-regulatory element. Analysis of PORA expression in RVE1 loss-of-function (rve1) and overexpression (RVE1-OX) Arabidopsis plants showed that RVE1 positively regulates the transcription of PORA. We found that Pchlide levels were reduced in RVE1-OX seedlings. Furthermore, rve1 etiolated seedlings had lower greening rates than the wild type when exposed to light, whereas RVE1-OX seedlings had higher greening rates. In addition, when etiolated seedlings were exposed to light, RVE1-OX plants had less reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation and cell death than the wild type, and had reduced levels of ROS-responsive gene expression. Taken together, our study reveals an important role for RVE1 in regulating chlorophyll biosynthesis and promoting seedling greening during early plant growth and development.