Roles of APETALA2/Ethylene-Response Factors in Regulation of Fruit Quality

Ethylene plays important roles in the regulation of plant development and senescence, and largely acts through families of transcription factors. Some members of the plant-specific APETALA2/ethylene response factor (AP2/ERF) superfamily of transcription factors act downstream of the ethylene signaling pathway and are strongly conserved throughout the plant kingdom. Many members of this family of regulatory proteins are involved in the control of plant growth, defense, responses to the environment, and plant hormones. Recently, evidence showing that they are also key regulators of ripening fruit quality attributes, such as color, texture, and flavor, is accumulating, providing new targets for exploring biological function and action of ethylene in fruit. Here, we review the recent progress in functional characterization of members of the AP2/ERF family of transcription actors and their role in controlling multiple aspects of fruit quality.