The cuticular wax that covers the surfaces of plants is the first barrier against environmental stresses and increasingly accumulates with light exposure. However, the molecular basis of light-responsive wax biosynthesis remains elusive. In grape (Vitis vinifera), light exposure resulted in higher wax terpenoid content and lower decay and abscission rates than controls kept in darkness. Assay for transposase-accessible chromatin with high-throughput sequencing (ATAC-seq) and RNA-seq data were integrated to draw the chromatin accessibility and cis-elements regulatory map to identify the potential action sites.

 

Terpenoid synthase 12 (VvTPS12) and 3-Hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase 2 (VvHMGR2) were identified as grape wax biosynthesis targets, while VvHYH and VvGATA24 were identified as terpenoid biosynthesis activators, as more abundant wax crystals and higher wax terpenoid content were observed in transiently overexpressed grape berries and Nicotiana benthamiana leaves. The interaction between VvHYH and the open chromatin of VvTPS12 was confirmed qualitatively using a dual luciferase assay and quantitatively using surface plasma resonance, with an equilibrium dissociation constant of 2.81 nM identified via the latter approach.