Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) SlIPT4 encoding an isopentenyltransferase is involved in leaf senescence and lycopene biosynthesis during fruit ripening

摘要

BackgroundLycopene is an important carotenoid pigment in red fruits and vegetables, especially in tomato. Although lycopene biosynthesis and catabolism have been found to be regulated by multiple factors including phytohormones, little is known about their regulatory mechanism. Cytokinins are crucial to various aspects of plant growth. Isopentenyltransferases (IPTs) catalyze the initial rate-limiting step of cytokinins biosynthesis, however, their roles in fruit ripening remain unclear.