Dual functions of ZmGI1 in the photoperiodic flowering pathway and salt stress responses in maize

The circadian clock perceives photoperiodic changes and initiates processes leading to floral transition. GIGANTEA (GI) primarily functions as a principal clock component that integrates environmental cues into regulation of growth and development in Arabidopsis. However, it is unclear whether ZmGIs regulate photoperiodic flowering and abiotic stress response. Here, we demonstrated that the expression of ZmGI1 depicted a typical circadian pattern and was differentially expressed under LDs and SDs in photoperiodic sensitive and insensitive maize lines. The transcription level was significantly and positively correlated with days to silking and photoperiodic sensitivity in maize. Moreover, natural variation in ZmGI1 was associated with maize photoperiod response and the fine-tuning of plant development traits. Overexpression of ZmGI1Huangzao4 induced early flowering and enhanced salt tolerance in Arabidopsis relative to the wild-type and gi mutants. ZmGI1 formed a protein complex with ZmFKF1 and acted as a positive regulator of flowering time by regulating CONSTANS transcription in the photoperiod pathway. The ZmGI1/ZmThox complex regulates oxidative stress induced by salt stress via a redox balance pathway. Over all, we have provided compelling evidence to suggest that ZmGI1 is a pleotropic gene whose expression depicts a typical circadian rhythmic pattern and regulates flowering time and confers salt stress tolerance.