CsMYB67 participates in the flavonoid biosynthesis of summer tea leaves

Abstract Flavonoids are important compounds in tea leaves imparting bitter and astringent taste, which also play key roles in tea plants responding to environmental stress. Our previous study showed that the expression level of CsMYB67 was positively correlated with the accumulation of flavonoids in tea leaves as exposed to sunlight. Here, we newly reported the function of CsMYB67 in regulating flavonoid biosynthesis in tea leaves. CsMYB67 was localized in the nucleus and responded to temperature. The results of transient expression assays showed the co-transformation of CsMYB67 and CsTTG1 promoted the transcription of CsANS promoter in tobacco system. CsTTG1 was bound to the promoter of CsANS based on the results of yeast one-hybrid (Y1H) and transient expression assays, while CsMYB67 enhanced the transcription of CsANS through protein interaction with CsTTG1 according to the results of yeast two-hybrid (Y2H) and bimolecular fluorescence complementation (BiFC). Thus, CsMYB67-CsTTG1 module enhanced the anthocyanin biosynthesis through up-regulating the transcription of CsANS. Besides, CsMYB67 also enhanced the transcription of CsFLS and CsUFGT through forming transcription factor complexes. The function of CsMYB67 on flavonoid biosynthesis in tea leaves was validated by gene suppression assay. As CsMYB67 was suppressed, the transcriptional level of CsFLS was greatly reduced, leading to the significant increase in the contents of total catechins and total anthocyanidins. Hence, CsMYB67 plays an important role in regulating the downstream pathway of flavonoid biosynthesis in summer tea leaves.