Chromosome-level genome assembly assisting for dissecting mechanism of anthocyanin regulation in kiwifruit (Actinidia arguta)

Abstract Actinidia arguta is a newly emerged, commercially cultivated Actinidia species. A. arguta has a beautiful appearance and is rich in anthocyanin, and is thus highly welcomed by consumers. However, the mechanism of anthocyanin regulation in A. arguta remains unclear. In this study, we assembled the nearly complete genome of the first red A. arguta cultivar, ‘Tianyuanhong’, with an N50 of 21 Mb. Comparative genome analysis revealed a role of the expansion/contraction of gene families in the species-specific trait formation of A. arguta . Through verification of transient overexpression and stable transformation, RNA-seq analysis revealed a key bHLH transcription factor, AaBEE1, which negatively regulates anthocyanin biosynthesis. DAP-seq analysis combined with Y1H, EMSA, Chip-qPCR and LUC suggested that AaBEE1 binds to the G-box of the AaLDOX promoter and suppresses its expression. Overall, we assembled the genome of A. arguta and clarified its AaBEE1-AaLDOX module-mediated molecular mechanism of anthocyanin regulation.