{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,7,25]],"date-time":"2026-07-25T03:17:31Z","timestamp":1784949451836,"version":"3.55.0"},"reference-count":49,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,27]],"date-time":"2025-11-27T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1764201600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"DOI":"10.13039\/501100007129","name":"Shandong Provincial Natural Science Foundation","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","award":["ZR2025QC177"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["ZR2025QC177"]}],"id":[{"id":"10.13039\/501100007129","id-type":"DOI","asserted-by":"crossref"}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Genes"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background: Maize (Zea mays L.) is a vital global crop, and yield improvement through dwarfing breeding\u2014inspired by the Green Revolution\u2014holds promise for addressing food security challenges. Despite the identification of over 60 dwarf genes in maize, their genetic diversity remains limited. Brassinosteroids (BRs) are key phytohormones that regulate plant height, and mutations in BR-related genes often result in dwarf phenotypes. Methods: The zmbrd1 mutant was generated via EMS mutagenesis in the B73 background. Phenotypic traits (plant height, root length) and histological features (e.g., mesocotyl cell length) were compared between mutant and wild-type plants. Transcriptome sequencing of leaves and root tips identified differentially expressed genes (DEGs), followed by GO and KEGG enrichment analyses. Key hormone-related genes were validated by means of qRT-PCR. Results: The zmbrd1 mutant exhibited severe dwarfism and reduced root length, primarily due to inhibited longitudinal cell elongation in internodes. Transcriptome analysis revealed 1652 DEGs in leaves and 1450 DEGs in roots. Enriched pathways included BR biosynthesis, plant hormone signal transduction, and glutathione metabolism. In leaves, upregulated genes were linked to hormone signaling and chloroplast function, while downregulated genes involved oxidoreductase activity and stress response. In roots, DEGs were enriched in ethylene signaling, MAPK pathways, and plant\u2013pathogen interaction, suggesting impaired defense responses. qRT-PCR confirmed dysregulation of hormone-related genes: GA biosynthesis genes were downregulated, whereas auxin-related genes were upregulated in leaves but downregulated in roots. Conclusions: The dwarf phenotype of zmbrd1 stems from disrupted BR biosynthesis, leading to hormonal imbalance (particularly in GA and auxin pathways), oxidative stress, and suppressed cell elongation. Our results suggest that ZmBRD1 plays a key role in integrating aboveground and underground growth likely through modulating hormone crosstalk. This study elucidates BR-mediated height regulation and provides genetic resources for maize breeding.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/genes16121410","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,27]],"date-time":"2025-11-27T10:25:16Z","timestamp":1764239116000},"page":"1410","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["Phenotypic Characterization and Transcriptome Analysis of the Dwarf Mutant zmbrd1 in Maize"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"16","author":[{"given":"Li","family":"Qin","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Advanced Agricultural Technology, Qilu Normal University, Jinan 250200, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Yu","family":"Bao","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Advanced Agricultural Technology, Qilu Normal University, Jinan 250200, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Chunlei","family":"Du","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Geography and Tourism, Qilu Normal University, Jinan 250200, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xiaolong","family":"Guo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Advanced Agricultural Technology, Qilu Normal University, Jinan 250200, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Xiaoduo","family":"Lu","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Advanced Agricultural Technology, Qilu Normal University, Jinan 250200, China"},{"name":"Lab of Molecular Breeding by Design in Maize Sanya Institute, Hainan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Sanya 572000, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Fugui","family":"Xie","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Institute of Advanced Agricultural Technology, Qilu Normal University, Jinan 250200, China"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2025,11,27]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"166","DOI":"10.1111\/pbr.12347","article-title":"Maize yield improvements in China: Past trends and future directions","volume":"135","author":"Qin","year":"2016","journal-title":"Plant Breed."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"923","DOI":"10.2134\/agronj2010.0450","article-title":"In-season prediction of corn yield using plant height under major production systems","volume":"103","author":"Yin","year":"2011","journal-title":"Agron. 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