Abstract
It is obvious that many types of transcriptional factors play roles downstream of the red and far-red photoreceptors, phyA/phyB, which are important for various photo-signal transduction pathways. In this respect in Arabidopsis thaliana, the best characterized are a small family of phytochrome-interacting bHLH transcription factors, which are collectively referred to as the PIF/PIL family, including the founding member PIF3. They play roles in various photo-responses, such as germination, greening, hypocotyl-elongation, and/or shade avoidance. Such phytochrome-dependent photo-responses are highly conserved in many higher plants, and therefore, it is highly probable that another model plant rice also has such PIF/PIL-type of transcription factors. To address this issue, here, we compiled a whole list of rice PIF/PIL-type transcription factors (designated as OsPIL11 to OsPIL16), by characterizing mainly their light-responsive expression profiles. When these OsPIL genes were expressed in A. thaliana, the resulting transgenic plants commonly displayed light-response-associated phenotypes, suggesting their common roles.
