{
  "abstract": "Background Polycomb group (PcG) proteins silence gene expression by depositing histone modifications such as H2Aub and H3K27me3, and this process is essential for maintaining cell type and tissue-specific gene expression patterns. However, the role of PcG proteins in regulating gene expression through H2Aub and H3K27me3 during maize kernel development remains poorly understood. Results Here, we characterize a maize miniature seed mutant, mn8, and identify the causal gene as ZmEMF1a, a plant-specific PcG protein. A mutation in ZmEMF1a significantly reduces kernel size and weight. Molecular analyses demonstrate that ZmEMF1a interacts with ZmRING1 (a PRC1 component) and ZmMSI1 (a PRC2 component), which are essential for the establishment of H2Aub and H3K27me3 modifications. Loss of ZmEMF1a leads to a significant reduction in genomic levels of both H2Aub and H3K27me3. Integrated ChIP-seq and RNA-seq analyses revealed that H2Aub is negatively correlated with gene expression in maize, contrasting with the positive correlation reported in Arabidopsis. Compared with wild-type endosperms, mn8 endosperms exhibit up-regulated expression of cell proliferation repressor homologs, such as ZmDA1, ZmBB1, ZmES22, ZmMADS8, and ZmMADS14. Concurrently, these loci show reduced levels of H3K27me3 or H2Aub modifications. These findings suggest that ZmEMF1a deficiency disrupts the deposition of H3K27me3 and H2Aub marks at cell division regulators. Conclusions Our results indicate that ZmEMF1a plays a crucial role in regulating maize kernel development by maintaining H2Aub and H3K27me3 modification levels.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "State Key Laboratory of Maize Bio-Breeding, College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, National Maize Improvement Center, China Agricultural University",
    "State Key Laboratory of Crop Gene Resources and Breeding/Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences",
    "State Key Laboratory of Plant Environmental Resilience, China Agricultural University",
    "National Engineering Research Center for Vegetables, Beijing Vegetable Research Center, Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Science",
    "College of Horticulture, Gansu Agricultural University",
    "Frontiers Science Center for Molecular Design Breeding (MOE), State Key Laboratory of Maize Bio-Breeding, Key Laboratory of Genome Editing Research and Application, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, National Maize Improvement Center, China Agricultural University"
  ],
  "article_type": null,
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 16,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Yueheng Zhou"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Jianrui Li"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Yingshuang Li"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Zilong Zhao"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Guoyong Liu"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        3
      ],
      "name": "Xiaojie Li"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        4
      ],
      "name": "Chunlei Wang"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Tong Li"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Shengnan Liu"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Weibin Song"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Jian Chen"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Yan Guo"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5
      ],
      "name": "Jinsheng Lai"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5
      ],
      "name": "Hainan Zhao"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Haiming Zhao"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        5
      ],
      "name": "Zhijia Yang"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/aetwf4393kt7e.bib",
  "cited_by": 1,
  "doi": "10.1186/s13059-026-04217-5",
  "fulltext_url": "https://doi.org/10.1186/s13059-026-04217-5",
  "id": "aetwf4393kt7e",
  "issns": [
    "1474-760X"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://doi.org/10.1186/s13059-026-04217-5",
  "language": "en",
  "licence": "CC-BY",
  "licence_label": "CC BY",
  "licence_source": "journal",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "lcc",
      "QH301-705.5"
    ],
    [
      "lcc",
      "QH426-470"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "1110|Plant Molecular Biology Research"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7171497230",
  "pdf_url": "https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1186/s13059-026-04217-5.pdf",
  "pmcid": null,
  "pmid": null,
  "published": "2026-07-01",
  "publisher": "BMC",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/aetwf4393kt7e.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-30T13:46:02Z",
      "native_id": "376c4f53ec2e4895bfb9295727f865fe",
      "source": "doaj",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1186/s13059-026-04217-5"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "biology",
      "origin": "openalex:1110|Plant Molecular Biology Research",
      "subfield": "plant-biology"
    }
  ],
  "title": "ZmEMF1a is required for the maintenance of H2Aub and H3K27me3 modifications in maize kernel development",
  "title_text": "ZmEMF1a is required for the maintenance of H2Aub and H3K27me3 modifications in maize kernel development",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-30T13:46:02Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/aetwf4393kt7e",
  "venue": "Genome Biology",
  "versions": []
}