Fig. 5

PbrNSC activates the transcription of pear SCW genes. a Phylogenetic tree of pear and Arabidopsis thaliana NAC transcription factors. Secondary cell wall biosynthesis-associated NAC transcription factors are colored in blue. A nearby subgroup is colored in green. In the phylogenetic tree, NAC proteins were indicated with green or purple circles if containing LP- or WQ-box. b Diagrams of the effector and reporter constructs used for the dual-luciferase assays. c Experimental verification of PbrNSC’s transcriptional activation function at promoters of its target genes PbrMYB169, Pbr4CL4, and PbrLAC4. Tobacco leaves were transfected with a luciferase reporter construct alone (RC) or together with the PbrNSC effector construct (RC + PbrNSC). Student’s t-test; *P < 0.05. Mean ± SE of three transfection repeats. d Schematic diagram of the primary structures of the WT PbrNSC protein and two variants. e PbrNSC and its various mutants on the promoter of PbrLAC4. Each value is mean ± SE of three transfection repeats. Different letters indicate significant differences between groups (P < 0.05, one-way ANOVA, Tukey’s HSD post hoc test)