A rare allele of TabZIP45-4B enhances wheat adaptation to low nitrogen growth conditions.

This study reports the identification of a rare allele of TabZIP45-4B (TabZIP45-4Bpnd1) that confers tolerance to nitrogen starvation. Knockout of TabZIP45-4B increases spike number and grain yield per plant in wheat under nitrogen-starvation conditions by downregulating TaDWARF4. Introgression of TabZIP45-4Bpnd1 into a modern commercial cultivar improves multiple agronomic traits with minimal nitrogen input.