A tomato purple acid phosphatase SlPAP26b rewires tissue-specific Pi remobilization through differential perturbation of SlPHL1-SlSPX2 levels.

Silencing SlPAP26b disrupts tissue-specific phosphate remobilization in tomato, reducing Pi transfer to young tissues and altering Pi starvation responses.

• Why it matters: Maintaining phosphate homeostasis is vital for plant growth, yet the molecular mechanisms controlling Pi remobilization, especially tissue-specific processes, are not fully understood, limiting crop improvement strategies.
• What they did: Using an integrated omics approach, researchers identified SlPAP26b as a key gene involved in Pi remobilization, and employed gene silencing, tracer studies, and protein analysis to investigate its role.
• The result: SlPAP26b modulates the SlSPX2-SlPHL1 regulatory module, and its silencing causes impaired Pi translocation, misregulated Pi starvation responses, and stunted plant growth, revealing new insights into Pi homeostasis.