PLATZ transcription factors: Roles in plant growth, development, and stress adaptation

• PLant AT-rich sequence and Zinc-binding (PLATZ) proteins are plant-specific transcription factors (TFs). • Some of PLATZ TFs act as either activators or repressors by binding to different cis -acting elements in target gene promoters. • PLATZ TFs are involved in plant growth and development, including development of leaf, flower, seed and stem, as well as root architecture. • PLATZ TFs play crucial roles in plant drought, salt, cold, waterlogging, and heavy metal stress tolerance and disease resistance. Transcription factors (TFs) are key regulators in various signaling pathways, orchestrating a wide range of developmental and adaptive processes in plants. Several TF families have been identified in crop plants that critically modulate yield-related traits by influencing plant architecture and stress response pathways. Among these, PLant AT-rich sequence and Zinc-binding protein (PLATZ) TFs are a unique family of zinc-dependent DNA-binding proteins specific to photosynthetic eukaryotes. In this review, we provide a comprehensive analysis of the evolutionary conservation, structural features, and functional roles of PLATZ TFs across plant species, highlighting their crucial involvement in plant root, stem, leaf, flower, and seed development and salt, drought, waterlogging, cold, heavy metal, and disease stress adaptation. We also highlight their diverse regulatory roles, including direct binding to target gene promoters, interactions with other proteins, and modulation of chromatin structure to regulate gene expression. Finally, we outline future research directions aimed at uncovering the functions and regulatory mechanisms of PLATZ TFs and exploring their potential applications to enhance crop productivity and resilience under changing environmental conditions.