Research Progress on Cold Tolerance of Tomato

Tomato is one of the most important vegetable crops around the world and is widely grown in various climate zones. As a non-cold-acclimated crop, cultivated tomato is extremely susceptible to low-temperature climates during productions, which not only affects its growth and development, but also severely impact its yield and quality. The effects of low temperature stress on tomato are a complex physiological process involving response mechanisms at multiple levels. Therefore, investigating the effects of low-temperature stress on tomatoes, identifying genes responsible for cold tolerance, and analyzing their response mechanisms are of great theoretical and practical significance for the development of low-temperature-tolerant tomato varieties. Over the past 20 years, significant progress has been made in the study of cold tolerance in tomatoes. Research has encompassed a wide range of topics, including the effects of low-temperature stress on morphological development, physiological and biochemical changes, the identification of cold-tolerant tomato germplasm, and the cloning of key genes. Additionally, studies have explored the signal transduction pathways associated with low-temperature stress and the regulatory mechanisms of both CBF-dependent and CBF-independent pathways. Collectively, these investigations have gradually unveiled the response mechanisms of tomatoes to low-temperature stress. This paper aims to reviews and summarizes the research progress on tomato cold tolerance over the past 10 years, including the cloning of cold tolerance genes and the regulation mechanisms of cold-tolerance related genes in tomato. Through a systematic summarize, we hope to provide a reference for subsequent studies and lay a foundation for the cultivation of cold-tolerant tomato varieties, thereby promoting the development of new cold-tolerant varieties to meet the challenges brought by global climate change and ensure the sustainable development of agricultural production.