Coordinated repression of chlorophyll biosynthesis, photosystem assembly, and N-assimilation genes underlie failure in chloroplast development and function in mutant cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz)

Leaf-color mutations provide valuable models for studying photosynthesis, chlorophyll metabolism, N-metabolism, and related physiological processes. In cassava, white mutants with chlorophyll deficiency, short stature, and pale green to white leaves emerged from self-crossed 18R lines, however the underlying molecular mechanisms remain unknown. We compared white mutants and normal leaf plants across key leaf development stages using physiological, ultrastructural, biochemical, and transcriptomic analyses.