Ubiquitination‐Mediated Degradation of SlVPS29 by the SlHSFA7 ‐ SlRNF185 Module Enhances Tomato Pollen Thermotolerance

High temperature has posed significant challenges to global agriculture, markedly leading to reduced fertility and yield losses in tomato ( Solanum lycopersicum ). Therefore, thermotolerance‐conferring genes and loci are needed to further improve cultivated tomatoes. Here we identified an E3 ubiquitin ligase SlRNF185 , containing a C3HC4‐type RING‐HC domain, that confers tomato pollen thermotolerance. As a predominant ubiquitination member, SlRNF185 could degrade the SlVPS29 protein induced by heat stress to enhance thermotolerance. Mechanistically, we found that a heat shock transcription factor SlHSFA7 dramatically activates the expression of SlRNF185 under heat stress and acts as a positive regulator of tomato pollen thermotolerance. Collectively, our findings reveal that a SlHSFA7‐SlRNF185 genetic module regulates ubiquitination‐mediated degradation of SlVPS29 under heat stress, providing the strategy for breeding thermotolerance tomato varieties.