番茄（Solanum lycopersicum）果色不但决定和影响商品美观，与品质和营养形成更加密切相关；因而目前番茄品质改良一个主要研究方向和热点是阐明果色发育和形成分子机理。我们发现，番茄突变体yft1（yellow fruit tomato 1）表现出乙烯不敏感和类胡萝卜含量下降特征；图位克隆显示，番茄YFT1是拟南芥EIN2（ETHYLENE INSENSITIVE 2）同源基因。EIN2是植物乙烯信号转导核心分子，但是EIN2表达调控分子机制目前还不清楚。为此，我们拟通过创造YFT1突变启动子、功能区段分析、酵母单杂交筛选、凝胶阻滞（EMSA）和遗传学功能分析途径；明确YFT1表达关键元件和重要调控因子，在揭示YFT1表达调控分子机制基础上，阐明YFT1介导乙烯调控类胡萝卜素途径控制番茄果色形成生物学机制。该研究将为植物乙烯信号调控提供新思路，也将为番茄果色精准改良提供科学依据。

In tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), fruit color is a very important quality trait, which decides tomato appearance, and is also related closely to formation of the qualities and nutritional components, hence one of the most important research diction and hot-points for improvement of the tomato qualities is to expose molecular mechanism of development of the fruit color and formation. We found that yft1（yellow fruit tomato 1）, a tomato mutant compared with wild type of the M82 present phenotypes of the ethylene insensitive and decreasing carotenoides contents, in other words turned into yellow fruited phenotype from red-fruited M82. The YFT1 isolated from tomato by map-based cloning is a homologue to the EIN2(ETHYLENE INSENSITIVE 2) in Arabidopsis thaliana, the EIN2 protein is a core component for ethylene signaling pathway in plant kingdom. But, the molecular mechanisms remain unclear for the EIN2 gene expression and regulation yet, as well as how would changes of the EIN2 gene expression influence ethylene signaling pathway in plant. For this, several experiments would be designed to reveal molecular mechanisms of the YFT1 expression and regulation that including construction of the mutational promoter of the YFT1, the functional region analysis of the promoter, screening of the yeast one hybridization library, EMSA (electrophoretic mobility shift assay) and dissection of genetics functions for YFT1, the aim is to define key cis-acting elements and essential transcript factors binding with those elements. And those results would clarify biological mechanisms of that the YFT1 control the tomato fruit color via ethylene regulate carotenoides synthesis pathway in tomato. This research would not only provide a novel insight to ethylene signaling pathway in plant, and would also offer scientific basis for accurate improvement of the tomato fruit color.