Abstract
Main conclusion
The nuclear localized TaWZY1-2 helps plants resist abiotic stress by preserving the cell’s ability to remove reactive oxygen species and decrease lipid oxidation under such conditions.
Abstract
In light of the unpredictable environmental conditions in which food crops grow, precise strategies must be developed by crops to effectively cope with abiotic stress and minimize damage over their lifespan. A key component in this endeavor is the group II of late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) proteins, known as dehydrins, which play crucial roles in enhancing the tolerance of plants to abiotic stress. Tawzy1-2 is a dehydrin-encoding gene which is constitutively expressed in various tissues of wheat. However, the biological function of TaWZY1-2 is not yet fully understood. In this study, TaWZY1-2 was isolated and identified in the wheat genome, and its functional role in conferring tolerance to abiotic stresses was detected in both prokaryotic and eukaryotic cells. Results showed that TaWZY1-2 is a nuclear localized hydrophilic protein that accumulates in response to multiple stresses. Escherichia coli cells expressing TaWZY1-2 showed enhanced tolerance to multiple stress conditions. Overexpression of TaWZY1-2 in Nicotiania benthamiana improved growth, germination and survival rate of the transgenic plants exposed to four kinds of abiotic stress conditions. Our results show that Tawzy1-2 transgenic plants exhibit improved capability in clearing reactive oxygen species and reducing lipid degradation, thereby enhancing their resistance to abiotic stress. This demonstrates a significant role of TaWZY1-2 in mitigating abiotic stress-induced damage. Consequently, these findings not only establish a basis for future investigation into the functional mechanism of TaWZY1-2 but also contribute to the expansion of functional diversity within the dehydrin protein family. Moreover, they identify potential candidate genes for crop optimization.
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Data availability
The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
Abbreviations
- APX:
-
Ascorbate peroxidase
- DHN:
-
Dehydrin
- GFP:
-
Green fluorescence protein
- LEA:
-
Late embryogenesis abundant
- MDA:
-
Malondialdehyde
- OE:
-
Overexpressing
- ORF:
-
Open reading frame
- POD:
-
Peroxidase
- ROS:
-
Reactive oxygen species
- SOD:
-
Superoxide dismutase
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Acknowledgements
We thank Dr. Zhenqing Bai, and members of the Zhang laboratory for their kind help during the preparation of this manuscript. This work was supported by funding from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31671608) and the State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas (CSBA2015007).
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National Natural Science Foundation of China, 31671608, Linsheng Zhang, the State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, CSBA2015007, Linsheng Zhang.
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The experimental procedures for this research were carried out by XW, who proposed the ideas and designed the experiments, and HL, who collaborated in performing the laboratory experiments. YL was responsible for the analysis of the data, while LZ conducted the enzyme assays and provided the necessary germplasm resources. Upon completion, XW drafted the manuscript and subsequently revised it, with BW participating in the revision process and also contributing to the transient expression assay. Ultimately, all the authors were involved in reading and approving the final manuscript.
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Wang, X., Liu, H., Li, Y. et al. Heterologous overexpression of Tawzy1-2 gene encoding an SK3 dehydrin enhances multiple abiotic stress tolerance in Escherichia coli and Nicotiania benthamiana. Planta 259, 39 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-023-04328-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-023-04328-4