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Expression and functional analysis of two genes encoding transcription factors, VpWRKY1 and VpWRKY2, isolated from Chinese wild Vitis pseudoreticulata

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Abstract

In this study, two WRKY genes were isolated from Erysiphe necator-resistant Chinese wild Vitis pseudoreticulata W. T. Wang ‘Baihe-35-1’, and designated as VpWRKY1 (GenBank accession no. GQ884198) and VpWRKY2 (GenBank accession no. GU565706). Nuclear localization of the two proteins was demonstrated in onion epidermal cells, while trans-activation function was confirmed in the leaves of ‘Baihe-35-1’. Expression of VpWRKY1 and VpWRKY2 was induced rapidly by salicylic acid treatment in ‘Baihe-35-1’. Expression of VpWRKY1 and VpWRKY2 was also induced rapidly by E. necator infection in 11 grapevine genotypes; the maximum induction of VpWRKY1 was greater in E. necator-resistant grapevine genotypes than in susceptible ones post E. necator inoculation. Furthermore, ectopic expression of VpWRKY1 or VpWRKY2 in Arabidopsis enhanced resistance to powdery mildew Erysiphe cichoracearum, and enhanced salt tolerance of transgenic plants. VpWRKY2 also enhanced cold tolerance of transgenic plants. In addition, the two proteins were shown to regulate the expression of some defense marker genes in Arabidopsis and grapevine. The data suggest that VpWRKY1 and VpWRKY2 may underlie the resistance in transgenic grapevine to E. necator and tolerance to salt and cold stresses.

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Abbreviations

qRT-PCR:

Quantitative reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction

VpWRKY1 :

Vitis pseudoreticulata WRKY1

VpWRKY2 :

Vitis pseudoreticulata WRKY2

SA:

Salicylic acid

MeJA:

Methyl jasmonate

Eth:

Ethephon

Hpi:

Hours post inoculation

dpi:

Days post inoculation

hpt:

Hours post treatment

EST:

Expressed sequence tag

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Acknowledgments

We thank Dr. Zhongchi Liu (Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, University of Maryland, USA) for critical review and comments of the manuscript and Courtney Hollender (Department of Cell Biology and Molecular Genetics, University of Maryland, USA) for the help of revising this manuscript (language). This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China for “Expression and Functional Analysis of Transcription Factor Genes Isolated from Powdery Mildew-resistant Chinese Wild Grape” (Grant No. 30771493).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Horticulture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, 712100, Shaanxi, People’s Republic of China

    Huie Li, Yan Xu, Yu Xiao, Ziguo Zhu, Xiaoqing Xie, Heqing Zhao & Yuejin Wang

  2. Key Laboratory of Horticultural Plant Germplasm Resource Utilization in Northwest China, Ministry of Agriculture of the People’s Republic of China, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, 712100, Shaanxi, People’s Republic of China

    Huie Li, Yan Xu, Yu Xiao, Ziguo Zhu, Xiaoqing Xie, Heqing Zhao & Yuejin Wang

  3. Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Molecular Biology of Agriculture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, 712100, Shaanxi, People’s Republic of China

    Huie Li, Yan Xu, Yu Xiao, Ziguo Zhu, Xiaoqing Xie, Heqing Zhao & Yuejin Wang

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  1. Huie Li
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  2. Yan Xu
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  3. Yu Xiao
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Correspondence to Yuejin Wang.

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Li, H., Xu, Y., Xiao, Y. et al. Expression and functional analysis of two genes encoding transcription factors, VpWRKY1 and VpWRKY2, isolated from Chinese wild Vitis pseudoreticulata . Planta 232, 1325–1337 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-010-1258-y

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