Zhengzhou Research Base, State Key Laboratory of Cotton Biology, School of Agricultural Sciences, Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, 450001, Henan, China.
State Key Laboratory of Cotton Biology, Institute of Cotton Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Anyang, 455000, Henan, China.
Plant Sci. 2021 Nov;312:111055. doi: 10.1016/j.plantsci.2021.111055. Epub 2021 Sep 10.
High salt environments can induce stress in different plants. The genes containing the ZAT domain constitute a family that belongs to a branch of the CH family, which plays a vital role in responding to abiotic stresses. In this study, we identified 169 ZAT genes from seven plant species, including 44 ZAT genes from G. hirsutum. Phylogenetic tree analysis divided ZAT genes in six groups with conserved gene structure, protein motifs. Two CH domains and an EAR domain and even chromosomal distribution on At and Dt sub-genome chromosomes of G. hirsutum was observed. GhZAT6 was primarily expressed in the root tissue and responded to NaCl and ABA treatments. Subcellular localization found that GhZAT6 was located in the nucleus and demonstrated transactivation activity during a transactivation activity assay. Arabidopsis transgenic lines overexpressing the GhZAT6 gene showed salt tolerance and grew more vigorously than WT on MS medium supplemented with 100 mmol NaCl. Additionally, the silencing of the GhZAT6 gene in cotton plants showed more obvious leaf wilting than the control plants, which were subjected to 400 mmol NaCl treatment. Next, the expressions of GhAPX1, GhFSD1, GhFSD2, and GhSOS3 were significantly lower in the GhZAT6-silenced plants treated with NaCl than the control. Based on these findings, GhZAT6 may be involved in the ABA pathway and mediate salt stress tolerance by regulating ROS-related gene expression.
高盐环境会对不同的植物造成胁迫。含有 ZAT 结构域的基因构成了一个家族，该家族属于 CH 家族的一个分支，在应对非生物胁迫方面起着至关重要的作用。在这项研究中，我们从七个植物物种中鉴定出 169 个 ZAT 基因，其中包括 44 个来自 G. hirsutum 的 ZAT 基因。系统发育树分析将 ZAT 基因分为六组，具有保守的基因结构、蛋白质基序。在 G. hirsutum 的 At 和 Dt 亚基因组染色体上观察到两个 CH 结构域和一个 EAR 结构域，甚至是染色体的分布。GhZAT6 主要在根组织中表达，并对 NaCl 和 ABA 处理有响应。亚细胞定位发现 GhZAT6 位于细胞核中，并在转录激活活性测定中表现出转录激活活性。过表达 GhZAT6 基因的拟南芥转基因系在补充有 100mmol NaCl 的 MS 培养基上比 WT 更耐盐，生长更旺盛。此外，棉花植株中 GhZAT6 基因的沉默处理比对照植物在 400mmol NaCl 处理下表现出更明显的叶片萎蔫。接下来，在 GhZAT6 沉默植物中，GhAPX1、GhFSD1、GhFSD2 和 GhSOS3 的表达在 NaCl 处理下明显低于对照。基于这些发现，GhZAT6 可能参与 ABA 途径，并通过调节 ROS 相关基因的表达来介导耐盐性。
