College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Xianyang 712100, China.
Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Key Laboratory of Agro-Ecological Protection & Exploitation and Utilization of Animal and Plant Resources in Eastern Inner Mongolia, Chifeng University, Chifeng 024000, China.
Int J Mol Sci. 2022 Mar 18;23(6):3272. doi: 10.3390/ijms23063272.
AP2/ERF (APETALA2/ethylene responsive factor) is a family of plant-specific transcription factors whose members are widely involved in many biological processes, such as growth, development, and biotic and abiotic stress responses. Here, 20 genes were identified based on wheat RNA-seq data before and after drought stress, and classified as AP2, ERF, DREB, and RAV. The analysis of gene structure revealed that about 85% of family members had lost introns, which are presumed to have been lost during the formation and evolution of the wheat genome. The expression of 20 family genes could be verified by qRT-PCR, which further supported the validity of the RNA-seq data. Subsequently, subcellular localization and transcriptional activity experiments showed that the ERF proteins were mainly located in the nucleus and were self-activating, which further supports their functions as transcription factors. Furthermore, we isolated a novel gene induced by drought, salt, and cold stresses and named it . overexpression increased sensitivity to drought and salt stresses in , which was supported by physiological and biochemical indices. Moreover, the expression of stress- and antioxidant-related genes was downregulated in -overexpressing plants. Overall, these results contribute to the further understanding of the gene function in wheat.
AP2/ERF（APETALA2/ethylene responsive factor）是一类植物特有的转录因子家族，其成员广泛参与许多生物学过程，如生长、发育以及生物和非生物胁迫响应。在此，根据干旱胁迫前后的小麦 RNA-seq 数据，鉴定出了 20 个基因，并将其分类为 AP2、ERF、DREB 和 RAV。基因结构分析表明，约 85%的家族成员失去了内含子，这些内含子可能在小麦基因组的形成和进化过程中丢失了。通过 qRT-PCR 可以验证 20 个家族基因的表达，这进一步支持了 RNA-seq 数据的有效性。随后，亚细胞定位和转录活性实验表明，ERF 蛋白主要定位于细胞核内，并具有自我激活活性，这进一步支持了它们作为转录因子的功能。此外，我们还分离到一个受干旱、盐和冷胁迫诱导的新基因，并将其命名为 。过表达 增加了 对干旱和盐胁迫的敏感性，这得到了生理生化指标的支持。此外，在过表达植株中，与胁迫和抗氧化相关的基因表达下调。总的来说，这些结果有助于进一步了解小麦 基因的功能。
