Yu Yongang, Wu Yanxia, He Lingyun
School of Life Science and Technology, Henan Institute of Science and Technology, Xinxiang, 453003, China.
Plant Mol Biol. 2023 Nov;113(4-5):171-191. doi: 10.1007/s11103-023-01381-1. Epub 2023 Oct 30.
WRKY transcription factors are essential to plant growth, development, resistance, and the regulation of metabolic pathways. In this study, we characterized TaWRKY17, a WRKY transcription factor from wheat, which was differentially expressed in various wheat organs and was up-regulated by salt, drought, hydrogen peroxide (HO) and abscisic acid (ABA) treatment. To analyze TaWRKY17 function under salt stress, we obtained stable T generation transgenic Arabidopsis and wheat TaWRKY17 overexpression plants. TaWRKY17 overexpression in Arabidopsis and wheat caused a significant plant salt-stress tolerance enhancement. Under salt stress, superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), and catalase (CAT) enzyme activities were elevated in transgenic Arabidopsis and wheat plants compared with the wild type (WT), whereas HO and malondialdehyde (MDA) accumulation was reduced in the transgenic lines. Moreover, ABA/reactive oxygen species (ROS)-related, and stress-response genes were regulated in the transgenic wheat plants, increasing tolerance to salt stress. The transgenic wheat plants were highly sensitive to ABA during seed germination and early seedling growth. In addition, TaWRKY17 virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) decreased salt tolerance. These results showed that TaWRKY17 enhances salt tolerance by regulating ABA/ROS-related, and stress-response genes and increasing anti-oxidative stress capabilities. Therefore, this gene could be a target for the genetic modification of wheat.
WRKY转录因子对植物的生长、发育、抗性以及代谢途径的调控至关重要。在本研究中，我们对来自小麦的WRKY转录因子TaWRKY17进行了表征，该转录因子在小麦的各个器官中差异表达，并在盐、干旱、过氧化氢（H₂O₂）和脱落酸（ABA）处理下上调。为了分析TaWRKY17在盐胁迫下的功能，我们获得了稳定的T代转基因拟南芥和小麦TaWRKY17过表达植株。TaWRKY17在拟南芥和小麦中的过表达导致植株对盐胁迫的耐受性显著增强。在盐胁迫下，与野生型（WT）相比，转基因拟南芥和小麦植株中的超氧化物歧化酶（SOD）、过氧化物酶（POD）和过氧化氢酶（CAT）活性升高，而转基因株系中H₂O₂和丙二醛（MDA）的积累减少。此外，转基因小麦植株中ABA/活性氧（ROS）相关基因和胁迫响应基因受到调控，从而提高了对盐胁迫的耐受性。转基因小麦植株在种子萌发和幼苗早期生长期间对ABA高度敏感。此外，TaWRKY17病毒诱导基因沉默（VIGS）降低了耐盐性。这些结果表明，TaWRKY17通过调控ABA/ROS相关基因和胁迫响应基因以及提高抗氧化应激能力来增强耐盐性。因此，该基因可能是小麦基因改造的一个靶点。
