ZmLSD1 Enhances Salt Tolerance by Regulating the Expression of in Maize.

Salt stress significantly impairs plant growth, presenting a challenge to agricultural productivity. Exploring the regulatory mechanisms underlying salt stress responses is critically important. Here, we identified a significant role for the maize LESION-SIMULATING DISEASE transcription factor, ZmLSD1, in enhancing salt stress response. Subcellular localization analysis indicated that ZmLSD1-GFP was localized in the nucleus in the maize protoplast. Overexpressing in maize obviously enhanced the tolerance of plants to salt stress. Physiological analysis indicated that overexpressed in maize could mitigate the accumulation of HO and MDA content exposed to salt stress. RNA-seq and qPCR-PCR analyses showed that ZmLSD1 positively regulated expression. ChIP-qPCR and EMSA experiments demonstrated that ZmLSD1 could directly bind to the promoter of through the GTAC motif both in vitro and in vivo. Overall, our findings suggest that ZmLSD1 plays a positive role in enhancing the tolerance of maize to salt by affecting expression.