Identification of the DcHsp20 gene family in carnation (Dianthus caryophyllus) and functional characterization of DcHsp17.8 in heat tolerance

• Published in: Planta Vol. 256; no. 1; p. 2
• Main Authors: Sun, Yuying, Hu, Diandian, Xue, Pengcheng, Wan, Xueli
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.07.2022; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Abiotic stress; Abscisic acid; Agriculture; Antioxidants; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Dianthus caryophyllus; Ecology; Electrolyte leakage; Forestry; Gene expression; Genes; Genomes; Heat resistance; Heat shock proteins; Heat stress; Heat tolerance; Hydrogen peroxide; Introns; Life Sciences; Original Article; Photosynthesis; Plant Sciences; Proteins; Regulatory sequences; Shock resistance; Structural analysis; Thermal resistance; Carnation; Heat resistance; DcHsp20s; DcHsp17.8
• ISSN: 0032-0935; 1432-2048
• DOI: 10.1007/s00425-022-03915-1

Main conclusion 33 heat shock protein 20 (Hsp20) genes were identified from the carnation genome whose expression were altered by abiotic stresses. DcHsp17.8 may function to improve the heat resistance of Arabidopsis . Heat shock proteins 20 (Hsp20s) mainly function as molecular chaperones that play crucial roles in relieving abiotic stresses such as heat stress. In this study, we identified and characterized 33 DcHsp20 genes from the carnation genome that were classified into 9 subfamilies. Gene structure analysis showed that 25 DcHsp20 genes contained 1 intron whilst the remaining 8 DcHsp20 genes did not contain introns. Motif analysis found that DcHsp20 proteins were relatively conserved. Cis-regulatory elements analysis of the Hsp20 promoters revealed a number of cis-regulatory elements that regulate growth and development, hormone and stress responses. Gene expression analysis revealed that DcHsp20 genes had multiple response patterns to heat stress. The largest range of induction occurred in DcHsp17.8 after 1 h of heat stress. Under cold stress, or treatment with saline or abscisic acid, the expression of most DcHsp20 genes was inhibited. To further understand the function of DcHsp20 genes in response to heat stress, we overexpressed DcHsp17.8 in Arabidopis and the plants showed improved heat tolerance, O 2 − and H 2 O 2 activities and photosynthetic capacity with reduced relative electrolyte leakage and malondialdehyde content. Gene expression analysis revealed that DcHsp17.8 modulated the expression of genes involved in antioxidant enzyme synthesis. Our data provided a solid foundation for the further detailed study of DcHsp20 genes.