Temporal and spatial expression and function of TaDlea3 in Triticum aestivum during developmental stages under drought stress

• Published in: Plant science (Limerick) Vol. 252; pp. 290 - 299
• Main Authors: Chen, Juan, Fan, Lei, Du, Ya, Zhu, Weining, Tang, Ziqin, Li, Na, Zhang, Dapeng, Zhang, Linsheng
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Ireland Elsevier B.V 01.11.2016
• Subjects: Antioxidants - metabolism; Arabidopsis - genetics; Cloning, Molecular; Developmental stages; Drought stress; Droughts; Gene expression; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; LEA protein; Nicotiana - genetics; Nicotiana - metabolism; Phylogeny; Plant Proteins - genetics; Plant Proteins - metabolism; Plant Proteins - physiology; Plants, Genetically Modified - physiology; Protoplasts - metabolism; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; RNA, Messenger - metabolism; Seedlings - genetics; Seedlings - growth & development; Seedlings - metabolism; Sequence Analysis, Protein; Stress, Physiological - genetics; Triticum - genetics; Triticum - growth & development; Triticum - physiology; Triticum aestivum L; LEA protein; ORF; POD; EST; qRT-PCR; LEA; SOD; Triticum aestivum L; MDA; WC; Gene expression; GFP; Developmental stages; CAT; Drought stress; FC; WT
• ISSN: 0168-9452; 1873-2259
• DOI: 10.1016/j.plantsci.2016.08.010

•The expression of wheat TaDlea3 is increased in response to drought stress during different developmental stages.•TaDlea3 protein levels are consistent with the TaDlea3 transcription levels. Both levels increase in the presence of drought stress whereas decrease after rehydration.•TaDlea3 protein is localized to the cytoplasm of tobacco protoplasts. Drought stress is a major factor limiting wheat growth and productivity. Late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) proteins are tolerant to water-related stress. To reveal the regulatory mechanisms of LEA proteins under drought stress, we cloned a novel group 3 LEA gene, namely, TaDlea3, from wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) Shaanhe 6. Subcellular localization assay showed that TaDlea3 protein accumulated in the cytoplasm. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction results revealed that TaDlea3 expression was induced by drought stress. Western blot results indicated that TaDlea3 protein expression gradually increased with drought stress during four different developmental stages. Under normal conditions, no obvious phenotype difference was observed between the transgenic and wild-type seedlings. Meanwhile, the overexpression of TaDlea3 in Arabidopsis resulted in enhanced tolerance to drought stress, as determined by the assessment of antioxidant enzyme activities. Our results provide a basis for highly detailed functional analyses of LEA proteins and offer a promising approach for improving the tolerances of wheat cultivars to drought stress through genetic engineering.