PhbZIP2 regulates photosynthesis-related genes in an intertidal macroalgae, Pyropia haitanensis, under stress

• Published in: Frontiers in molecular biosciences Vol. 11; p. 1345585
• Main Authors: Zhang, Han, Zeng, Gaoxiong, Xie, Jiajia, Zhang, Yichi, Ji, Dehua, Xu, Yan, Xie, Chaotian, Wang, Wenlei
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland Frontiers Media S.A 15.04.2024
• Subjects: abiotic stress tolerance; bZIP transcription factor; DAP-seq; heterologous expression; intertidal macroalgae; Molecular Biosciences; intertidal macroalgae; abiotic stress tolerance; heterologous expression; DAP-seq; bZIP transcription factor
• ISSN: 2296-889X; 2296-889X
• DOI: 10.3389/fmolb.2024.1345585

Intertidal macroalgae are important research subjects in stress biology. Basic region-leucine zipper transcription factors (bZIPs) play an important regulatory role in the expression of target genes under abiotic stress. We herein identified a bZIP2 gene PhbZIP2 to regulate abiotic stress tolerance in Pyropia haitanensis , a representative intertidal macroalgal species. Cloning and sequencing of the cDNA characterized a BRLZ structure and an α coiled-coil structure between amino acids and Expression of PhbZIP2 was detected to upregulate under both high temperature and salt stresses. A DAP-seq analysis revealed the PhbZIP2 -binding motifs of (T/C)TCCA(C/G) and A (A/G)AAA (G/A), which differed from the conserved motifs in plants. Overexpression of PhbZIP2 was indicative of a high temperature and salt stress tolerances in transgenic Chlamydomonas reinhardtii . It was suggested that PhbZIP2 was probably involved in regulating expression of the photosynthetic-related genes and the response to the abiotic stresses in P. haitanensis , which provide new insights for elucidating efficient adaptation strategies of intertidal macroalgae.