Heterologous Overexpression of <i>ZmHDZIV13</i> Enhanced Drought and Salt Tolerance in <i>Arabidopsis</i> and Tobacco
2022
Fang Wang | Huiping Yan | Peng Fang | Xiangzhuo Ji | Yunling Peng
The homeodomain leucine zipper (HD-Zip) IV transcription factor is indispensable in the response of plants to abiotic stress. Systematic studies have been carried out in <i>Arabidopsis</i>, rice and other species from which a series of stress resistance-related genes have been isolated. However, the function of the HD-Zip IV protein in maize is not clear. In this study, we cloned the HD-Zip IV gene <i>ZmHDZIV13</i> and identified its function in the stress response. Our phylogenetic analysis showed that <i>ZmHDZIV13</i> and <i>AtHDG11</i> had high homology and might have similar functions. The heterologous overexpression of <i>ZmHDZIV13</i> in <i>Arabidopsis</i> resulted in sensitivity to abscisic acid (ABA), salt tolerance during germination and drought tolerance in seedlings. Under drought stress, the transgenic <i>Arabidopsis</i> showed stronger drought resistance than the wild-type (control). The malondialdehyde content of <i>ZmHDZIV13</i> transgenic plants was lower than that of the control, and the relative water content and proline content were significantly higher than those of the control. After the drought was relieved, the expression levels of stress-related genes were up-regulated in transgenic <i>Arabidopsis</i>. These results show that <i>ZmHDZIV13</i>, as a stress-responsive transcription factor, plays a role in the positive regulation of abiotic stress tolerance and can regulate an ABA-dependent signaling pathway to regulate drought response in plants.
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