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NnHSP17.5, a cytosolic class II small heat shock protein gene from Nelumbo nucifera, contributes to seed germination vigor and seedling thermotolerance in transgenic Arabidopsis

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Abstract

In plants, small heat shock proteins (sHSPs) are unusually abundant and diverse proteins involved in various abiotic stresses, but their functions in seed vigor remain to be fully explored. In this study, we report the isolation and functional characterization of a sHSP gene, NnHSP17.5, from sacred lotus (Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn.) in seed germination vigor and seedling thermotolerance. Sequence alignment and phylogenetic analysis indicate that NnHSP17.5 is a cytosolic class II sHSP, which was further supported by the cytosolic localization of the NnHSP17.5-YFP fusion protein. NnHSP17.5 was specifically expressed in seeds under normal conditions, and was strongly up-regulated in germinating seeds upon heat and oxidative stresses. Transgenic Arabidopsis seeds ectopically expressing NnHSP17.5 displayed enhanced seed germination vigor and exhibited increased superoxide dismutase activity after accelerated aging treatment. In addition, improved basal thermotolerance was also observed in the transgenic seedlings. Taken together, this work highlights the importance of a plant cytosolic class II sHSP both in seed germination vigor and seedling thermotolerance.

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Abbreviations

AA:

Accelerated aging

ACD:

α-Crystallin domain

DAP:

Days after pollination

EST:

Expressed sequence tag

MV:

Methyl viologen

NBT:

Nitro blue tetrazolium

RACE:

Rapid amplification of cDNA ends

RH:

Relative humidity

sHSPs:

Small heat shock proteins

SOD:

Superoxide dismutase

YFP:

Yellow fluorescent protein

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by Natural Science Foundation of China (30370912), Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province (2006B20101010 and 9151027501000075) and Guangdong Agriculture Science and Technology Team Project to S. Huang.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Resource, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510275, China

    Yuliang Zhou, Huhui Chen, Pu Chu, Yin Li, Bin Tan & Shangzhi Huang

  2. School of Life Sciences, Centre for Cell and Developmental Biology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong, China

    Yu Ding & Liwen Jiang

  3. Plant Biotechnology Institute, National Research Council of Canada, 110 Gymnasium Place, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 0W9, Canada

    Edward W. T. Tsang

  4. South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou, 510650, China

    Keqiang Wu

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  1. Yuliang Zhou
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  2. Huhui Chen
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  3. Pu Chu
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  10. Shangzhi Huang
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Correspondence to Shangzhi Huang.

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Communicated by J. S. Shin.

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Zhou, Y., Chen, H., Chu, P. et al. NnHSP17.5, a cytosolic class II small heat shock protein gene from Nelumbo nucifera, contributes to seed germination vigor and seedling thermotolerance in transgenic Arabidopsis . Plant Cell Rep 31, 379–389 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00299-011-1173-0

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