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ERF protein JERF1 that transcriptionally modulates the expression of abscisic acid biosynthesis-related gene enhances the tolerance under salinity and cold in tobacco

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Abstract

Increasing evidences indicate that ethylene responsive factor (ERF) proteins regulate a variety of biotic and abiotic stress responses, and plant development as well. Previously we demonstrated that JERF1, encoding an ERF transcriptional activator, is inducible by ethylene, MeJA, ABA, and NaCl, suggesting its possible regulation in multiple stress responses. In the present paper, we report that expressing JERF1 in tobacco increases the seed germination under mannitol treatment, and enhances the tolerance to high salinity and low temperature, through accumulating sodium in vacuole of leaves and stabilizing the plasma membrane, respectively, and significantly increases the growth of tobacco roots and leaves under salinity and low temperature through an unknown mechanism. The evidence that JERF1 interacts with multiple cis-acting elements, such as GCC-box, DRE, and CE1, to activate the expression of stress-related genes, supports the possible involvement of JERF1 in multiple plant stress responses with ABA-dependent and ABA-independent manner. More importantly, we reveal that expressing JERF1 in tobacco transcriptionally regulates the expression of ABA biosynthesis-related gene NtSDR, resulting in the increase of the ABA content. Together, our results indicate that JERF1 interacts with multiple cis-acting elements and activates the expression of stress responsive and ABA biosynthesis-related genes, consequently causing ABA biosynthesis, and ultimately enhancing tobacco tolerance and growth under high salinity and low temperature.

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Abbreviations

ABA:

Abscisic acid

ABRE:

ABA responsive element

CaMV:

Cauliflower mosaic virus

CE1:

Coupled element 1

DRE/CRT:

Dehydration-responsive element/C-repeat

ERF:

Ethylene-responsive factor

JERE:

JA- and elicitor-responsive element

MeJA:

Methyl jasmonate

OE:

Overexpression of JERF1 in tobacco

PR:

Pathogenesis-related

TAIL-PCR:

Thermal asymmetric interlaced PCR

WT:

Wild type

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the National Basic Research Program of China (2006CB100102), the National Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos 30525034 and 30671260).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Laboratory of Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100094, China

    Lijun Wu, Zhijin Zhang & Xue-Chen Wang

  2. Biotechnology Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, 100081, China

    Lijun Wu, Xiaoliang Chen, Zhijin Zhang, Haiwen Zhang, Junying Wang & Rongfeng Huang

  3. National Key Facility of Crop Gene Resources and Genetic Improvement, Beijing, 100081, China

    Lijun Wu, Xiaoliang Chen, Zhijin Zhang, Haiwen Zhang, Junying Wang & Rongfeng Huang

  4. National Center for Plant Gene Research, Beijing, China

    Lijun Wu, Xiaoliang Chen, Zhijin Zhang, Haiwen Zhang, Junying Wang & Rongfeng Huang

  5. College of Life Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China

    Xiaoliang Chen & Haiyun Ren

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  1. Lijun Wu
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  2. Xiaoliang Chen
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  3. Haiyun Ren
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  4. Zhijin Zhang
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Rongfeng Huang.

Additional information

L. Wu and X. Chen contributed equally to this work.

The gene bank accession numbers for the sequences mentioned in this article are JERF1 (AY044235), actin (X63603), NtLTP1 (X62395), TOBLTP (D13952), NtERD10C (AB049337), NtSDR (AJ223177), NtSDR promoter (EF434388).

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Wu, L., Chen, X., Ren, H. et al. ERF protein JERF1 that transcriptionally modulates the expression of abscisic acid biosynthesis-related gene enhances the tolerance under salinity and cold in tobacco. Planta 226, 815–825 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-007-0528-9

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