Ectopic Expression of Hawthorn SND1 Gene in Tobacco

Abstract

NAC proteins are plant-specific transcription factors (TFs) and have been shown to function in plant development processes and abiotic and/or biotic stress responses. SECONDARY WALL-ASSOCIATED NAC DOMAIN PROTEIN1 (SND1) is one type of NAC TFs, which is a key regulator in the regulation network for secondary wall synthesis. In this study, the SND1 gene, named CpSND1 because it has a conservative N-terminal DNA-binding domain with AtSND1, was isolated from hawthorn (Crataegus pinnatifida). The full-length CDS of this gene was 1,203 bp, encoding 400 amino acids. The CpSND1 gene was transferred into tobacco (Nicotiana tobacum) by the Agrobacterium-mediated transformation method, and 20 transgenic lines were obtained. Tobacco plants overexpressing CpSND1 had typical phenotypes, including inhibited growth, upward-curling leaves. Our results provided functional information of CpSND1 for future genetic engineering.