Molecular cloning and expression analysis of zinc finger-homeodomain transcription factor TaZFHD1 in wheat

Abstract

A zinc finger-homeodomain (ZFHD) gene was isolated from Triticum aestivum using in silico cloning and reverse transcription (RT-PCR) approaches. The full length cDNA of T. aestivum, designed as TaZFHD1 (GenBank accession No. KF697362), was 1345bp long. The open reading frame (ORF) of TaZFHD1 was 1164bp and was predicted to encode 387 amino-acid protein that contained putative zinc finger domain in the N-terminus and a DNA binding homeodomain in the C-terminus. Analysis of the deduced amino acid sequence of TaZFHD1 revealed that it had high homology to other plants ZFHD proteins. The expression of TaZFHD1 was analyzed during spike development and after exposure to different hormonal stimuli using semi-quantitative RT-PCR analysis. TaZFHD1 was differentially expressed during spike development, with a preferential expression during ‘half emerged’, ‘completely emerged’, and ‘half anthesis’ stages. Methyl jasmonate (MeJA), abcissic acid (ABA) and ethylene (ET) upregulated the expression of TaZFHD1. However, there was no remarkable difference in TaZFHD1 expression after treatment with salicylic acid (SA). These results might indicate that TaZFHD1 may be involved in wheat anthesis and pollination and in JA-, ABA-, and ET-mediated signaling pathways.