Abstract
BackgroundZygophyllum xanthoxylum is a succulent xerophyte with remarkable tolerance to diverse abiotic stresses. Previous studies have revealed important physiological mechanisms and identified functional genes associated with stress tolerance. However, knowledge of the regulatory genes conferring stress tolerance in this species is poorly understood.ResultsHere, we present a comprehensive analysis of regulatory genes based on the transcriptome of Z. xanthoxylum roots exposed to osmotic stress and salt treatments. Significant changes were observed in transcripts related to known and obscure stress-related hormone signaling pathways, in particular abscisic acid and auxin. Significant changes were also found among key classes of early response regulatory genes encoding protein kinases, transcription factors, and ubiquitin-mediated proteolysis machinery. Network analysis shows a highly integrated matrix formed by these conserved and novel gene products associated with osmotic stress and salt in Z. xanthoxylum. Among them, two previously uncharacterized NAC (NAM/ATAF/CUC) transcription factor genes, ZxNAC083 (Unigene16368_All) and ZxNAC035 (CL6534.Contig1_All), conferred tolerance to salt and drought stress when constitutively overexpressed in Arabidopsis plants.ConclusionsThis study provides a unique framework for understanding osmotic stress and salt adaptation in Z. xanthoxylum including novel gene targets for engineering stress tolerance in susceptible crop species.
Highlights
Zygophyllum xanthoxylum is a succulent xerophyte with remarkable tolerance to diverse abiotic stresses
Transcriptome profile of roots during osmotic stress and salt treatments To learn more about how Z. xanthoxylum adapts to drought and saline environments, we further analyzed the transcriptome data of seedling roots exposed to osmotic stress and salt treatments for 6 h and 24 h [20]
Roots were studied because they are the first organs to be exposed to osmotic and salt stress conditions [23]. 6063 and 6258 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in Z. xanthoxylum roots exposed to osmotic stress or salt treatments for 6 h, respectively (Additional file 1: Figure S1a)
Summary
Zygophyllum xanthoxylum is a succulent xerophyte with remarkable tolerance to diverse abiotic stresses. Many experts agree that using molecular genetics to breed crops with higher yields and improved tolerance to abiotic stresses is an effective strategy in safeguarding food supplies. This task remains one of the greatest challenges faced by modern agriculture [4]. Deciphering key genes and regulatory mechanisms in salt and drought tolerance and Mechanisms of abiotic stress tolerance have mainly been studied in model plants. High throughput sequencing and functional genomics tools in model plants have yielded numerous abiotic stress tolerance genes grouped into two major classes: functional genes or regulatory genes [7]. A large number of studies show that scope for enhancing stress tolerance in plants by altering single functional genes is limited, due
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