Functional Characterization of a Sugar Beet <i>BvbHLH93</i> Transcription Factor in Salt Stress Tolerance
The basic/helix–loop–helix (bHLH) transcription factor (TF) plays an important role for plant growth, development, and stress responses. Previously, proteomics of NaCl treated sugar beet leaves revealed that a bHLH TF, <i>BvbHLH93</i>, was significantly increased under salt stress. The B...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2021-04-01
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| Series: | International Journal of Molecular Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/22/7/3669 |
| Summary: | The basic/helix–loop–helix (bHLH) transcription factor (TF) plays an important role for plant growth, development, and stress responses. Previously, proteomics of NaCl treated sugar beet leaves revealed that a bHLH TF, <i>BvbHLH93</i>, was significantly increased under salt stress. The BvbHLH93 protein localized in the nucleus and exhibited activation activity. The expression of <i>BvbHLH93</i> was significantly up-regulated in roots and leaves by salt stress, and the highest expression level in roots and leaves was 24 and 48 h after salt stress, respectively. Furthermore, constitutive expression of <i>BvbHLH93</i> conferred enhanced salt tolerance in <i>Arabidopsis,</i> as indicated by longer roots and higher content of chlorophyll than wild type. Additionally, the ectopic expression lines accumulated less Na<sup>+</sup> and MDA, but more K<sup>+</sup> than the WT. Overexpression of the <i>BvBHLH93</i> enhanced the activities of antioxidant enzymes by positively regulating the expression of antioxidant genes <i>SOD</i> and <i>POD</i>. Compared to WT, the overexpression plants also had low expression levels of <i>RbohD</i> and <i>RbohF</i>, which are involved in reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. These results suggest that <i>BvbHLH93</i> plays a key role in enhancing salt stress tolerance by enhancing antioxidant enzymes and decreasing ROS generation. |
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| ISSN: | 1661-6596 1422-0067 |