| Summary: | Late embryogenesis abundant (LEA) proteins are a large protein family that mainly function in protecting cells from abiotic stress, but these proteins are also involved in regulating plant growth and development. In this study, we performed a functional analysis of <i>LEA13</i> and <i>LEA30</i> from <i>Arabidopsis thaliana</i>. The results showed that the expression of both genes increased when plants were subjected to drought-stressed conditions. The insertional lines <i>lea13</i> and <i>lea30</i> were identified for each gene, and both had a T-DNA element in the regulatory region, which caused the genes to be downregulated. Moreover, <i>lea13</i> and <i>lea30</i> were more sensitive to drought stress due to their higher transpiration and stomatal spacing. Microarray analysis of the <i>lea13</i> background showed that genes involved in hormone signaling, stomatal development, and abiotic stress responses were misregulated. Our results showed that LEA proteins are involved in drought tolerance and participate in stomatal density.
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