低温胁迫下拟南芥CBF1超表达突变体胞质中Ca^2＋浓度的变化

低温严重影响植物的生长,低温刺激可引起植物细胞中Ca^2＋浓度迅速升高。以拟南芥（Arabidopsis thaliana）CBF1超表达突变体为材料,研究了低温处理时CBF1基因的表达情况及胞质Ca^2＋的浓度变化。结果表明,CBF1本身可受低温诱导。同时将水母发光蛋白基因转入该拟南芥突变体中并检测Ca^2＋的浓度变化,发现低温刺激时突变体细胞质中Ca^2＋的浓度变化幅度明显高于野生型,但液泡的胞质而两侧Ca^2＋的浓度变化相似。用EGTA和LaCl3处理拟南芥后,胞质Ca^2＋的浓度升高被抑制,并且CBF1突变体及对照胞质中的Ca^2＋浓度下降到同一水平。上述结果表明,Ca^2＋参与了CBF1应答低温信号的转导过程,并且CBF1超表达突变体可能是通过提高胞质Ca^2＋浓度来提高植物的抗低温胁迫能力。     

低温胁迫下拟南芥CBF1 超表达突变体胞质中Ca2+ 浓度的变化

低温严重影响植物的生长, 低温刺激可引起植物细胞中Ca²⁺浓度迅速升高。以拟南芥(Arabidopsis thaliana) CBF1 超表达突变体为材料, 研究了低温处理时CBF1基因的表达情况及胞质Ca²⁺的浓度变化。结果表明, CBF1本身可受低温诱导。同时将水母发光蛋白基因转入该拟南芥突变体中并检测Ca²⁺的浓度变化, 发现低温刺激时突变体细胞质中Ca²⁺的浓度变化幅度明显高于野生型, 但液泡的胞质面两侧Ca²⁺的浓度变化相似。用EGTA和LaCl₃处理拟南芥后, 胞质Ca²⁺的浓度升高被抑制, 并且CBF1突变体及对照胞质中的Ca²⁺浓度下降到同一水平。上述结果表明, Ca²⁺参与了CBF1应答低温信号的转导过程, 并且CBF1超表达突变体可能是通过提高胞质Ca²⁺浓度来提高植物的抗低温胁迫能力。     

山葡萄CBF基因表达载体构建及对拟南芥根生长的影响

为了研究山葡萄CBF基因调节植物对盐胁迫的应答机理,分别构建了山葡萄Va CBF1、Va CBF2和Va CBF3的植物过表达载体。经酶切及琼脂糖电泳检测证实3个基因均插入到p BASTA中,表明表达载体构建成功。然后,分别将3个植物过表达载体转入农杆菌EHA105中,并通过浸花法浸染拟南芥。利用除草剂筛选获得3个基因的拟南芥过表达株系。最后,对野生型拟南芥与转基因拟南芥进行盐胁迫处理,发现OE-CBF2转基因植株的主根伸长长度显著长于其它植株,3个转基因株系的侧根长度也明显长于野生型植株。上述结果表明山葡萄CBF基因可能在植物盐胁迫中对根部生长发育起到非常重要的调控作用。     

同源四倍体拟南芥的耐锌性及其机理

锌(Zn)是植物生长发育所必需的微量元素,但其过量积累也会对植物产生毒害作用。通过对同源四倍体拟南芥进行高浓度锌处理,发现四倍体拟南芥对锌具有高耐受性和低积累性的特点。在高浓度锌胁迫条件下,同源四倍体的根长和生物量较野生型对照均有明显增加,并且谷胱甘肽(GSH)的含量也明显升高。定量实时PCR(q RT-PCR)分析表明,一些锌胁迫响应基因的表达水平发生了显著改变。以上结果表明,锌胁迫响应基因表达水平的改变以及GSH含量的升高可能在四倍体拟南芥的耐锌过程中发挥重要作用。     

过量表达棉花CBF2基因提高转基因拟南芥抗旱耐盐能力

CBF/DREB是一类植物中特有的转录因子,在植物抵抗逆境胁迫过程中发挥重要功能。本研究从陆地棉(Gossypium hirsutum L.)Coker 312中克隆获得1个棉花CBF/DREB基因,命名为Gh CBF2,该基因编码一个由216个氨基酸组成的CBF蛋白。序列分析结果显示,Gh CBF2与其他植物的CBF蛋白类似,含有AP2转录因子典型的保守结构域。干旱或高盐胁迫处理明显增加了Gh CBF2基因的表达量。亚细胞定位分析结果发现Gh CBF2定位在细胞核中。将Gh CBF2基因构建到由35S启动子调控的植物表达载体p MD上并转化拟南芥(Arabidopsis thaliana L.),结果表明,在干旱和盐胁迫条件下,过量表达Gh CBF2基因拟南芥的成活率显著高于野生型,并且游离脯氨酸和可溶性糖含量也高于野生型,说明转Gh CBF2基因提高了拟南芥的耐盐抗旱能力。采用实时荧光定量PCR方法分析胁迫相关标记基因COR15A、RD29A和ERD6的表达情况,结果显示转基因株系中的表达量显著高于野生型,说明Gh CBF2参与调控拟南芥干旱和盐胁迫相关基因的表达。     

拟南芥非生物胁迫应答基因表达的调节子研究概况

分子生物学研究表明,植物中由诸如干旱、高盐和低温等环境胁迫因子诱导的几个基因具有多种功能。大多数干旱应答基因是由植物激素脱落酸（ABA）诱导的,但也有少数基因例外。对模式植物拟南芥基因表达中的干旱应答基因的分析表明,至少存在4个独立调节系统（调节子）。对典型胁迫诱导表达的一些基因中启动子的顺势作用元件和影响这些基因表达的转录子也已进行了分析。已经分离出与脱水效应元件/C重复序列（DRE/CRT）顺势作用元件结合的转录因子,并命名为DRE结合蛋白1/C重复序列结合因子（DREB1/CBF）和DRE结合蛋白2（DREB2）。在转基因拟南芥植株中,DREB1/CBF过量表达可增加其抗寒、抗旱和抗盐碱的能力。DREB1/CBF基因已成功地在许多不同作物中得到应用,从而提高作物对非生物胁迫的耐受性。与胁迫反应相关的其他转录因子的研究也正在取得进展。     

木薯MeMYC2.2基因耐低温功能研究

MYC2（MYeloCytomatosis）转录因子是植物应对逆境胁迫过程中茉莉酸信号传导相关的核心转录因子。本研究旨在初步分析木薯MeMYC2.2基因在低温胁迫响应中的功能。利用生物信息学分析木薯MeMYC2.1和MeMYC2.2基因的结构及其编码蛋白的理化性质;通过定量PCR分析了上述2个基因在木薯组培苗叶片中对低温胁迫的响应;通过转基因拟南芥研究MeMYC2.2的抗冻功能。木薯组培苗叶片中2个MeMYC2基因的表达均在低温胁迫早期被诱导,其中,与MeMYC2.1相比,MeMYC2.2差异表达更显著。MeMYC2.2蛋白主要定位于细胞核中,且在酵母中具有明显转录自激活功能,表明该蛋白具有转录因子特性。与野生型相比,过表达MeMYC2.2的转基因拟南芥抗冻能力显著提高。在低温处理下,CBF3基因在转基因拟南芥中的表达量要明显高于其在野生型的表达量,但另外3个CBF基因在转基因拟南芥中的表达量明显下降。木薯MeMYC2.2的表达受低温和茉莉酸调控,可以提高植物的抗冻性,且可能影响CBF基因对低温的响应。本研究为进一步利用MeMYC2基因改良木薯的低温耐受性奠定了理论基础。     

三种植物线粒体基因低温差异表达比较分析

线粒体作为植物细胞的能量代谢中心,在植物响应逆境胁迫中有重要的作用。该研究基于雪莲(Saussurea involucrata)、番茄(Lycopersicon esculentum)和拟南芥(Arabidopsis thaliana)三种不同低温耐受性植物的低温转录组。通过blast比对和数据库检索筛选相关物种的线粒体基因,使用PlantCARE在线网站分析启动子,使用mega7软件对系统发育树构建分析。结果表明:通过差异表达基因筛选,分别在雪莲、拟南芥、番茄中筛选出2、24、15个显著差异表达基因,主要包括线粒体核糖体亚基和电子传递链各复合体亚基,其中部分基因的低温差异表达情况如NAD1和NAD5,可能与植物的低温适应性有关; 通过表达模式的聚类分析,雪莲与拟南芥在基因的表达模式上相对于番茄更为相近,且不同类别的基因表达模式在不同物种间差异较大; 雪莲与其他菊科植物的呼吸链相关基因的蛋白序列具有很大差异,与万年藓(Climacium dendroides)、牛舌藓(Anomodon minor)等高山植物的进化距离较近。在整体上拟南芥、番茄和雪莲三种植物线粒体基因在低温响应上具有很大差异,表明线粒体基因及其表达调控与植物的低温耐受性之间存在一定的关联性。     

山葡萄转录因子基因VaDREB的克隆及其抗逆功能分析

DREB/CBF（dehydration-responsive element binding protein/C-repeat binding factor）转录因子能特异的与DRE/CRT（dehydration-responsive element/C-repeat）顺式作用元件结合,在植物干旱、高盐和低温等非生物胁迫应答中起着重要的调控作用。本研究从山葡萄中克隆得到了一个VaDREB转录因子基因（登录号XM₀02283076.1）,并对其进行了序列分析、亚细胞定位分析以及酵母和拟南芥中的功能鉴定。序列分析表明,VaDREB开放阅读框全长459 bp,编码152个氨基酸,预测蛋白质分子量为17 kDa,等电点为8.67,包含一个AP2/ERF结合域。氨基酸序列比对和系统进化分析结果表明,该基因属于DREB/CBF转录因子A-5亚类。亚细胞定位结果表明VaDREB蛋白定位于细胞核中。重组酵母菌株与表达VaDREB基因的转基因拟南芥株系均表现出明显增强的盐、干旱、低温和高温胁迫耐受性表型,基因表达分析结果表明,转基因拟南芥株系中抗逆相关功能基因的表达量出现了明显上调,这些结果证明VaDREB转录因子在植物抗逆调控过程中起着重要作用。     

转ZjAPX基因拟南芥对NaCl、干旱胁迫的耐性研究

旨在探讨枣树抗坏血酸过氧化物酶基因ZjAPX在植物渗透胁迫中的作用。将ZjAPX基因转入到模式植物拟南芥,以野生型(WT)、转ZjAPX拟南芥株系T2为试材,进行不同浓度NaCl胁迫和干旱胁迫。结果表明,转基因株系的种子萌发、植株生长均优于野生型株系;荧光定量PCR检测转基因拟南芥植株在干旱和盐胁迫处理10 d后目的基因ZjAPX的表达量显著高于野生拟南芥,表明ZjAPX的高表达明显提高了植株的抗旱和耐盐性。     

Heterosis in the freezing tolerance of crosses between two Arabidopsis thaliana accessions (Columbia-0 and C24) that show differences in non-acclimated and acclimated freezing tolerance

Heterosis is broadly defined as the increased vigour of hybrids in comparison to their parents. In the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana, a significant heterosis effect on leaf-freezing tolerance was observed in the F(1) generation of a cross between the accessions Columbia-0 (Col) and C24. Parental Col plants were significantly more freezing-tolerant than C24 plants in both the acclimated and non-acclimated (NA) states. Mid-parent heterosis was observed in the F(1) plants, both in the basic tolerance of non-adapted plants and in freezing tolerance after cold acclimation. Best-parent heterosis, on the other hand, was only found after cold acclimation. The heterosis effect was reduced in the F(2) populations such that only mid-parent heterosis was evident. The leaf content of soluble sugars (fructose (Fru), glucose (Glc), sucrose (Suc) and raffinose (Raf)) increased dramatically in the F(1) plants after cold acclimation as compared to the parental lines. The content of proline (Pro), however, was only moderately increased in the F(1) plants under the same conditions. Correlation analyses showed that only Raf content was consistently related to leaf-freezing tolerance in both the acclimated and NA states. A quantification of mRNA levels in leaves of parental and F(1) lines using quantitative real-time RT-PCR showed no clear indication for an involvement of the investigated genes (CBF (C-repeat binding factor)1, CBF2, (cold-regulated protein (COR) 6.6, COR15a, COR15b, COR47 and COR78) in the heterosis effect.     

Impact of soluble sugar concentrations on the acquisition of freezing tolerance in accessions of Arabidopsis thaliana with contrasting cold adaptation – evidence for a role of raffinose in cold acclimation

In the present study the cold acclimation potential of two accessions of Arabidopsis thaliana was investigated. Significant variation was found for basic tolerance as well as the capacity to acclimate to freezing temperatures. During cold acclimation, levels of soluble sugars increased in both genotypes, but raffinose accumulation discriminated the more tolerant accession Col‐0 from C24. Concentrations of other compatible solutes such as proline and glutamine were also higher in cold‐acclimated Col‐0 than C24 plants. Changes of invertase activity during cold exposure corresponded to changes in sucrose and fructose, but not glucose concentrations and were consistent with an initial chilling response and a later decline in hexose metabolization. When vacuolar invertase was suppressed by siRNA expression, reduced sucrolytic activity resulted in elevated leaf sucrose concentration, whereas the fructose content was strongly reduced. This led to elevated freezing tolerance in the cold‐tolerant genotype Col‐0, but not in C24. The most pronounced metabolic changes in invertase‐inhibited Col‐0 plants occurred for proline and glutamine concentrations, indicating indirect metabolic effects of altered sugar concentrations.     

Cold acclimation in silver birch (Betula pendula). Development of freezing tolerance in different tissues and climatic ecotypes

A number of environmental cues including short day photoperiod (SD) and low temperature (LT) are known to interact in triggering growth cessation, cold acclimation and other adaptive responses in temperate-zone tree species. Proper timing of these responses is particularly important for survival of trees in the boreal and subarctic regions. Therefore, we used a northern tree species, silver birch ( Betula pendula Roth) as an experimental model to investigate the effect of SD and LT on development of freezing tolerance and on levels of endogenous abscisic acid (ABA) in short-term experiments under controlled conditions. We characterized differences in SD and LT-induced cold acclimation between three different climatic ecotypes from southern, central and northern habitats. The results demonstrated that cold acclimation was rapidly triggered by exposing the plants to SD or LT, and that a combination of the different treatments had an additive effect on freezing tolerance. Freezing tolerance induction was not uniform in the different tissues, the buds and leaves developed freezing tolerance more rapidly than the stem, and the young leaves had a higher freezing tolerance than the old leaves. The ability of the leaves to respond to SD and LT and similarity of the bud and leaf responses indicate that birch leaves provide a rapid and convenient system for studies on molecular mechanisms of cold acclimation. Development of freezing tolerance was dependent on the climatic ecotype, the northern ecotype was clearly more responsive to both SD and LT than the two more southern ecotypes. Development of freezing tolerance induced by SD and LT was accompanied by transient changes in ABA levels. These alterations in ABA levels were ecotype-dependent, the northern ecotype reacting more strongly to the environmental cues.