Plant dehydrins and stress tolerance: Versatile proteins for complex mechanisms |
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| Authors: | Moez Hanin Fa??al Brini Chantal Ebel Yosuke Toda Shin Takeda Khaled Masmoudi |
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| Affiliation: | 1.Laboratory of Plant Protection and Improvement; Center of Biotechnology of Sfax; University of Sfax; Sfax, Tunisia;2.Institute of Biotechnology; University of Sfax; Sfax, Tunisia;3.Bioscience and Biotechnology Center; Nagoya University; Chikusa-ku, Nagoya Japan |
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| Abstract: | Dehydrins (DHNs), or group 2 LEA (Late Embryogenesis Abundant) proteins, play a fundamental role in plant response and adaptation to abiotic stresses. They accumulate typically in maturing seeds or are induced in vegetative tissues following salinity, dehydration, cold and freezing stress. The generally accepted classification of dehydrins is based on their structural features, such as the presence of conserved sequences, designated as Y, S and K segments. The K segment representing a highly conserved 15 amino acid motif forming amphiphilic a-helix is especially important since it has been found in all dehydrins. Since more than 20 y, they are thought to play an important protective role during cellular dehydration but their precise function remains unclear. This review outlines the current status of the progress made toward the structural, physico-chemical and functional characterization of plant dehydrins and how these features could be exploited in improving stress tolerance in plants.Key words: abiotic stress, dehydration stress, drought, cold acclimation, freezing tolerance, LEA proteins, dehydrins |
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