Sheath blight (SB) is one of the most destructive rice diseases that affect the yield and quality of rice. Jasmonate and Ethylene Response Factor 1, designated JERF1, can be induced by ethylene, methyl jasmonate (MeJA), abscisic acid (ABA) and salt stress. Previous research demonstrated that over-expression of JERF1 enhanced drought tolerance by regulating the expression of stress-related genes in rice. The present study reports that JERF1 could improve SB resistance of transgenic rice. At the molecular and physiological levels, JERF1 could up-regulate the expression of signalling and defence-related genes and increase the activities of lipoxygenase (LOX) and phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL). Analysis of cis-elements showed that there were several DRE/CRT (dehydration-responsive element/C-repeat) and/or GCC boxes in the promoters of these candidate genes, indicating that JERF1 might regulate the expression of defencerelated genes via interaction with these cis-elements. These results suggest that JERF1 might improve SB resistance by modulating the expression of defence-related genes. This may prove to be a useful strategy for genetic engineering to improve SB resistance using transcription factor genes in rice.
The roles of ethylene responsive factors (ERFs) and their positive and negative regulations of abiotic stress tolerance have been widely reported. This study reports the characterization of ItERF from Iris typhifolia Kitag with respect to molecular and functional properties. The 867 bp cDNA fragment of ItERF was cloned by reverse transcription PCR from I. typhifolia. Real-time quantitative PCR revealed that ItERF expression was induced in the roots, stems, and leaves of I. typhifolia after NaCl treatment, and that ItERF expressions were significantly higher in the leaves and roots than in the stems. A green fluorescent protein marker revealed that ItERF was located to the nucleus. Plant survival and root growth of ItERF transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana L. seedlings were much better than those of the wild type under NaCl stress. Malondialdehyde content in the transgenic lines was significantly lower than that in the wild type. Growth of yeast transformants showed an enhanced tolerance to salt stress than non-transformed yeast cells. All of the results verified that the expression of ItERF had effects on plant growth under salt stress.
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