A Review of Wrky Transcription Factors in The Regulation of Abiotic and Biotic Stress in Cotton (Gossypium Spp.)

Abstract

Cotton is an important economic crop that is grown in over 100 countries throughout the world. It provides the textile industry raw materials, cottonseed oil for cooking, and edible and protein-rich oil cake remnants for farm animals. Abiotic and biotic stressors limit its production, which is strongly reliant on climatic circumstances. Cotton plants have several built-in mechanisms for dealing with abiotic and biotic stress. These defense systems are controlled by changes in the expression of stress-responsive genes. Several stress response-related genes have been discovered, including WRKY transcription elements. WRKY proteins bind to the W box (TGACC (A/T)) in the promoter regions of genes to activate or reduce the expression of downstream genes, which regulates the stress response. It also works with other transcription factors to control the defense responses of the plant. The function of WRKY transcription factors in cotton was briefly discussed in this review in terms of drought, salinity, temperature, and oxidative and biotic stress reactions. In conclusion, WRKY genes are thought to be important components of gene regulatory networks involved in plant stress responses and developmental plasticity in response to seasonal variations in environmental conditions and pathogenic infections.