Role of bZIP Transcription Factors in Plant Salt Stress

Abstract

Soil salinity has become an increasingly serious problem worldwide, greatly limiting crop development and yield, and posing a major challenge to plant breeding. Basic leucine zipper (bZIP) transcription factors are the most widely distributed and conserved transcription factors and are the main regulators controlling various plant response processes against external stimuli. The bZIP protein contains two domains: a highly conserved, DNA-binding alkaline region, and a diverse leucine zipper, which is one of the largest transcription factor families in plants. Plant bZIP is involved in many biological processes, such as flower development, seed maturation, dormancy, and senescence, and plays an important role in abiotic stresses such as salt damage, drought, cold damage, osmotic stress, mechanical damage, and ABA signal response. In addition, bZIP is involved in the regulation of plant response to biological stresses such as insect pests and pathogen infection through salicylic acid, jasmonic acid, and ABA signal transduction pathways. This review summarizes and discusses the structural characteristics and functional characterization of the bZIP transcription factor group, the bZIP transcription factor complex and its molecular regulation mechanisms related to salt stress resistance, and the regulation of transcription factors in plant salt stress resistance. This review provides a theoretical basis and research ideas for further exploration of the salt stress-related functions of bZIP transcription factors. It also provides a theoretical basis for crop genetic improvement and green production in agriculture.

Identification of Salt-Sensitive and Salt-Tolerant Genes through Weighted Gene Co-Expression Networks across Multiple Datasets: A Centralization and Differential Correlation Analysis

“…The truncated form resulting from proteolytic cleavage can translocate to the nucleus, leading to the regulation of other genes [ 69 ]. Members of the bZIP transcription factor family are involved in many biological processes and play essential roles in abiotic stresses, including salt dress in plants [ 70 , 71 , 72 , 73 ]. Studies have demonstrated that bZIP transcription factors are extensively involved in rice’s abiotic stress response and ABA signaling, primarily in various abiotic stresses [ 74 , 75 , 76 , 77 , 78 ].…”

The Epigenomic Features and Potential Functions of PEG- and PDS-Favorable DNA G-Quadruplexes in Rice

“…According to the top three most significantly enriched motifs, we found that the motifs for the binding of bHLH and C2H2 transcription factors (TFs) were more enriched in PDS-specific IP-G4s + ; in contrast, the motifs for the binding of BBRBPC and bZIP TFs were more enriched in PEG-specific IP-G4s + ( Figure 2 E). These TFs have been reported to play crucial roles in the regulation of plant growth and development and stress responses [ 62 , 63 , 64 , 65 , 66 ].…”

Identification and Expression Profiling of the bZIP Gene Family Throughout the Genome in Phoebe bournei under Abiotic Stress

“…The bZIP gene in poplar plants shows different expression of bZIP in various tissues such as roots, stem, and leaves, which demonstrates secondary metabolite biosynthesis and secondary metabolic involvement (Zhao et al 2021). The function of bZIP in abiotic stress in herbaceous perennial plants has been revealed by several studies (Liu et al 2023;Zhou et al 2023), but there are very few studies on the signi cance of bZIP in wood plants like Phoebe bournei (Azeem et al 2020). Compared to herbaceous perennials, wood plants are more vulnerable to long-term harm from intricate environmental stress because of their extended life cycle, and it is extremely di cult to improve their genetic makeup (Liao et al 2023).…”