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Gao Z, Geng X, Xiang L, Shao C, Geng Q, Wu J, Yang Q, Liu S, Chen X. TaVQ22 Interacts with TaWRKY19-2B to Negatively Regulate Wheat Resistance to Sheath Blight. PHYTOPATHOLOGY 2024; 114:454-463. [PMID: 38394356 DOI: 10.1094/phyto-02-23-0058-fi] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/25/2024]
Abstract
Wheat sheath blight caused by the necrotic fungal pathogen Rhizoctonia cerealis is responsible for severe damage to bread wheat. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are vital for stress resistance by plants and their homeostasis plays an important role in wheat resistance to sheath blight. Valine-glutamine (VQ) proteins play important roles in plant growth and development, and responses to biotic and abiotic stresses. However, the functional mechanism mediated by wheat VQ protein in response to sheath blight via ROS homeostasis regulation is unclear. In this study, we identified TaVQ22 protein containing the VQ motif and clarified the functional mechanisms involved in the defense of wheat against R. cerealis. TaVQ22 silencing reduced the accumulation of ROS and enhanced the resistance of wheat to R. cerealis. In addition, we showed that TaVQ22 regulated ROS generation by interacting with the WRKY transcription factor TaWRKY19-2B, thereby indicating that TaVQ22 and TaWRKY19-2B formed complexes in the plant cell nucleus. Yeast two-hybrid analysis showed that the VQ motif in TaVQ22 is crucial for the interaction, where it inhibits the transcriptional activation function of TaWRKY19-2B. In summary, TaVQ22 interacts with TaWRKY19-2B to regulate ROS homeostasis and negatively regulate the defense response to R. cerealis infection. This study provides novel insights into the mechanism that allows VQ protein to mediate the immune response in plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhen Gao
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering for Plant Breeding, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
| | - Xingxia Geng
- Jiangsu Key Laboratory for Biofunctional Molecules, College of Life Science and Chemistry, Jiangsu Second Normal University, 77 West Beijing Road, Nanjing 210013, China
| | - Linrun Xiang
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering for Plant Breeding, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
| | - Chunyu Shao
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering for Plant Breeding, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
| | - Qiang Geng
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering for Plant Breeding, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
| | - Jun Wu
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering for Plant Breeding, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
| | - Qunhui Yang
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering for Plant Breeding, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
| | - Shuhui Liu
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering for Plant Breeding, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
| | - Xinhong Chen
- Shaanxi Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering for Plant Breeding, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
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Tian J, Zhang J, Francis F. The role and pathway of VQ family in plant growth, immunity, and stress response. PLANTA 2023; 259:16. [PMID: 38078967 DOI: 10.1007/s00425-023-04292-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2023] [Accepted: 11/14/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023]
Abstract
MAIN CONCLUSION This review provides a detailed description of the function and mechanism of VQ family gene, which is helpful for further research and application of VQ gene resources to improve crops. Valine-glutamine (VQ) motif-containing proteins are a large class of transcriptional regulatory cofactors. VQ proteins have their own unique molecular characteristics. Amino acids are highly conserved only in the VQ domain, while other positions vary greatly. Most VQ genes do not contain introns and the length of their proteins is less than 300 amino acids. A majority of VQ proteins are predicted to be localized in the nucleus. The promoter of many VQ genes contains stress or growth related elements. Segment duplication and tandem duplication are the main amplification mechanisms of the VQ gene family in angiosperms and gymnosperms, respectively. Purification selection plays a crucial role in the evolution of many VQ genes. By interacting with WRKY, MAPK, and other proteins, VQ proteins participate in the multiple signaling pathways to regulate plant growth and development, as well as defense responses to biotic and abiotic stresses. Although there have been some reports on the VQ gene family in plants, most of them only identify family members, with little functional verification, and there is also a lack of complete, detailed, and up-to-date review of research progress. Here, we comprehensively summarized the research progress of VQ genes that have been published so far, mainly including their molecular characteristics, biological functions, importance of VQ motif, and working mechanisms. Finally, the regulatory network and model of VQ genes were drawn, a precise molecular breeding strategy based on VQ genes was proposed, and the current problems and future prospects were pointed out, providing a powerful reference for further research and utilization of VQ genes in plant improvement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jinfu Tian
- Functional and Evolutionary Entomology, Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, University of Liège, 5030, Gembloux, Belgium.
- Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), Beijing, 100081, China.
| | - Jiahui Zhang
- Functional and Evolutionary Entomology, Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, University of Liège, 5030, Gembloux, Belgium
- Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), Beijing, 100081, China
| | - Frédéric Francis
- Functional and Evolutionary Entomology, Gembloux Agro-Bio Tech, University of Liège, 5030, Gembloux, Belgium
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Zhang L, Zheng Y, Xiong X, Li H, Zhang X, Song Y, Zhang X, Min D. The wheat VQ motif-containing protein TaVQ4-D positively regulates drought tolerance in transgenic plants. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY 2023; 74:5591-5605. [PMID: 37471263 DOI: 10.1093/jxb/erad280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2023] [Accepted: 07/18/2023] [Indexed: 07/22/2023]
Abstract
VQ motif-containing proteins play important roles in plant abiotic and biotic stresses. In this study, we cloned the VQ protein gene TaVQ4-D that is induced by drought stress. Arabidopsis and wheat plants overexpressing TaVQ4-D showed increased tolerance to drought stress. In contrast, wheat lines in which TaVQ4-D expression had been silenced showed decreased drought tolerance. Under drought stress conditions, the contents of superoxide dismutase and proline increased and the content of malondialdehyde decreased in transgenic wheat plants overexpressing TaVQ4-D compared with the wild type. At the same time, the expression of reactive oxygen species-scavenging-related genes and stress-related genes was up-regulated. However, plants of TaVQ4-D-silenced wheat lines showed decreased activities of antioxidant enzymes and reduced expression of some stress-related and antioxidant-related genes. In addition, the TaVQ4-D protein physically interacts with two mitogen-activated protein kinases (MPK3 and MPK6) and plays a role in plant drought stress as the phosphorylated substrates of MPK3 and MPK6. In summary, the results of our study suggest that TaVQ4-D can positively regulate drought stress tolerance in wheat.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lili Zhang
- College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University/State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
| | - Yan Zheng
- College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University/State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
| | - Xinxin Xiong
- College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University/State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
| | - Hui Li
- College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University/State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
| | - Xin Zhang
- College of Life Sciences, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
| | - Yulong Song
- College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University/State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
| | - Xiaohong Zhang
- College of Life Sciences, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
| | - Donghong Min
- College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University/State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, Yangling 712100, Shaanxi, China
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Wang Y, Lu X, Fu Y, Wang H, Yu C, Chu J, Jiang B, Zhu J. Genome-wide identification and expression analysis of VQ gene family under abiotic stress in Coix lacryma-jobi L. BMC PLANT BIOLOGY 2023; 23:327. [PMID: 37340442 DOI: 10.1186/s12870-023-04294-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2023] [Accepted: 05/18/2023] [Indexed: 06/22/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Valine-glutamine (VQ) proteins are non-specific plant proteins that have a highly conserved motif: FxxhVQxhTG. These proteins are involved in the development of various plant organs such as seeds, hypocotyls, flowers, leaves and also play a role in response to salt, drought and cold stresses. Despite their importance, there is limited information available on the evolutionary and structural characteristics of VQ family genes in Coix lacryma-jobi. RESULTS In this study, a total of 31 VQ genes were identified from the coix genome and classified into seven subgroups (I-VII) based on phylogenetic analysis. These genes were found to be unevenly distributed on 10 chromosomes. Gene structure analysis revealed that these genes had a similar type of structure within each subfamily. Moreover, 27 of ClVQ genes were found to have no introns. Conserved domain and multiple sequence alignment analysis revealed the presence of a highly conserved sequences in the ClVQ protein. This research utilized quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) and promoter analysis to investigate the expression of ClVQ genes under different stress conditions. Results showed that most ClVQ genes responded to polyethylene glycol, heat treatment, salt, abscisic acid and methyl jasmonate treatment with varying degrees of expression. Furthermore, some ClVQ genes exhibited significant correlation in expression changes under abiotic stress, indicating that these genes may act synergistically in response to adversarial stress. Additionally, yeast dihybrid verification revealed an interaction between ClVQ4, ClVQ12, and ClVQ26. CONCLUSIONS This study conducted a genome-wide analysis of the VQ gene family in coix, including an examination of phylogenetic relationships, conserved domains, cis-elements and expression patterns. The goal of the study was to identify potential drought resistance candidate genes, providing a theoretical foundation for molecular resistance breeding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yujiao Wang
- Department of Cotton Research Institute, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei, 230001, China
| | - Xianyong Lu
- Department of Cotton Research Institute, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei, 230001, China
| | - Yuhua Fu
- Guizhou Institute of Subtropical Crops, Guizhou Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Xingyi, China
| | - Hongjuan Wang
- Department of Cotton Research Institute, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei, 230001, China
| | - Chun Yu
- Department of Cotton Research Institute, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei, 230001, China
| | - Jiasong Chu
- Department of Cotton Research Institute, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei, 230001, China
| | - Benli Jiang
- Department of Cotton Research Institute, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei, 230001, China.
| | - Jiabao Zhu
- Department of Cotton Research Institute, Anhui Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hefei, 230001, China.
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Xiong XX, Liu Y, Zhang LL, Li XJ, Zhao Y, Zheng Y, Yang QH, Yang Y, Min DH, Zhang XH. G-Protein β-Subunit Gene TaGB1-B Enhances Drought and Salt Resistance in Wheat. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24087337. [PMID: 37108500 PMCID: PMC10138664 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24087337] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2023] [Revised: 03/28/2023] [Accepted: 04/05/2023] [Indexed: 04/29/2023] Open
Abstract
In the hexaploid wheat genome, there are three Gα genes, three Gβ and twelve Gγ genes, but the function of Gβ in wheat has not been explored. In this study, we obtained the overexpression of TaGB1 Arabidopsis plants through inflorescence infection, and the overexpression of wheat lines was obtained by gene bombardment. The results showed that under drought and NaCl treatment, the survival rate of Arabidopsis seedlings' overexpression of TaGB1-B was higher than that of the wild type, while the survival rate of the related mutant agb1-2 was lower than that of the wild type. The survival rate of wheat seedlings with TaGB1-B overexpression was higher than that of the control. In addition, under drought and salt stress, the levels of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and proline (Pro) in the wheat overexpression of TaGB1-B were higher than that of the control, and the concentration of malondialdehyde (MDA) was lower than that of the control. This indicates that TaGB1-B could improve the drought resistance and salt tolerance of Arabidopsis and wheat by scavenging active oxygen. Overall, this work provides a theoretical basis for wheat G-protein β-subunits in a further study, and new genetic resources for the cultivation of drought-tolerant and salt-tolerant wheat varieties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xin-Xin Xiong
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
| | - Yang Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
| | - Li-Li Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
| | - Xiao-Jian Li
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
| | - Yue Zhao
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
| | - Yan Zheng
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
| | - Qian-Hui Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
| | - Yan Yang
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
| | - Dong-Hong Min
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
| | - Xiao-Hong Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China
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Comprehensive Identification and Expression Profiling of the VQ Motif-Containing Gene Family in Brassica juncea. BIOLOGY 2022; 11:biology11121814. [PMID: 36552323 PMCID: PMC9776337 DOI: 10.3390/biology11121814] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2022] [Revised: 12/08/2022] [Accepted: 12/12/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Valine-glutamine (VQ) motif-containing proteins are a class of highly conserved transcriptional regulators in plants and play key roles in plant growth, development, and response to various stresses. However, the VQ family genes in mustard have not yet been comprehensively identified and analyzed. In this study, a total of 120 VQ family genes (BjuVQ1 to BjuVQ120), which were unevenly distributed on 18 chromosomes (AA_Chr01 to BB_Chr08), were characterized in mustard. A phylogenetic tree analysis revealed that the BjuVQ proteins were clustered into nine distinct groups (groups I to IX), and members in the same group shared a highly conserved motif composition. A gene structure analysis suggested that most BjuVQ genes were intronless. A gene duplication analysis revealed that 254 pairs of BjuVQ genes were segmentally duplicated and one pair was tandemly duplicated. Expression profiles obtained from RNA-seq data demonstrated that most BjuVQ genes have different gene expression profiles in different organs, including leaf, stem, root, flower bud, pod, and seed. In addition, over half of the BjuVQ genes were differentially expressed at some time points under low temperature treatment. The qRT-PCR data revealed that BjuVQ23, BjuVQ55, BjuVQ57, BjuVQ67, BjuVQ100, and BjuVQ117 were upregulated in response to cold stress. Taken together, our study provides new insights into the roles of different BjuVQ genes in mustard and their possible roles in growth and development, as well as in response to cold stress.
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