RESUMO
Soybean (Glycine max) production is severely affected in unfavorable environments. Identification of the regulatory factors conferring stress tolerance would facilitate soybean breeding. In this study, through coexpression network analysis of salt-tolerant wild soybeans, together with molecular and genetic approaches, we revealed a previously unidentified function of a class B heat shock factor, HSFB2b, in soybean salt stress response. We showed that HSFB2b improves salt tolerance through the promotion of flavonoid accumulation by activating one subset of flavonoid biosynthesis-related genes and by inhibiting the repressor gene GmNAC2 to release another subset of genes in the flavonoid biosynthesis pathway. Moreover, four promoter haplotypes of HSFB2b were identified from wild and cultivated soybeans. Promoter haplotype II from salt-tolerant wild soybean Y20, with high promoter activity under salt stress, is probably selected for during domestication. Another promoter haplotype, III, from salt-tolerant wild soybean Y55, had the highest promoter activity under salt stress, had a low distribution frequency and may be subjected to the next wave of selection. Together, our results revealed the mechanism of HSFB2b in soybean salt stress tolerance. Its promoter variations were identified, and the haplotype with high activity may be adopted for breeding better soybean cultivars that are adapted to stress conditions.
Assuntos
Domesticação , Flavonoides/biossíntese , Glycine max/fisiologia , Proteínas de Choque Térmico/metabolismo , Proteínas de Plantas/metabolismo , Tolerância ao Sal/fisiologia , Sequência de Bases , Vias Biossintéticas/efeitos dos fármacos , Vias Biossintéticas/genética , Regulação da Expressão Gênica de Plantas/efeitos dos fármacos , Genes de Plantas , Estudos de Associação Genética , Haplótipos/genética , Raízes de Plantas/efeitos dos fármacos , Raízes de Plantas/genética , Plantas Geneticamente Modificadas , Regiões Promotoras Genéticas/genética , Ligação Proteica/efeitos dos fármacos , Ligação Proteica/genética , Tolerância ao Sal/efeitos dos fármacos , Cloreto de Sódio/farmacologia , Glycine max/efeitos dos fármacos , Glycine max/genética , Fatores de Transcrição/metabolismo , Transcriptoma/efeitos dos fármacos , Transcriptoma/genética , Regulação para Cima/efeitos dos fármacos , Regulação para Cima/genéticaRESUMO
Heat shock transcription factors (HSFs) play a crucial role in heat stress tolerance in vegetative tissues. However, their involvement in reproductive tissues and their post-translational modifications are not well understood. In this study, we identify the E3 ligase XB3 ORTHOLOG 1 IN ARABIDOPSIS THALIANA (XBAT31) as a key player in the ubiquitination and degradation of HSFB2a/B2b. Our results show that the xbat31 mutant exhibits a higher percentage of unfertile siliques and decreased expression of HSPs in flowers under heat stress conditions compared to the wild type. Conversely, the hsfb2a hsfb2b double mutant displays improved reproductive thermotolerance. We find that XBAT31 interacts with HSFB2a/B2b and mediates their ubiquitination. Furthermore, HSFB2a/B2b ubiquitination is reduced in the xbat31-1 mutant, resulting in higher accumulation of HSFB2a/B2b in flowers under heat stress conditions. Overexpression of HSFB2a or HSFB2b leads to an increase in unfertile siliques under heat stress conditions. Thus, our results dissect the important role of the XBAT31-HSFB2a/B2b module in conferring reproductive thermotolerance in plants.