Overexpression of GmbZIP59 Confers Broad-Spectrum Stress Resistance in Arabidopsis thaliana and Rice (Oryza sativa)

TL;DR

A soybean gene called GmbZIP59 helps plants resist multiple stresses like drought, salt, and disease when overexpressed in Arabidopsis and rice.

Contribution

GmbZIP59 is shown to confer broad-spectrum stress resistance in transgenic Arabidopsis and rice through direct regulation of stress-related genes.

Findings

Overexpression of GmbZIP59 in Arabidopsis improves resistance to Sclerotinia and salt stress.

GmbZIP59 overexpression in rice enhances tolerance to salt and drought.

GmbZIP59 directly binds to promoters of ETH, MeJA, and ABA responsive genes.

Abstract

Soybean (Glycine max) is a vital oilseed and economic crop in China, often constrained by drought, salinity, and biotic stresses. In this study, we identified a soybean bZIP transcription factor, GmbZIP59, whose expression is upregulated by salt, drought, ethylene (ETH), methyl jasmonate (MeJA), and abscisic acid (ABA). Overexpression of GmbZIP59 in Arabidopsis (OE-13 and OE-20, two independent Arabidopsis transgenic lines) exhibited enhanced resistance to Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (S. sclerotiorum), improved tolerance to salt stress, and increased sensitivity to phytohormones. Overexpression of GmbZIP59 in rice (OE-1 and OE-2, two independent rice transgenic lines) improved tolerance to salt and drought stresses. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) analysis revealed that elevated expression of stress-related genes occurred in transgenic lines under adverse conditions. Furthermore, chromatin immunoprecipitation-qPCR (ChIP-qPCR) assays confirmed that GmbZIP59 directly binds to the promoters of ETH, MeJA, and ABA, responsive genes associated with stress responses. These findings demonstrate that GmbZIP59 acts as a positive regulator of biotic and abiotic stress tolerance in soybean.

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