The Karrikin Receptor KAI2 Promotes Drought Tolerance in Arabidopsis thaliana

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讲座内容：

Drought causes substantial reductions in crop yields worldwide. Therefore, we set out to identify new chemical and genetic factors that regulate drought tolerance in Arabidopsis thaliana. Karrikins (KARs) are a class of butenolide compounds found in smoke that promote seed germination and have been reported to improve seedling vigor under stressful growth conditions. Here, we discovered that KAR2 treatment enhances drought tolerance through the KARRIKIN INSENSITIVE2 (KAI2)-dependent pathway, and that kai2 mutants are hypersensitive to water deprivation. We performed transcriptomic, and physiological and biochemical analyses of kai2 plants to understand the basis for KAI2-regulated drought tolerance. Plantsof kai2 have increased rates of water loss, drought-induced cell membrane damage, stomatal apertures, and cuticle permeability. In addition, kai2 plants have reduced anthocyanin biosynthesis during drought, and are hyposensitive to abscisic acid (ABA) in stomatal closure and cotyledon opening assays. These findings are strongly supported by the results of a genome-wide transcriptome analysis of kai2 mutant under both well-watered and dehydration conditions, which identified altered expression of many ABA-dependent and independent genes associated with the observed physiological and biochemical changes; and thus providing evidence for the implication of crosstalk between ABA- and KAI2-dependent signaling pathways in regulating plant responses to drought. Our findings together suggest that KAR application or genetic manipulation of KAI2 signaling may provide novel ways to improve drought tolerance.

主讲人介绍：

李伟强，男，博士，日本理化学研究所环境资源科学研究中心博士后研究员。1997年南京农业大学学士；2000年中国科学院石家庄农业现代化研究所硕士；2009年日本鸟取大学博士。2009年至今，先后在日本理化学研究所植物科学研究中心、环境资源科学中心工作。主要研究方向是植物激素与种子发育及植物耐逆生物学研究。在Trends in Plant Science、PLoS Genetics、Plant Journal等期刊以第一作者身份发表SCI论文16篇。

发布时间：2017-09-14 15:10:54