Wheat TaPUB1 protein mediates ABA response and seed development through ubiquitination

Abscisic acid (ABA) is an important regulator of plant growth, development, and biotic and abiotic stress responses. Ubiquitination plays important roles in regulating ABA signaling. E3 ligase, a key member in ubiquitination, actively participates in the regulation of biosynthesis, de-repression, and activation of ABA response and degradation of signaling components. In this study, we found that that overexpression of wheat E3 ligase TaPUB1 decreased the sensitivity of wheat seedlings to ABA, whereas TaPUB1-RNA interference (TaPUB1-RNAi) lines increased wheat sensitivity to ABA during germination, root growth, and stomatal opening. TaPUB1 influenced the expression of several ABA-responsive genes, and also interacted with TaPYL4 and TaABI5, which are involved in ABA signal transduction, and promoted their degradation. Additionally, we observed that TaPUB1-OE lines resulted in lower single-split grain numbers, larger seed size, and higher thousand kernel weight, when compared with the WT lines. Contrasting results were obtained for TaPUB1-RNAi lines. It suggests that TaPUB1 acts as a negative regulator in the ABA signaling pathway by interacting with TaPYL4 and TaABI5, subsequently affecting seed development in wheat. In addition, the enhanced abiotic tolerance of overexpression lines due to enhanced photosynthesis and root development may be related to the degradation of TaABI5 by TaPUB1.

Wheat TaPUB1 Regulates Cd Uptake and Tolerance by Promoting the Degradation of TaIRT1 and TaIAA17

Cadmium (Cd) accumulation in agricultural soils is an increasingly serious problem, as plants absorb Cd, which inhibits their growth and development. Nonetheless, the molecular mechanisms underlying Cd detoxification and accumulation in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) are unclear. Here, we isolated the U-box E3 ligase TaPUB1 from wheat and reported the functional characterization of TaPUB1 in Cd uptake and tolerance in wheat. Under Cd stress, TaPUB1 overexpression lines displayed higher photosynthetic rates than the wild type; opposite results were observed in the TaPUB1-RNAi lines. In addition, TaPUB1 overexpression lines showed reduced Cd uptake and accumulation, whereas RNAi plants exhibited a significant increase in Cd accumulation after Cd treatment. We further found that TaPUB1 enhanced the resistance of wheat to Cd stress in three ways. First, TaPUB1 interacts with and ubiquitinates TaIRT1, resulting in the inhibition of Cd uptake. Second, TaPUB1 interacts directly with and ubiquitinates TaIAA17, facilitates its degradation, and results in primary root elongation by activating the Aux signaling pathway under Cd stress. Moreover, TaPUB1 decreases ROS accumulation by regulating antioxidant-related gene expression and antioxidant enzyme activity under Cd stress. Thus, a molecular mechanism by which TaPUB1 regulates Cd uptake and tolerance by modulating the stability of TaIRT1 and TaIAA17 proteins was revealed.

TaPUB1, a Putative E3 Ligase Gene from Wheat, Enhances Salt Stress Tolerance in Transgenic Nicotiana benthamiana

High salinity is one of the most severe environmental stresses and limits the growth and yield of diverse crop plants. We isolated a gene named TaPUB1 from wheat (Triticum aestivum L. cv HF9703) that encodes a novel protein containing a U-box domain, the precursor RNA processing 19p (Prp19) superfamily and WD-40 repeats. Real-time reverse transcription-PCR analysis showed that TaPUB1 transcript accumulation was up-regulated by high salinity, drought and phytohormones, suggesting that it plays a role in the abiotic-related defense response. We overexpressed TaPUB1 in Nicotiana benthamiana to evaluate the function of TaPUB1 in the regulation of the salt stress response. Transgenic N. benthamiana plants (OE) with constitutively overexpressed TaPUB1 under the control of the Cauliflower mosaic virus 35S (CaMV 35S) promoter exhibited a higher germination rate, less growth inhibition, less Chl loss and higher photosynthetic capacity than wild-type (WT) plants under salt stress conditions. These results demonstrated the increased tolerance of OE plants to salt stress compared with the WT. The OE plants had lower osmotic potential (OP), reduced Na+ toxicity and less reactive oxygen species accumulation compared with the WT, which may be related to their higher level of osmolytes, lower Na+/K+ ratio and higher antioxidant enzyme activities under salt stress conditions. Consistent with these results, the up-regulated expression of osmic- and antioxidant-related genes in OE plants indicated a role for TaPUB1 in plant salt tolerance.