Transcriptional network analysis reveals drought resistance mechanisms of AP2/ERF transgenic rice

Hongryul Ahn, Inuk Jung, Seon Ju Shin, Jinwoo Park, Sungmin Rhee, Ju Kon Kim, Woosuk Jung, Hawk Bin Kwon, Sun Kim

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

43 Scopus citations

Abstract

This study was designed to investigate at the molecular level how a transgenic version of rice “Nipponbare” obtained a drought-resistant phenotype. Using multi-omics sequencing data, we compared wild-type rice (WT) and a transgenic version (erf71) that had obtained a drought-resistant phenotype by overexpressing OsERF71, a member of the AP2/ERF transcription factor (TF) family. A comprehensive bioinformatics analysis pipeline, including TF networks and a cascade tree, was developed for the analysis of multi-omics data. The results of the analysis showed that the presence of OsERF71 at the source of the network controlled global gene expression levels in a specific manner to make erf71 survive longer than WT. Our analysis of the time-series transcriptome data suggests that erf71 diverted more energy to survival-critical mechanisms related to translation, oxidative response, and DNA replication, while further suppressing energy-consuming mechanisms, such as photosynthesis. To support this hypothesis further, we measured the net photosynthesis level under physiological conditions, which confirmed the further suppression of photosynthesis in erf71. In summary, our work presents a comprehensive snapshot of transcriptional modification in transgenic rice and shows how this induced the plants to acquire a drought-resistant phenotype.

Original languageEnglish
Article number1044
JournalFrontiers in Plant Science
Volume8
DOIs
StatePublished - 15 Jun 2017

Keywords

  • Drought stress
  • Drought tolerance
  • Network analysis
  • NGS data analysis
  • Rice
  • Transcription factors

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