Spatio-temporal analysis of the transcriptional factors DREB-A3 type in response to abiotic and energy-nutritional stress stimuli in a non-vascular plant model
Resumen
Transcriptional factors type DREB-A3, belong to the AP2/EREBP family and are specific to plants. These are constituted by a single member (ABI4) in most vascular plants and constitutes a primary agent in the abscisic acid (ABA) signaling pathway, as well as in the early stages of germination and abiotic stress response. Although this transcriptional factor has been widely studied in vascular plants, the knowledge of this factor in non-vascular plants is very limited. Therefore, in our research group, two genes homologous to A. thaliana ABI4 have been identified in the moss Physcomitrium patens. In order to understand the regulation of PpDREB-A3-like1 and PpDREB-A3-like2, in this work 160 cis-regulatory elements related to abiotic stimulation were identified. Expresion analisys show that these genes respond to glucose, ABA, osmotic stress, saline, heat and dehydration and knock-out mutant lines show abi, gin and stress tolerant phenotypes. Also, spatio-temporal regulation of both genes under abiotic and high-carbon extreme stresses is being analyzed using transgenic plants harbouring transcriptional and translational fusions with GFP. PpDREB-A3-like1::?abi4GFP(2) line show GFP accumulation under ABA, freezing (-20°C) and dehydration in protonemal tissue (3 weeks). In addition, subcellular localization and tissue-specific expression will be assesed under these conditions at different stages of P. patens life cycle.