Overexpression of a novel MYB-related transcription factor, OsMYBR1, confers improved drought tolerance and decreased ABA sensitivity in rice.

The MYB proteins play important roles in regulating plant responses to environmental stresses. We cloned and functionally characterized a novel MYB-related gene, OsMYBR1, from rice. Our microarray and qRT-PCR analyses showed that its expression was induced by drought and cold in different tissues at various developmental stages. This gene encodes a putative MYB-related protein of 463 amino acid residues. Compared with wild-type (WT) plants, transgenic plants over-expressing OsMYBR1 exhibited much greater tolerance to drought stress and decreased sensitivity to abscisic acid (ABA). Under drought treatment, levels of free proline and soluble sugar were higher in transgenic plants than in the WT. Furthermore, transcriptional expression of four stress-related genes -- OsP5CS1, OsProt, OsLEA3, and OsRab16 -- was significantly increased in transgenic plants under drought stressed conditions and ABA. Our results provide evidence that OsMYBR1 is involved in mediating plant responses to ABA and drought.

Yin X ，Cui Y ，Wang M ，Xia X ... -  《-》

Rice NAC transcription factor ONAC095 plays opposite roles in drought and cold stress tolerance.

Huang L ，Hong Y ，Zhang H ，Li D ，Song F ... -  《BMC PLANT BIOLOGY》

Overexpression of OsMYB48-1, a novel MYB-related transcription factor, enhances drought and salinity tolerance in rice.

Xiong H ，Li J ，Liu P ，Duan J ，Zhao Y ，Guo X ，Li Y ，Zhang H ，Ali J ，Li Z ... -  《PLoS One》

Enhanced Gene Expression Rather than Natural Polymorphism in Coding Sequence of the OsbZIP23 Determines Drought Tolerance and Yield Improvement in Rice Genotypes.

Dey A ，Samanta MK ，Gayen S ，Sen SK ，Maiti MK ... -  《PLoS One》

Overexpression of OsEm1 encoding a group I LEA protein confers enhanced drought tolerance in rice.

Drought is the greatest threat for crops, including rice. In an effort to identify rice genes responsible for drought tolerance, a drought-responsive gene OsEm1 encoding a group I LEA protein, was chosen for this study. OsEm1 was shown at vegetative stages to be responsive to various abiotic stresses, including drought, salt, cold and the hormone ABA. In this study, we generated OsEm1-overexpressing rice plants to explore the function of OsEm1 under drought conditions. Overexpression of OsEm1 increases ABA sensitivity and enhances osmotic tolerance in rice. Compared with wild type, the OsEm1-overexpressing rice plants showed enhanced plant survival ratio at the vegetative stage; moreover, over expression of OsEm1 in rice increased the expression of other LEA genes, including RAB16A, RAB16C, RAB21, and LEA3, likely protecting organ integrity against harsh environments. Interestingly, the elevated level of OsEm1 had no different phenotype compared with wild type under normal condition. Our findings suggest that OsEm1 is a positive regulator of drought tolerance and is potentially promising for engineering drought tolerance in rice.

Yu J ，Lai Y ，Wu X ，Wu G ，Guo C ... -  《-》