title: Overexpression of a pea DNA helicase 45 in bacteria confers salinity stress tolerance.
abstract: Salinity stress is one of the major factors negatively affecting growth and productivity in living organisms including plants and bacteria resulting in significant losses worldwide. Therefore, it would be fruitful to develop salinity stress tolerant useful species and also to understand the mechanism of stress tolerance. The pea DNA helicase 45 (PDH45) is a DNA and RNA helicase, homologous to eukaryotic translation initiation factor 4A (eIF-4A) and is involved in various processes including protein synthesis, maintaining the basic activities of the cell, upregulation of topoisomerase I activity and salinity stress tolerance in plant, but its role in salinity stress tolerance in bacteria has not heretofore been studied. This study provides an evidence for a novel function of the PDH45 gene in high salinity (NaCl) stress tolerance in bacteria (Eschericia coli, BL21 cells) also. Furthermore, it has been shown that the functionally active PDH45 gene is required to show the stress tolerance in bacteria because the single mutants (E183G or R363Q) and the double mutant (E183G + R363Q) of the gene could not confer the same function. The response was specific to Na+ ions as the bacteria could not grow in presence of LiCl. This study suggests that the cellular response to high salinity stress across prokaryotes and plant kingdom is conserved and also helps in our better understanding of mechanism of stress tolerance in bacteria and plants. It could also be very useful in developing high salinity stress tolerant useful bacteria of agronomic importance. Overall, this study provides an evidence for a novel function of the PDH45 gene in high salinity stress tolerance in bacteria.
authors.affiliation: International Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi, India.
authors.forename: Marjan M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Tajrishi
authors.forename: Neha
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Vaid
authors.forename: Renu
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Tuteja
authors.forename: Narendra
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Tuteja
mesh_terms: D004265:DNA Helicases / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D004926:Escherichia coli / Q000187:drug effects / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D018532:Pisum sativum / Q000187:drug effects / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified / Q000187:drug effects / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D012965:Sodium Chloride / Q000494:pharmacology*
chemical_list: D010940:Plant Proteins; D012965:Sodium Chloride; D004265:DNA Helicases