title: The low oxygen, oxidative and osmotic stress responses synergistically act through the ethylene response factor VII genes RAP2.12, RAP2.2 and RAP2.3.
abstract: The ethylene response factor VII (ERF-VII) transcription factor RELATED TO APETALA2.12 (RAP2.12) was previously identified as an activator of the ALCOHOL DEHYDROGENASE1 promoter::luciferase (ADH1-LUC) reporter gene. Here we show that overexpression of RAP2.12 and its homologues RAP2.2 and RAP2.3 sustains ABA-mediated activation of ADH1 and activates hypoxia marker genes under both anoxic and normoxic conditions. Inducible expression of all three RAP2s conferred tolerance to anoxia, oxidative and osmotic stresses, and enhanced the sensitivity to abscisic acid (ABA). Consistently, the rap2.12-2 rap2.3-1 double mutant showed hypersensitivity to both submergence and osmotic stress. These findings suggest that the three ERF-VII-type transcription factors play roles in tolerance to multiple stresses that sequentially occur during and after submergence in Arabidopsis. Oxygen-dependent degradation of RAP2.12 was previously shown to be mediated by the N-end rule pathway. During submergence the RAP2.12, RAP2.2 and RAP2.3 are stabilized and accumulates in the nucleus affecting the transcription of stress response genes. We conclude that the stabilized RAP2 transcription factors can prolong the ABA-mediated activation of a subset of osmotic responsive genes (e.g. ADH1). We also show that RAP2.12 protein level is affected by the REALLY INTERESTING GENE (RING) domain containing SEVEN IN ABSENTIA of Arabidopsis thaliana 2 (SINAT2). Silencing of SINAT1/2 genes leads to enhanced RAP2.12 abundance independently of the presence or absence of its N-terminal degron. Taken together, our results suggest that RAP2.12 and its homologues RAP2.2 and RAP2.3 act redundantly in multiple stress responses. Alternative protein degradation pathways may provide inputs to the RAP2 transcription factors for the distinct stresses.
authors.affiliation: Biological Research Centre, Institute of Plant Biology, Temesvári krt. 62., H-6726, Szeged, Hungary.|Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham Hill, Surrey, TW20 0EX, UK.
authors.forename: Csaba
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Papdi
authors.affiliation: Biological Research Centre, Institute of Plant Biology, Temesvári krt. 62., H-6726, Szeged, Hungary.|Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham Hill, Surrey, TW20 0EX, UK.
authors.forename: Imma
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Pérez-Salamó
authors.affiliation: Biological Research Centre, Institute of Plant Biology, Temesvári krt. 62., H-6726, Szeged, Hungary.
authors.forename: Mary Prathiba
authors.initials: MP
authors.lastname: Joseph
authors.affiliation: Institute of Life Sciences, Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna, 56127, Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Beatrice
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Giuntoli
authors.affiliation: Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham Hill, Surrey, TW20 0EX, UK.
authors.forename: László
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Bögre
authors.affiliation: Biological Research Centre, Institute of Plant Biology, Temesvári krt. 62., H-6726, Szeged, Hungary.|Max-Planck-Institut für Züchtungsforschung, Carl von Linne weg 10., 50829, Cologne, Germany.
authors.forename: Csaba
authors.identifier: http://orcid.org/0000-0003-4422-9993
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Koncz
authors.affiliation: Biological Research Centre, Institute of Plant Biology, Temesvári krt. 62., H-6726, Szeged, Hungary.
authors.forename: László
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Szabados
mesh_terms: D000040:Abscisic Acid / Q000378:metabolism / Q000494:pharmacology; D000064:Acclimatization; D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D002352:Carrier Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D005030:Ethylenes / Q000378:metabolism; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D009154:Mutation; D009997:Osmotic Pressure; D018384:Oxidative Stress; D010100:Oxygen / Q000378:metabolism; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D044767:Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D002352:Carrier Proteins; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D005030:Ethylenes; C569242:RAP2.12 protein, Arabidopsis; C525662:RAP2.2 protein, Arabidopsis; C000607352:RAP2.3 protein, Arabidopsis; C525663:SINAT2 protein, Arabidopsis; D014157:Transcription Factors; D000040:Abscisic Acid; C036216:ethylene; C000607353:SINAT1 protein, Arabidopsis; D044767:Ubiquitin-Protein Ligases; D010100:Oxygen
keywords: Arabidopsis thaliana; RAP2; SINAT; anoxia; ethylene response factor; luciferase reporter; osmotic and oxidative stress