Overexpression of receptor-like kinase ERECTA improves thermotolerance in rice and tomato.
The detrimental effects of global warming on crop productivity threaten to reduce the world's food supply. Although plant responses to changes in temperature have been studied, genetic modification of crops to improve thermotolerance has had little success to date. Here we demonstrate that overexpression of the Arabidopsis thaliana receptor-like kinase ERECTA (ER) in Arabidopsis, rice and tomato confers thermotolerance independent of water loss and that Arabidopsis er mutants are hypersensitive to heat. A loss-of-function mutation of a rice ER homolog and reduced expression of a tomato ER allele decreased thermotolerance of both species. Transgenic tomato and rice lines overexpressing Arabidopsis ER showed improved heat tolerance in the greenhouse and in field tests at multiple locations in China during several seasons. Moreover, ER-overexpressing transgenic Arabidopsis, tomato and rice plants had increased biomass. Our findings could contribute to engineering or breeding thermotolerant crops with no growth penalty.
National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics and National Center of Plant Gene Research, Institute of Plant Physiology &Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.|Shanghai Chenshan Plant Science Research Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai Chenshan Botanical Garden, Shanghai, China.
Hui
H
Shen
National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics and National Center of Plant Gene Research, Institute of Plant Physiology &Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
Xiangbin
X
Zhong
National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics and National Center of Plant Gene Research, Institute of Plant Physiology &Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
Fangfang
F
Zhao
National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics and National Center of Plant Gene Research, Institute of Plant Physiology &Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
Yanmei
Y
Wang
National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics and National Center of Plant Gene Research, Institute of Plant Physiology &Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
Bingxiao
B
Yan
National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics and National Center of Plant Gene Research, Institute of Plant Physiology &Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
Qun
Q
Li
National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics and National Center of Plant Gene Research, Institute of Plant Physiology &Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
Genyun
G
Chen
College of Agriculture and Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
Bizeng
B
Mao
Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou, China.
Jianjun
J
Wang
College of Life Science, Wuhan University, Hubei, China.
Yangsheng
Y
Li
Institute of Subtropical Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changsha, China.
Guoying
G
Xiao
National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics and National Center of Plant Gene Research, Institute of Plant Physiology &Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
Yuke
http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6345-5115
Y
He
National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics and National Center of Plant Gene Research, Institute of Plant Physiology &Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
Han
H
Xiao
Shanghai Center for Plant Stress Biology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
Jianming
J
Li
National Key Laboratory of Plant Molecular Genetics and National Center of Plant Gene Research, Institute of Plant Physiology &Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.|Collaborative Innovation Center of Genetics and Development, Institute of Plant Physiology &Ecology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.
Zuhua
Z
He
D000222:Adaptation, Physiological / Q000235:genetics; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D024861:Genetic Enhancement / Q000379:methods*; D018869:Heat-Shock Response / Q000502:physiology*; D006358:Hot Temperature; D018551:Solanum lycopersicum / Q000502:physiology*; D012275:Oryza / Q000502:physiology*; D030821:Plants, Genetically Modified / Q000502:physiology*; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases / Q000235:genetics*; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface / Q000235:genetics*; D015854:Up-Regulation / Q000502:physiology
D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D011956:Receptors, Cell Surface; C457763:ER protein, Arabidopsis; D017346:Protein Serine-Threonine Kinases