title: Ectopic expression of NnPER1, a Nelumbo nucifera 1-cysteine peroxiredoxin antioxidant, enhances seed longevity and stress tolerance in Arabidopsis.
abstract: Seed longevity, the maintenance of viability during storage, is a major factor for conservation of genetic resources and biodiversity. Seed longevity is an important trait of agriculture crop and is impaired by reactive oxygen species (ROS) during seed desiccation, storage and germination (C. R. Biol., 331, 2008 and 796). Seeds possess a wide range of systems (protection, detoxification, repair) allowing them to survive during storage and to preserve a high germination ability. In many plants, 1-cys peroxiredoxin (1-Cys Prx, also named PER1) is a seed-specific antioxidant which eliminates ROS with cysteine residues. Here we identified and characterized a seed-specific PER1 protein from seeds of sacred lotus (Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn.). Purified NnPER1 protein protects DNA against the cleavage by ROS in the mixed-function oxidation system. The transcription and protein accumulation of NnPER1 increased during seed desiccation and imbibition and under abiotic stress treatment. Ectopic expression of NnPER1 in Arabidopsis enhanced the seed germination ability after controlled deterioration treatment (CDT), indicating that NnPER1 improves seed longevity of transgenic plants. Consistent with the function of NnPER1 on detoxifying ROS, we found that the level of ROS release and lipid peroxidation was strikingly lower in transgenic seeds compared to wild-type with or without CDT. Furthermore, transgenic Arabidopsis seeds ectopic-expressing NnPER1 displayed enhanced tolerance to high temperature and abscisic acid (ABA), indicating that NnPER1 may participate in the thermotolerance and ABA signaling pathway.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Plant Resource, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Hu-Hui
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Germplasm Enhancement, College of Agriculture, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: Pu
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Chu
authors.affiliation: Guangdong Provincial Key Lab of Plant Molecular Breeding, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Yu-Liang
authors.initials: YL
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Science and Engineering, Jinan University, Guangzhou, 510632, China.|School of Life Sciences, Center for Cell and Developmental Biology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Yu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ding
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Plant Resource, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Yin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Agro-biological Gene Research Center, Guangdong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Guangzhou, 510640, China.
authors.forename: Jun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: School of Life Sciences, Center for Cell and Developmental Biology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China.
authors.forename: Li-Wen
authors.initials: LW
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol and Guangdong Key Laboratory of Plant Resource, School of Life Sciences, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Shang-Zhi
authors.initials: SZ
authors.lastname: Huang
mesh_terms: D000040:Abscisic Acid / Q000378:metabolism; D000975:Antioxidants / Q000378:metabolism*; D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant; D054464:Peroxiredoxins / Q000378:metabolism*; D010940:Plant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species / Q000378:metabolism; D012639:Seeds / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D029681:Arabidopsis Proteins; D010940:Plant Proteins; D017382:Reactive Oxygen Species; D000040:Abscisic Acid; D054464:Peroxiredoxins
keywords: 1-Cys Prx; PER1; abiotic stress tolerance; abscisic acid; controlled deterioration treatment; sacred lotus; seed longevity