title: The NAC-type transcription factor OsNAC2 regulates ABA-dependent genes and abiotic stress tolerance in rice.
abstract: Plants can perceive environmental changes and respond to external stressors. Here, we show that OsNAC2, a member of the NAC transcription factor family, was strongly induced by ABA and osmotic stressors such as drought and high salt. With reduced yields under drought conditions at the flowering stage, OsNAC2 overexpression lines had lower resistance to high salt and drought conditions. RNAi plants showed enhanced tolerance to high salinity and drought stress at both the vegetative and flowering stages. Furthermore, RNAi plants had improved yields after drought stress. A microarray assay indicated that many ABA-dependent stress-related genes were down-regulated in OsNAC2 overexpression lines. We further confirmed that OsNAC2 directly binds the promoters of LATE EMBRYOGENESIS ABUNDANT 3 (OsLEA3) and Stress-Activated Protein Kinases 1 (OsSAPK1), two marker genes in the abiotic stress and ABA response pathways, respectively. Our results suggest that in rice OsNAC2 regulates both abiotic stress responses and ABA-mediated responses, and acts at the junction between the ABA and abiotic stress pathways.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institute of Genetics, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Jiabin
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shen
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institute of Genetics, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Lv
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institute of Genetics, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Liqiong
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Luo
authors.affiliation: Rice Research Institute, Sichuan Agricultural University, Sichuan 611130, China.
authors.forename: Jianmei
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: He
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institute of Genetics, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Chanjuan
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Mao
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institute of Genetics, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Dandan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Xi
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Institute of Genetics, Institute of Plant Biology, School of Life Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, China.
authors.forename: Feng
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ming