title: Molecular and Functional Characterization of WheatARGOSGenes Influencing Plant Growth and Stress Tolerance.
abstract: Auxin Regulated Gene involved in Organ Size (ARGOS) is significantly and positively associated with organ size and is involved in abiotic stress responses in plants. However, no studies on wheatARGOSgenes have been reported to date. In the present study, threeTaARGOShomoeologous genes were isolated and located on chromosomes 4A, 4B, and 4D of bread wheat, all of which are highly conserved in wheat and its wild relatives. Comparisons of gene expression in different tissues demonstrated that theTaARGOSswere mainly expressed in the stem. Furthermore, theTaARGOStranscripts were significantly induced by drought, salinity, and various phytohormones. Transient expression of the TaARGOS-D protein in wheat protoplasts showed that TaARGOS-D localized to the endoplasmic reticulum. Moreover, overexpression ofTaARGOS-DinArabidopsisresulted in an enhanced germination rate, larger rosette diameter, increased rosette leaf area, and higher silique number than in wild-type (WT) plants. The roles ofTaARGOS-Din the control of plant growth were further studied via RNA-seq, and it was found that 105 genes were differentially expressed; most of these genes were involved in 'developmental processes.' Interestingly, we also found that overexpression ofTaARGOS-DinArabidopsisimproved drought and salinity tolerance and insensitivity to ABA relative to that in WT plants. Taken together, these results demonstrate that theTaARGOSsare involved in seed germination, seedling growth, and abiotic stress tolerance.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and Key Laboratory of Crop Heterosis and Utilization, Beijing Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Department of Plant Genetics and Breeding, China Agricultural University Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Yue
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Zhao
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and Key Laboratory of Crop Heterosis and Utilization, Beijing Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Department of Plant Genetics and Breeding, China Agricultural University Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Xuejun
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Tian
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and Key Laboratory of Crop Heterosis and Utilization, Beijing Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Department of Plant Genetics and Breeding, China Agricultural University Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Yuanyuan
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and Key Laboratory of Crop Heterosis and Utilization, Beijing Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Department of Plant Genetics and Breeding, China Agricultural University Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Liyuan
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and Key Laboratory of Crop Heterosis and Utilization, Beijing Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Department of Plant Genetics and Breeding, China Agricultural University Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Panfeng
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Guan
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and Key Laboratory of Crop Heterosis and Utilization, Beijing Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Department of Plant Genetics and Breeding, China Agricultural University Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Xiaoxia
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Kou
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and Key Laboratory of Crop Heterosis and Utilization, Beijing Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Department of Plant Genetics and Breeding, China Agricultural University Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Xiaobo
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and Key Laboratory of Crop Heterosis and Utilization, Beijing Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Department of Plant Genetics and Breeding, China Agricultural University Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Mingming
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Xin
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and Key Laboratory of Crop Heterosis and Utilization, Beijing Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Department of Plant Genetics and Breeding, China Agricultural University Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Zhaorong
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Hu
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and Key Laboratory of Crop Heterosis and Utilization, Beijing Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Department of Plant Genetics and Breeding, China Agricultural University Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Yingyin
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yao
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and Key Laboratory of Crop Heterosis and Utilization, Beijing Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Department of Plant Genetics and Breeding, China Agricultural University Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Zhongfu
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Ni
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and Key Laboratory of Crop Heterosis and Utilization, Beijing Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Department of Plant Genetics and Breeding, China Agricultural University Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Qixin
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Agrobiotechnology and Key Laboratory of Crop Heterosis and Utilization, Beijing Key Laboratory of Crop Genetic Improvement, Department of Plant Genetics and Breeding, China Agricultural University Beijing, China.
authors.forename: Huiru
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Peng
keywords: ABA; Arabidopsis; TaARGOS; abiotic stress; transgenic gene; wheat