NAC Transcription Factor <i>GmNAC035</i> Exerts a Positive Regulatory Role in Enhancing Salt Stress Tolerance in Plants

Soybean, a globally significant and versatile crop, serves as a vital source of both oil and protein. However, environmental factors such as soil salinization pose substantial challenges to its cultivation, adversely affecting both yield and quality. Enhancing the salt tolerance of soybeans can miti...

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Main Authors: Wanting Shi, Sixin Ye, Yiting Xin, Hongmiao Jin, Meiling Hu, Yueping Zheng, Yihua Zhan, Hongbo Liu, Yi Gan, Zhifu Zheng, Tian Pan
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2025-05-01
Series:Plants
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Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/9/1391
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author Wanting Shi
Sixin Ye
Yiting Xin
Hongmiao Jin
Meiling Hu
Yueping Zheng
Yihua Zhan
Hongbo Liu
Yi Gan
Zhifu Zheng
Tian Pan
author_facet Wanting Shi
Sixin Ye
Yiting Xin
Hongmiao Jin
Meiling Hu
Yueping Zheng
Yihua Zhan
Hongbo Liu
Yi Gan
Zhifu Zheng
Tian Pan
author_sort Wanting Shi
collection DOAJ
description Soybean, a globally significant and versatile crop, serves as a vital source of both oil and protein. However, environmental factors such as soil salinization pose substantial challenges to its cultivation, adversely affecting both yield and quality. Enhancing the salt tolerance of soybeans can mitigate yield losses and promote the development of the soybean industry. Members of the plant-specific transcription factor family NAC play crucial roles in plant adaptation to abiotic stress conditions. In this study, we screened the soybean <i>GmNAC</i> family genes potentially involved in the salt stress response and identified 18 <i>GmNAC</i> genes that may function during the early stages of salt stress. Among these, the <i>GmNAC035</i> gene exhibited a rapid increase in expression within one hour of salt treatment, with its expression being induced by abscisic acid (ABA) and methyl jasmonate (MeJA), suggesting its significant role in the soybean salt stress response. We further elucidated the role of <i>GmNAC035</i> in soybean salt tolerance. GmNAC035, a nuclear-localized transcriptional activator, enhances salt tolerance when overexpressed in Arabidopsis, reducing oxidative damage and boosting the expression of stress-responsive genes. It achieves this by regulating key stress response pathways, including the SOS pathway, calcium signaling, and ABA signaling. These findings highlight the potential of <i>GmNAC035</i> as a genetic engineering target to improve crop salt tolerance.
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institution Kabale University
issn 2223-7747
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publishDate 2025-05-01
publisher MDPI AG
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spelling doaj-art-8d513a77eb46460ca9345cd9f8cdead32025-08-20T03:52:57ZengMDPI AGPlants2223-77472025-05-01149139110.3390/plants14091391NAC Transcription Factor <i>GmNAC035</i> Exerts a Positive Regulatory Role in Enhancing Salt Stress Tolerance in PlantsWanting Shi0Sixin Ye1Yiting Xin2Hongmiao Jin3Meiling Hu4Yueping Zheng5Yihua Zhan6Hongbo Liu7Yi Gan8Zhifu Zheng9Tian Pan10The Key Laboratory for Quality Improvement of Agricultural Products of Zhejiang Province, College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, ChinaThe Key Laboratory for Quality Improvement of Agricultural Products of Zhejiang Province, College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, ChinaThe Key Laboratory for Quality Improvement of Agricultural Products of Zhejiang Province, College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, ChinaThe Key Laboratory for Quality Improvement of Agricultural Products of Zhejiang Province, College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, ChinaThe Key Laboratory for Quality Improvement of Agricultural Products of Zhejiang Province, College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, ChinaThe Key Laboratory for Quality Improvement of Agricultural Products of Zhejiang Province, College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, ChinaThe Key Laboratory for Quality Improvement of Agricultural Products of Zhejiang Province, College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, ChinaThe Key Laboratory for Quality Improvement of Agricultural Products of Zhejiang Province, College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, ChinaThe Key Laboratory for Quality Improvement of Agricultural Products of Zhejiang Province, College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, ChinaThe Key Laboratory for Quality Improvement of Agricultural Products of Zhejiang Province, College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, ChinaThe Key Laboratory for Quality Improvement of Agricultural Products of Zhejiang Province, College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou 311300, ChinaSoybean, a globally significant and versatile crop, serves as a vital source of both oil and protein. However, environmental factors such as soil salinization pose substantial challenges to its cultivation, adversely affecting both yield and quality. Enhancing the salt tolerance of soybeans can mitigate yield losses and promote the development of the soybean industry. Members of the plant-specific transcription factor family NAC play crucial roles in plant adaptation to abiotic stress conditions. In this study, we screened the soybean <i>GmNAC</i> family genes potentially involved in the salt stress response and identified 18 <i>GmNAC</i> genes that may function during the early stages of salt stress. Among these, the <i>GmNAC035</i> gene exhibited a rapid increase in expression within one hour of salt treatment, with its expression being induced by abscisic acid (ABA) and methyl jasmonate (MeJA), suggesting its significant role in the soybean salt stress response. We further elucidated the role of <i>GmNAC035</i> in soybean salt tolerance. GmNAC035, a nuclear-localized transcriptional activator, enhances salt tolerance when overexpressed in Arabidopsis, reducing oxidative damage and boosting the expression of stress-responsive genes. It achieves this by regulating key stress response pathways, including the SOS pathway, calcium signaling, and ABA signaling. These findings highlight the potential of <i>GmNAC035</i> as a genetic engineering target to improve crop salt tolerance.https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/9/1391soybeanNACtranscription factorsalt tolerancestress-related genes
spellingShingle Wanting Shi
Sixin Ye
Yiting Xin
Hongmiao Jin
Meiling Hu
Yueping Zheng
Yihua Zhan
Hongbo Liu
Yi Gan
Zhifu Zheng
Tian Pan
NAC Transcription Factor <i>GmNAC035</i> Exerts a Positive Regulatory Role in Enhancing Salt Stress Tolerance in Plants
Plants
soybean
NAC
transcription factor
salt tolerance
stress-related genes
title NAC Transcription Factor <i>GmNAC035</i> Exerts a Positive Regulatory Role in Enhancing Salt Stress Tolerance in Plants
title_full NAC Transcription Factor <i>GmNAC035</i> Exerts a Positive Regulatory Role in Enhancing Salt Stress Tolerance in Plants
title_fullStr NAC Transcription Factor <i>GmNAC035</i> Exerts a Positive Regulatory Role in Enhancing Salt Stress Tolerance in Plants
title_full_unstemmed NAC Transcription Factor <i>GmNAC035</i> Exerts a Positive Regulatory Role in Enhancing Salt Stress Tolerance in Plants
title_short NAC Transcription Factor <i>GmNAC035</i> Exerts a Positive Regulatory Role in Enhancing Salt Stress Tolerance in Plants
title_sort nac transcription factor i gmnac035 i exerts a positive regulatory role in enhancing salt stress tolerance in plants
topic soybean
NAC
transcription factor
salt tolerance
stress-related genes
url https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/9/1391
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