Open AccessDown‐regulation of CBP 80 gene expression as a strategy to engineer a drought‐tolerant potato
Author(s) -
Pieczynski Marcin,
Marczewski Waldemar,
Hennig Jacek,
Dolata Jakub,
Bielewicz Dawid,
Piontek Paulina,
Wyrzykowska Anna,
Krusiewicz Dominika,
StrzelczykZyta Danuta,
KonopkaPostupolska Dorota,
Krzeslowska Magdalena,
Jarmolowski Artur,
SzweykowskaKulinska Zofia
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
plant biotechnology journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.525
H-Index - 115
eISSN - 1467-7652
pISSN - 1467-7644
DOI - 10.1111/pbi.12032
Subject(s) - biology , arabidopsis , drought tolerance , trichome , transgene , genetically modified crops , gene , mutant , crop , cultivar , microbiology and biotechnology , botany , gene expression , genetics , agronomy
Summary Developing new strategies for crop plants to respond to drought is crucial for their innovative breeding. The down‐regulation of nuclear cap‐binding proteins in A rabidopsis renders plants drought tolerant. The CBP 80 gene in the potato cultivar Desiree was silenced using artificial micro RNA s. Transgenic plants displayed a higher tolerance to drought, ABA ‐hypersensitive stomatal closing, an increase in leaf stomata and trichome density, and compact cuticle structures with a lower number of microchannels. These findings were correlated with a higher tolerance to water stress. The level of mi R 159 was decreased, and the levels of its target mRNA s MYB 33 and MYB 101 increased in the transgenic plants subjected to drought. Similar trends were observed in an A rabidopsis cbp80 mutant. The evolutionary conservation of CBP 80 , a gene that plays a role in the response to drought, suggests that it is a candidate for genetic manipulations that aim to obtain improved water‐deficit tolerance of crop plants.