Effect of sucrose on expression of Apx genes upon heat stress

Abstract

EFFECT OF SUCROSE ON EXPRESSION OF APX GENES UPON HEAT STRESSAim. Sucrose plays an important role as a signaling molecule that causes changes in gene expression. However, the effect of sucrose on gene expression of antioxidant enzymes is poorly understood. The purpose of our study was to investigate the effect of sucrose on the expression of the multigenic family Apx in Arabidopsis thaliana under heat stress conditions Methods. Leaves of A. thaliana were exposed to heat stress at 37ºC in the presence or in absent of sucrose. Subsequently, mRNA levels were determined in using quantitative RT-PCR. Results. It was found that absence of sucrose in the incubation buffer resulted in a decrease of mRNA for most Apx genes, both in heat stress-treated samples and after incubation at room temperature. The strongest effect was shown for Apx2: without sucrose the level of mRNA under heat stress was 30 times lower. Conclusions. Obtained data showed that sucrose can perform a signaling role in regulating the stress response upon heat stress, and, in particular, enhance the temperature-dependent gene expression of Apx1 and Apx2.