Mining the Roles of Wheat (Triticum Aestivum) SnRK Gene Family in Biotic and Abiotic Responses

Abstract

BackgroundSucrose non-fermenting-1-related protein kinase (SnRK) is a class of Ser/Thr protein kinases and plays vital functions in the plant stress responses. However, little is known about the SnRK in Triticum aestivum (TaSnRK).ResultsIn this study, 149 TaSnRKs were identified from wheat and divided into three subfamilies, which may be due to the polyploidization induced gene duplication and high rate of homologous retention. A combination of public microarray datasets and quantitative real-time quantitative PCR (qRT-PCR) have further revealed the distinct expression patterns of TaSnRKs under specific abiotic/biotic stress responses. TaSnRK2.4-B, a member of SnRK2 subfamily, was located in the nucleus, cytoplasm, and cell membrane and showed ubiquitous expression in wheat life cycle, suggesting the possible response to polyethylene glycol (PEG), NaCl, heat, and cold stress, as well as the high concentrations of abscisic acid (ABA) application. Besides, transient Agro-infiltration assays showed that TaSnRK2.4-B was also involved in the resistance to pathogen.ConclusionsThese results imply that TaSnRK2.4-B may act as a multifunctional regulatory factor involved in multiple stress response pathways. Overall, our study provides new insights into the roles of TaSnRKs in biotic and abiotic responses.