Revealing Potential Regulatory Genes and Modules Involved in Salt Tolerance using a Comparative Microarray Analysis of Rice at Seedling Stage

Author: Zahra Zinati and Azar Delavari

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Abstract

Deciphering the regulatory mechanisms by which plants cope with salt stress is an indispensable prerequisite for the identification of the regulators to engineer salinity tolerance. To this end, a comparative transcriptome analysis of the extremely tolerant and extremely sensitive recombinant inbred lines bulks derived from a cross between salt-tolerant variety CSR 27 and salt-sensitive variety MI 48was carried out using microarray data analysis, Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment and network analysis. According to the results, 50 and 286 genes showed differential expression in the tolerant bulk as compared with the sensitive bulk under control and salt stress conditions, respectively. The most enriched GO terms of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) under salt stress were the metabolic process, the cellular process, localization (transport) and response to the stimulus. Network analysis of DEGs under salt stress, revealed 14 genes as critical genes; among them, three transcription facto

Keywords

network analysis, Oryza sativa, salt stress, transcription factors

Conclusion

The comparative transcriptome analysis of stress-sensitive and –tolerant genotypes provides valuable information in elucidating the molecular mechanism mediating salt stress response in rice. This study was designed to identify key genes associated with salt tolerance mechanisms in rice with special emphasis on the role of transcription factors. Our study revealed candidate genes related to salt tolerance of rice at the seedling stage and exhibited the usefulness of using bioinformatics analyses on DEGs to better understanding the molecular systems that underlie salt tolerance. This research has laid a foundation for functional genomics investigations to decipher their precise role of candidate genes in salt stress response in rice seedlings and be targeted for genetic improvement of salinity tolerance in rice.

References

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How to cite this article

Zahra Zinati and Azar Delavari (2019). Revealing Potential Regulatory Genes and Modules Involved in Salt Tolerance using a Comparative Microarray Analysis of Rice at Seedling Stage. Biological Forum – An International Journal, 11(1): 84-94.