Identification and expression analysis of calcium-dependent protein kinase family in oat (Avena sativa L.) and their functions in response to saline-alkali stresses

Ya-Nan Li; Chunyan Lei; Qian Yang; Xiao Yu; Siming Li; Yan Sun; Chunli Ji; Chunhui Zhang; Jin-Ai Xue; Hongli Cui; Runzhi Li

doi:10.3389/fpls.2024.1395696

Identification and expression analysis of calcium-dependent protein kinase family in oat (Avena sativa L.) and their functions in response to saline-alkali stresses

Front Plant Sci. 2024 Oct 10:15:1395696. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1395696. eCollection 2024.

Authors

Ya-Nan Li¹, Chunyan Lei¹, Qian Yang¹, Xiao Yu¹, Siming Li¹, Yan Sun¹, Chunli Ji¹, Chunhui Zhang¹, Jin-Ai Xue¹, Hongli Cui², Runzhi Li¹

Affiliations

¹ College of Agriculture, Institute of Molecular Agriculture and Bioenergy, Shanxi Agricultural University, Jinzhong, Shanxi, China.
² Key Laboratory of Coastal Biology and Bio-Resource Utilization, Yantai Institute of Coastal Zone Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Yantai, Shandon, China.

Abstract

Calcium-dependent protein kinases (CDPKs) serve as calcium ion sensors and play crucial roles in all aspects of plant life cycle. While CDPK gene family has been extensively studied in various plants, there is limited information available for CDPK members in oat, an important cereal crop worldwide. Totally, 60 AsCDPK genes were identified in oat genome and were classified into four subfamilies based on their phylogenetic relationship. The members within each subfamily shared similar gene structure and conserved motifs. Collinearity analysis revealed that AsCDPK gene amplification was attributed to segmental duplication events and underwent strong purifying selection. AsCDPK promoters were predicted to contain cis-acting elements associated with hormones, biotic and abiotic stresses. AsCDPK gene expressions were induced by different salt stresses, exhibiting stress-specific under different salt treatments. Moreover, overexpression of AsCDPK26 gene enhanced salt resistance in C. reinhardtii, a single-cell photoautotrophic model plants. Further analysis revealed a significant correlation between AsCDPK26 and Na⁺/H⁺ antiporter 1 (p<0.05), suggesting that AsCDPK26 may interact with ion transporter to modulate salt resistance. These results not only provide valuable insights into AsCDPK genes in response to different salt stresses, but also lay the foundation to mine novel candidates for improving salt tolerance in oat and other crops.

Keywords: Chlamydomonas reinhardtii; Na+/ H+ antiporter 1 (NHX1); calcium-dependent protein kinase (CDPK); genetic transformation; oat (Avena sativa L.); saline-alkali stresses.

Grants and funding

The author(s) declare financial support was received for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article. This study was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (2021YFD1901105), State Key Laboratory of Integrative Sustainable Dryland Agriculture (in preparation), Shanxi Agricultural University (202105D121008-3-6), Six New Project of Agriculture Department of Shanxi Province (unnumbered), National Natural Science Foundation of China (31902394), Key Research and Development Planning Project of Shanxi Province (201803D31063), Science and Technology Innovation Planning Project of Shanxi Agricultural University (2018YJ16), Outstanding Doctor to Work in Shanxi Province Research Project (SXYBKY2019036), Scientific and Technological Innovation Programs of Higher Education Institutions in Shanxi (2021L119).