miR169q and NUCLEAR FACTOR YA8 enhance salt tolerance by activating PEROXIDASE1 expression in response to ROS

Salt stress significantly reduces the productivity of crop plants including maize (Zea mays). miRNAs are major regulators of plant growth and stress responses, but few studies have examined the potential impacts of miRNAs on salt stress responses in maize. Here, we show that ZmmiR169q is responsive to stress-induced ROS signals. After detecting that salt stress and exogenous H2O2 treatment reduced the accumulation of ZmmiR169q, stress assays with transgenic materials showed that depleting ZmmiR169q increased seedling salt tolerance whereas overexpressing ZmmiR169q decreased salt tolerance. Helping explain these observations, we found that ZmmiR169q repressed the transcript abundance of its target NUCLEAR FACTOR YA8 (ZmNF-YA8), and overexpression of ZmNF-YA8 in maize improved salt tolerance, specifically by transcriptionally activating the expression of the efficient antioxidant enzyme PEROXIDASE1. Our study reveals a direct functional link between salt stress and a miR169q-NF-YA8 regulatory module that plants use to manage ROS stress and strongly suggests that ZmNF-YA8 can be harnessed as a resource for developing salt-tolerant crop varieties.