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Published on: February 14, 2020
ZmbHLH164, a Drought-Induced bHLH Transcription Factor from Maize, Confers Enhanced Drought Tolerance in Transgenic
Mengyao Li1, Qiuyang Zhao1, Pengjing Zhang1
1College of Life Science, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450046, PR China.
Abstract:
ZmbHLH164, a drought-induced nuclear bHLH transcription factor identified via transcriptomic screening in a drought-tolerant maize line, functions as a positive regulator of drought tolerance. Heterologous overexpression in tobacco elevated abscisic acid (ABA) levels, accelerated stomatal closure, reduced water loss, enhanced osmolyte accumulation, and suppressed reactive oxygen species and lipid peroxidation under drought. RNA-seq and qRT-PCR confirmed upregulation of ABA biosynthesis and signaling genes. Conversely, the zmbhlh164 maize loss-of-function mutant displayed severe wilting, chlorosis, and physiological deterioration under water deficit. These integrated findings demonstrate that ZmbHLH164 enhances drought resilience primarily through ABA-mediated stomatal regulation and activation of antioxidant/osmotic adjustment pathways, establishing its value as a candidate gene for molecular breeding of drought-resilient crops.
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The first-ever transgenic plant was a tobacco plant developed in 1983 that showed resistance against the tobacco mosaic virus. Since then, many transgenic plants have been developed and commercialized for improving the agricultural, ornamental, and horticultural value of a crop plant. Transgenic...

