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Overexpressing FaHSP17.8-CII Improves Cadmium Accumulation and Tolerance in Tall Fescue
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Recent studies have suggested that the genetic improvement could significantly enhance the cadmium (Cd) accumulation, translocation and tolerance in plants. To date, there is no report on the use of transgenic techniques to enhance root-to-shoot Cd translocation and tolerance in tall fescue.
The Molecular Breeding of Turfgrass and Forage Grass Group at Wuhan Botanical Garden of the Chinese Academy of Sciences isolated and functionally characterized a class II (CII) small heat shock proteins (sHSPs) gene, FaHSP17.8-CII in tall fescue. The study was published in Journal of Hazardous Materials.
The researchers found that when exposed to Cd stress, two FaHSP17.8-CII overexpressing lines (OE#3 and OE#7) exhibited 30% and 40% higher shoot fresh weight, and 31% and 40% higher root fresh weight, respectively, than those of the wild type (WT). The two OE lines showed lower electrolyte leakage and malondialdehyde than those of the WT plants. These findings suggested that overexpression of FaHSP17.8-CII could enhance the Cd tolerance of grasses.
Besides, they found that the two OE lines had higher Cd concentration in their shoots and lower Cd concentration in the roots compared with those of the WT plants, and overexpression of FaHSP17.8-CII in tall fescue accelerated root-to-shoot Cd translocation and the translocation factor in two OE lines. These findings suggested that the overexpression of FaHSP17.8-CII facilitated Cd accumulation in shoots, probably by advancing the root-to-shoot translation of Cd.
In addition, the researchers found that in Cd-stressed tall fescue, overexpression of FaHSP17.8-CII enhanced Cd accumulation in shoots and photosystem II (PSII) activity, but reduced the reactive oxygen species (ROS) level.
The study demonstrates that overexpressing FaHSP17.8-CII in tall fescue could improve Cd accumulation and tolerance simultaneously, and significantly increased root-to-shoot Cd translocation, indicating a higher Cd phytoremediation efficiency.
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