The ABA receptor gene MdPYL9 confers tolerance to drought stress in transgenic apple (Malus domestica)

Abstract Abscisic acid (ABA) is an important phytohormone for plant growth, development, and the response to various types of abiotic stress. Pyrabactin Resistance 1 (PYR1)/PYR1-Like (PYL)/Regulatory Component of ABA Receptor (RCAR) family proteins (PYLs) are ABA receptors that have been studied in many plant species. However, no detailed functional studies of these genes in regulating apple drought tolerance have been reported. Here, we isolated a homolog of the ABA receptor PYL9 in Arabidopsis, MdPYL9, from apple (Malus domestica) and analyzed its role in regulating drought tolerance in transgenic apple plants. Gene structure and protein sequence analysis showed that MdPYL9 shares a high similarity with AtPYL9. Protein sequence comparison and 3D structure prediction identified several conserved motifs and residues that are important for ABA binding in MdPYL9, including the helix-grip structure and the gate and latch loops. Expression analysis showed that MdPYL9 was significantly induced by drought treatment. Overexpression of MdPYL9 conferred enhanced tolerance to drought stress in transgenic apple plants, including a higher photosynthetic rate and relative water content and lower MDA content and electrolyte leakage compared with wild-type plants. Lower accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and higher activity of antioxidant enzymes suggest that MdPYL9 overexpression could promote ROS scavenging and thus reduce oxidative damage in transgenic apple plants under drought stress. Yeast two-hybrid assays indicated that there were both ABA-dependent and ABA-independent interactions between MdPYL9 and the clade A subgroup members of the PP2C family (PP2CAs) in apple. Expression analysis identifed two PP2CA genes, MdHAI1 and MdHAI2, that were highly expressed under drought treatment by not expressed under normal conditions. These results provide new insight that could be used to aid future studies examining the function of MdPYLs and the mechanism by which they regulate apple drought tolerance.