Skip to main content
ARS Home » Northeast Area » Kearneysville, West Virginia » Appalachian Fruit Research Laboratory » Innovative Fruit Production, Improvement, and Protection » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #223815
Title: TRANSCRIPTOMIC AND PROTEOMIC RESPONSE OF FRUIT TREES TO LOW TEMPERATURE AND DROUGHT STRESS

Author
item Wisniewski, Michael
item Bassett, Carole
item Macarisin, Dumitru
item Norelli, John
item Artlip, Timothy - Tim
item KORBAN, SCHUYLER - UNIV OF ILLINOIS

Submitted to: Bio-Technology Fruit Symposium
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/31/2008
Publication Date: 9/1/2008
Citation: Wisniewski, M.E., Bassett, C.L., Macarisin, D., Norelli, J.L., Artlip, T.S., Korban, S. 2008. Transcriptomic and proteomic response of fruit trees to low temperature and drought stress. Bio-Technology Fruit Symposium. Dresden, Germany. Book of Abstracts. 16. pg.44.

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Together, temperature and water availability are the primary determinants of the global distribution of major vegetation biomes and as such have a major impact on the cultivation of temperate fruit trees. The regulation of both low temperature and water deficit stress has been widely studied in herbaceous plants using transcriptomics, proteomics, and transformation technologies. These studies have revealed stress signaling pathways, specific stress-tolerance genes, and transcriptional regulators. Using direct data or empirical approaches, biotechnology has been utilized to produce transgenic plants that have greater stress tolerance. For example, plants overexpressing the transcription factor CBF (under the control of a low-temperature-inducible promoter) have increased freezing tolerance. However, only recently, have these same approaches been used to study stress tolerance in woody plants and more specifically fruit trees. Evidence suggests that although there is a high level of conservation in mechanisms of stress tolerance between annual herbaceous plants and perennial woody plants, the perennial habit has also resulted in additional mechanisms that are specific to perennial plants. We have utilized several different global approaches to study stress tolerance in apple and peach. These include subtractive hybridization (SSH), bioinformatics analysis of ESTs derived from stress-induced cDNA libraries, and 2D Difference in-Gel Electrophoresis (DiGE) for proteomic analyses. These approaches are beginning to reveal the complexity of stress response in fruit trees and helping us develop a comprehensive understanding of stress tolerance in fruit trees. An overview of our results will be presented including: a comparative EST analysis of stress and drought response in apple xylem, bark, leaf, and root tissues in response to low temperature and water deficit, comparative expression analysis of CBF and dehydrin gene expression in bark and leaf tissues of apple and peach, and a proteomic analysis of drought response in apple and peach. Additionally, data on increased stress tolerance in transgenic apple overexpressing a cytosolic, superoxide dismutase (SOD) gene will also be presented.