Abstract

The plant-specific transcription factor family YABBY plays important roles in plant responses to biotic and abiotic stresses. Although the function of YABBY has been identified in many species, systematic analysis in lotus (Nelumbo nucifera) is still relatively lacking. The present study aimed to characterize all of theYABBYgenes in lotus and obtain better insights intoNnYABBYsin response to salt stress by depending on ABA signaling. Here, we identified nineYABBYgenes by searching the whole lotus genome based on the conserved YABBY domain. Further analysis showed that these members were distributed on six different chromosomes and named fromYABBY1toYABBY9, which were divided into five subgroups, including YAB1, YAB2, YAB5, INO, and CRC. The analysis ofcis-elements in promotors revealed thatNnYABBYscould be involved in plant hormone signaling and plant responses to abiotic stresses. Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) showed thatNnYABBYscould be up-regulated or down-regulated by ABA, fluridone, and salt treatment. Subcellular localization indicated that NnYABBY4, NnYABBY5, and NnYABBY6 were mainly localized in the cell membrane and cytoplasm. In addition, the intrinsictrans-activity of NnYABBY was tested by a Y2H assay, which revealed that NnYABBY4, NnYABBY5, and NnYABBY6 are deprived of such a property. This study provided a theoretical basis and reference for the functional research of YABBY for the molecular breeding of lotus.Keywords:YABBY;salt stress;ABA;transcription factor;Nelumbo nucifera