The wheat (Triticum aestiveum L.) MADS-box transcription factor TaMADS32 plays a role in response to abiotic stresses

The MADS-box transcription factor family plays an important role in regulating growth and signal transduction in animals and plants. TaMADS32 encodes a type II MADS-box transcription factor which is mainly expressed in wheat root system. In this study, we used bioinformatics methods to analyse TaMADS32, and investigate its function in plant root development and response to various abiotic stresses. We mapped TaMADS32 on chromosome 2B of wheat. Both TaMADS32 and its orthologs contained 7 exons and 6 introns and all the orthologous proteins have the MADS domains. Prokaryotic experiments showed that TaMADS32 could be expressed in prokaryotic cells. The predicted subcellular localization of TaMADS32 in plant cells was in the nucleus and in the cell membrane. Abiotic stresses (drought, heat and cold) can alter the expression of TaMADS32 in transgenic Arabidopsis. Phenotypic analysis showed that overexpression of TaMADS32 enhanced the tolerance of Arabidopsis to abiotic stresses. These results indicate that TaMADS32 is probably involved in the adaptation of plants to abiotic stress environments.