Understanding the salt overly sensitive pathway in Prunus: Identification and characterization of NHX, CIPK, and CBL genes

Salinity is a major abiotic stress factor that can significantly impact crop growth, and productivity. In response to salt stress, the plant Salt Overly Sensitive (SOS) signaling pathway regulates the homeostasis of intracellular sodium ion concentration. The SOS1, SOS2, and SOS3 genes play critical roles in the SOS pathway, which belongs to the members of Na+ /H+ exchanger (NHX), CBL-interacting protein kinase (CIPK), and calcineurin B-like (CBL) gene families, respectively. In this study, we performed genome-wide identifications and phylogenetic analyses of NHX, CIPK, and CBL genes in six Rosaceae species: Prunus persica, Prunus dulcis, Prunus mume, Prunus armeniaca, Pyrus ussuriensis × Pyrus communis, and Rosa chinensis. NHX, CIPK, and CBL genes of Arabidopsis thaliana were used as controls for phylogenetic analyses. Our analysis revealed the lineage-specific and adaptive evolutions of Rosaceae genes. Our observations indicated the existence of two primary classes of CIPK genes: those that are intron-rich and those that are intron-less. Intron-rich CIPKs in Rosaceae and Arabidopsis can be traced back to algae CIPKs and CIPKs found in early plants, suggesting that intron-less CIPKs evolved from their intron-rich counterparts. This study identified one gene for each member of the SOS signaling pathway in P. persica: PpSOS1, PpSOS2, and PpSOS3. Gene expression analyses indicated that all three genes of P. persica were expressed in roots and leaves. Yeast two-hybrid-based protein-protein interaction analyses revealed a direct interaction between PpSOS3 and PpSOS2; and between PpSOS2 and PpSOS1C-terminus region. Our findings indicate that the SOS signaling pathway is highly conserved in P. persica.