Plant Protect. Sci., X:X | DOI: 10.17221/12/2025-PPS

Role of the Arabidopsis At2g21490 dehydrin gene in enhancing tolerance to copper and zinc stress in transgenic tobacco plantsOriginal Paper

Eva Boszorádová ORCID...1, Mária ©vecová2, Peter Nemeček ORCID...3, Petra Ranuąová ORCID...3, Milan Karas ORCID...4, Jana Moravčíková ORCID...5
1 Institute of Plant Genetics and Biotechnology, Plant Science and Biodiversity Center Slovak Academy of Sciences, Nitra, Slovak Republic
2 Department of Botany and Genetics, Faculty of Natural Sciences, Constantine the Philosopher University in Nitra, Nitra, Slovak Republic
3 Institute of Chemistry and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of SS. Cyril and Methodius in Trnava, Trnava, Slovak Republic
4 Department of Agricultural and Food Sciences (DISTAL), Alma Mater Studiorum – University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy
5 Institute of Biology and Biotechnology, Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of SS. Cyril and Methodius in Trnava, Trnava, Slovak Republic

We studied the role of the Arabidopsis At2g21490 (DH2) histidine-rich dehydrin gene in plant responses to copper and zinc stress. Transgenic plants overexpressing the DH2 gene were generated via Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. Progeny from both transgenic and non-transgenic (control) plants were cultivated hydroponically and subjected to short-term stress (100 µM CuCl2 or 200 µM ZnCl2 for 24 h) before analysis. The differences observed between transgenic and non-transgenic plants in the expression of phytochelatin synthase (NtPCS) and certain metal transporters (NtMTP1A, NtMTP1B, NtHMA_A, and NtHMA_B) suggest that the DH2 gene plays a role in immobilising excess copper, primarily in the roots, thereby mitigating its harmful effects on the aerial parts of the plant. The overexpression of the DH2 gene influenced the levels of both enzymatic (NtAPX, NtSOD, NtCAT) and nonenzymatic antioxidants, particularly by increasing polyphenolic compounds, such as chlorogenic acid by at least 12-fold and rutin by at least 3-fold. The contribution of the DH2 gene to zinc stress tolerance appears to be less significant.

Keywords: Arabidopsis thaliana; genetic modification; heavy metals; LEA proteins; Nicotiana tabacum L.

Received: January 21, 2025; Revised: November 26, 2025; Accepted: December 15, 2025; Prepublished online: May 20, 2026 

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