ZmADF5, a Maize Actin-Depolymerizing Factor Conferring Enhanced Drought Tolerance in Maize

Drought stress is seriously affecting the growth and production of crops, especially when agricultural irrigation still remains quantitatively restricted in some arid and semi-arid areas. The identification of drought-tolerant genes is important for improving the adaptability of maize under stress. Here, we found that a new member of the actin-depolymerizing factor (ADF) family; the gene was tightly linked with a consensus drought-tolerant quantitative trait locus, and the significantly associated signals were detected through genome wide association analysis. expression could be induced by osmotic stress and the application of exogenous abscisic acid. Its overexpression in and maize helped plants to keep a higher survival rate after water-deficit stress, which reduced the stomatal aperture and the water-loss rate, as well as improved clearance of reactive oxygen species. Moreover, seventeen differentially expressed genes were identified as regulated by both drought stress and , four of which were involved in the ABA-dependent drought stress response. -overexpressing plants were also identified as sensitive to ABA during the seed germination and seedling stages. These results suggested that played an important role in the response to drought stress.