Expression and drought functional analysis of one circRNA PecircCDPK from moso bamboo (<i>Phyllostachys edulis</i>)

Drought stress can affect the growth of bamboo. Circle RNAs (CircRNAs) have been found to play a role in drought stress in plants, but their function in moso bamboo is not well understood. In previous studies, we observed that under drought stress, the expression of some circRNAs were altered and predicted to be involved in calcium-dependent protein kinase phosphorylation, as indicated by KEGG enrichment analysis. In this study, we cloned a circRNA called <i>PecircCDPK</i> in moso bamboo that is responsive to drought stress. To further investigate its function, we constructed an overexpression vector using flanking intron sequences supplemented by reverse complementary sequences. When this vector was transferred to <i>Arabidopsis</i> plants, we observed that the roots of the transgenic lines were more developed, the water loss rate decreased, the stomata became smaller, and the activity of antioxidant enzymes increased under drought stress. These findings suggest that overexpression of <i>PecircCDPK</i> can enhance the drought resistance of <i>Arabidopsis thaliana</i>, providing valuable insights for the breeding of moso bamboo with improved resistance to drought.