An elite allele TaDT1-AhapI enhances drought tolerance via mediating autophagic pathways in wheat

Drought stress constitutes a major threat to global wheat production. Identification of the genetic components underlying drought tolerance in wheat is highly important. Through a genome-wide association study, we identify a natural allele of the zinc finger-type transcription factor TaDT1-A on chromosome 2 A of the wheat genome that confers drought tolerance without imposing trade-offs between tolerance and yield. This allele, named TaDT1-A<sup>hapI</sup>, causes an 899-bp deletion in the promoter of the TaDT1-A gene, which results in increased expression of the gene through escape of the repressive MYC transcription factor and, consequently, the promotion of stomatal dynamics and water use efficiency via increased autophagy activity. Our findings provide genetic insights into the natural variation in wheat drought tolerance. The identified loci or genes can serve as direct targets for both genetic engineering and selection for wheat trait improvement.

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Publication Details

Journal
Nature Communications
Published
2025-07-16
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-61943-3
Citations
2
Primary Topic
Genetics and Plant Breeding
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
3.50

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article

An elite allele TaDT1-AhapI enhances drought tolerance via mediating autophagic pathways in wheat

Xiao Peng, Huiru Peng, Chenji Zhang, Xiaoyu Liu et al.
2 citations
Nature Communications
Genetics and Plant Breeding
3.50
article

An elite allele TaDT1-AhapI enhances drought tolerance via mediating autophagic pathways in wheat

Xiao Peng, Huiru Peng, Chenji Zhang, Xiaoyu Liu, Wei Chu, Zhaorong Hu, Jingchen Lin, Weilong Guo, Yingyin Yao, Shumin Chang, Mingming Xin, Jinpeng Li, Zhongfu Ni, Qun Yang, Debiao Liu, Xingbei Liu, Qixin Sun, Xiaobo Wang, Wenxi Wang, Xiaodong Xie, Danyang Zhao, Zehui Liu, Ling-Feng Miao
article en
2 citations

Abstract

Drought stress constitutes a major threat to global wheat production. Identification of the genetic components underlying drought tolerance in wheat is highly important. Through a genome-wide association study, we identify a natural allele of the zinc finger-type transcription factor TaDT1-A on chromosome 2 A of the wheat genome that confers drought tolerance without imposing trade-offs between tolerance and yield. This allele, named TaDT1-A<sup>hapI</sup>, causes an 899-bp deletion in the promoter of the TaDT1-A gene, which results in increased expression of the gene through escape of the repressive MYC transcription factor and, consequently, the promotion of stomatal dynamics and water use efficiency via increased autophagy activity. Our findings provide genetic insights into the natural variation in wheat drought tolerance. The identified loci or genes can serve as direct targets for both genetic engineering and selection for wheat trait improvement.

Nature CommunicationsVol. 16(1)
Tianjin Agricultural University (CN), China Agricultural University (CN)
National Natural Science Foundation of China, China Agricultural University, Chinese Universities Scientific Fund, National Key Research and Development Program of China
Clean water and sanitation
Openalex Percentile: Top 8%
Genetics and Plant Breeding
3.50
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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