Physiological and transcriptomic analyses of Rosa persica in response to drought stress and functional validation of the transcription factor RpERF113-like

Rosa persica exhibits strong drought tolerance and represents a valuable parental resource for stress-resistance breeding in roses. To elucidate the molecular regulatory mechanisms underlying its drought stress responses, drought stress was imposed using a restricted irrigation regime, and drought-responsive traits were systematically investigated at the phenotypic, physiological, and molecular levels. Under drought stress, R. persica displayed leaf chlorosis, a significant reduction in leaf number, and decreased leaf thickness. At the physiological level, drought stress induced a significant accumulation of soluble sugar, proline, and starch, along with increased catalase (CAT) activity. Transcriptome analysis identified numerous differentially expressed genes in response to drought stress. Furthermore, weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) identified an RpERF113-like gene from the AP2/ERF family that is closely associated with the drought stress response in R. persica. Functional characterization in Arabidopsis thaliana demonstrated that overexpression of RpERF113-like significantly enhanced drought tolerance by increasing proline content, elevating CAT activity, and reducing malondialdehyde (MDA) content. Collectively, these findings provide new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying drought responses in R. persica.