AUTHOR=Hu Yang , Han Yongtao , Wei Wei , Li Yajuan , Zhang Kai , Gao Yurong , Zhao Fengli , Feng Jiayue 

TITLE=Identification, isolation, and expression analysis of heat shock transcription factors in the diploid woodland strawberry Fragaria vesca

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science

VOLUME=6

YEAR=2015

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2015.00736

DOI=10.3389/fpls.2015.00736

ISSN=1664-462X

ABSTRACT=<p>Heat shock transcription factors (Hsfs) are known to play dominant roles in plant responses to heat, as well as other abiotic or biotic stress stimuli. While the strawberry is an economically important fruit plant, little is known about the Hsf family in the strawberry. To explore the functions of strawberry Hsfs in abiotic and biotic stress responses, this study identified 17 <italic>Hsf</italic> genes (<italic>FvHsfs</italic>) in a wild diploid woodland strawberry (<italic>Fragaria vesca</italic>, 2<italic>n</italic> = 2<italic>x</italic> = 14) and isolated 14 of these genes. Phylogenetic analysis divided the strawberry <italic>FvHsfs</italic> genes into three main groups. The evolutionary and structural analyses revealed that the <italic>FvHsf</italic> family is conserved. The promoter sequences of the <italic>FvHsf</italic> genes contain upstream regulatory elements corresponding to different stress stimuli. In addition, 14 FvHsf-GFP fusion proteins showed differential subcellular localization in <italic>Arabidopsis</italic> mesophyll protoplasts. Furthermore, we examined the expression of the 17 <italic>FvHsf</italic> genes in wild diploid woodland strawberries under various conditions, including abiotic stresses (heat, cold, drought, and salt), biotic stress (powdery mildew infection), and hormone treatments (abscisic acid, ethephon, methyl jasmonate, and salicylic acid). Fifteen of the seventeen <italic>FvHsf</italic> genes exhibited distinct changes on the transcriptional level during heat treatment. Of these 15 <italic>FvHsfs</italic>, 8 <italic>FvHsfs</italic> also exhibited distinct responses to other stimuli on the transcriptional level, indicating versatile roles in the response to abiotic and biotic stresses. Taken together, the present work may provide the basis for further studies to dissect <italic>FvHsf</italic> function in response to stress stimuli.</p>