Ethylene response factor BnERF2-like (ERF2.4) from Brassica napus L. enhances submergence tolerance and alleviates oxidative damage caused by submergence in Arabidopsis thaliana

Ethylene response factor proteins play an important role in regulating a variety of stress responses in plants, but their exact functions in submergence stress are not well understood. In this study, we isolated BnERF2.4 from Brassica napus L. to study its function in submergence tolerance. The expression of the BnERF2.4 gene in B. napus and the expression of antioxidant enzyme genes in transgenic Arabidopsis were analyzed by quantitative RT-PCR. The expression of BnERF2.4 was induced by submergence in B. napus and the overexpression of BnERF2.4 in Arabidopsis increased the level of tolerance to submergence and oxidative stress. A histochemical method detected lower levels of H2O2, O2•− and malondialdehyde (MDA) in transgenic Arabidopsis. Compared to the wild type, transgenic lines also had higher soluble sugar content and higher activity of antioxidant enzymes, which helped to protect plants against the oxidative damage caused by submergence. It was concluded that BnERF2.4 increased the tolerance of plants to submergence stress and may be involved in regulating soluble sugar content and the antioxidant system in defense against submergence stress.