WRKY Transcription Factors in Rice: Key Regulators Orchestrating Development and Stress Resilience

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dc.contributor.authorLi, T.
dc.contributor.authorLi, B.
dc.contributor.authorWang, Y.
dc.contributor.authorXu, J.
dc.contributor.authorLi, W.
dc.contributor.authorChen, Z.-H.
dc.contributor.authorMou, W.
dc.contributor.authorXue, D.
dc.date.issued2025
dc.description.abstractRice (Oryza Sativa L.) productivity is critical for global food security, but it is increasingly vulnerable to environmental fluctuation and emerging pathogens and insects. WRKY is one of the largest plant transcription factors families, governing plant growth and stress adaptation as versatile regulators. However, a comprehensive review on rice WRKYs, especially incorporating recent findings, is still lacking. Here, we integrate current advances in the multifaceted roles of OsWRKYs, including regulating seed germination, vegetative growth, reproduction, and leaf senescence, as well as coordinating adaptive responses to various abiotic stresses (temperature, drought, salinity, heavy metals, nutrient imbalance) and biotic challenges (pathogens and insect herbivory). We detail how OsWRKY transcriptionally modulates target genes by binding to W‐box elements involved in signaling of phytohormones (abscisic acid, gibberellin, salicylic acid, jasmonic acid and ethylene), reactive oxygen species homeostasis, and defense responses, thereby fine‐tuning the trade‐off between growth and defense. Additionally, we propose future research directions on how OsWRKYs prioritize responses under combined stresses and how their activity is regulated across multiple levels. The insights into these regulatory mechanisms lay a foundation for rational genetic engineering and genome editing of OsWRKYs to facilitate the development of rice varieties with enhanced yield and stress resilience.
dc.description.statementofresponsibilityTongtong Li, Bin Li, Yuanyuan Wang, Jiayu Xu, Wanli Li, Zhong-Hua Chen, Wangshu Mou, Dawei Xue
dc.identifier.citationPlant, Cell and Environment, 2025; 48(11):8388-8406
dc.identifier.doi10.1111/pce.70124
dc.identifier.issn0140-7791
dc.identifier.issn1365-3040
dc.identifier.orcidChen, Z.-H. [0000-0002-7531-320X]
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/2440/147840
dc.language.isoen
dc.publisherWiley
dc.relation.granthttp://purl.org/au-research/grants/arc/FT210100366
dc.rights© 2025 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
dc.source.urihttps://doi.org/10.1111/pce.70124
dc.subjectabiotic stress; biotic stress; Oryza sativa L.; OsWRKYs; plant development; transcriptional regulation
dc.titleWRKY Transcription Factors in Rice: Key Regulators Orchestrating Development and Stress Resilience
dc.typeJournal article
pubs.publication-statusPublished online

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