Expression of mybleu transcription factor enhanced tolerance to hypoxic stress in transgenic carrizo citrange

In order to clarify mechanisms involved in the response to oxygen deficit and to improve tolerance to flooding in citrus, we overexpressed Mybleu transcription factor, isolated from rice and used to transform Carrizo citrange rootstock by Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequencing showed that stable integration of transgene in the plant genome was obtained in the 71.6% of the analysed plants. Real time PCR performed on a random selection of transgenic plants lines confirmed the expression of the inserted transgene and allowed a classification of the transgenic plants based on the different expression levels of the transgene. Preliminary results indicated that high expressing plants are more tolerant to anoxia than low expressing ones and wild type. The overexpression of Mybleu may represent a powerful tool to improve oxygen stress tolerance in agricultural importance crops.