Abiotic stress, such as drought, salt, and cold, affects normal plant growth. Ethylene response factors (ERFs) play an important role in the responses of plants to different stresses. An ERF gene was cloned from Malus baccata (L.) Borkh and named as MbERF12. A subcellular localization study proved that MbERF12 was a nucleus-localized protein. The expression level of MbERF12 was higher in stems and roots, which was markedly affected by high salinity, low temperature, and ethephon treatments. When MbERF12 was transformed into Arabidopsis thaliana, it obviously improved salt and low-temperature tolerance in transformed plants. Overexpression of MbERF12 in transformed A. thaliana also led to higher levels of peroxidase (POD), catalase (CAT), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) and higher contents of ethylene, chlorophyll, and proline, while the content of malondialdehyde (MDA) was lower, especially when being dealt with low-temperature and high-salinity stresses. MbERF12 plays a key role in the response to salt and cold stresses in Arabidopsis by improving the scavenging ability for reactive oxygen species (ROS) through ethylene signal transduction. We proposed that MbERF12 may function as a positive regulator for abiotic stress responses and can be considered as a potential gene for improvement of cold and high-salinity tolerance in plants.

非生物胁迫，如干旱、盐分和寒冷，会影响植物的正常生长。乙烯响应因子（ERFs）在植物对不同胁迫的响应中起重要作用。从Malus baccata (L.) Borkh中克隆了一个ERF基因并命名为MbERF12。亚细胞定位研究证明 MbERF12 是一种细胞核定位蛋白。MbERF12在茎和根中的表达水平较高，受高盐度、低温和乙烯利处理的影响显着。当MbERF12转化到拟南芥，它显然在转化植物而改进盐和低温耐受性。MbERF12 的过度表达转化拟南芥中的过氧化物酶 (POD)、过氧化氢酶 (CAT) 和超氧化物歧化酶 (SOD) 含量较高，乙烯、叶绿素和脯氨酸含量较高，而丙二醛 (MDA) 含量较低，尤其是在处理低温和高盐胁迫时。MbERF12通过乙烯信号转导提高活性氧 (ROS) 的清除能力，在拟南芥对盐和冷胁迫的响应中发挥关键作用。我们提出MbERF12可以作为非生物胁迫反应的正调节因子，可以被认为是提高植物耐寒和高盐度的潜在基因。