Cadmium (Cd) is one of the most toxic heavy metal elements to the environment, which seriously threatens the safe production of food crops. In this study, we identified a novel function of the cytomembrane TaSFT2L protein in wheat (Triticum aestivum). Expression of the TaSFT2L gene in yeast showed no transport activities for Cd, which could explain the role of TaSFT2L in metal tolerance. It was observed that increased autophagic activity in roots caused by silencing of TaSFT2L enhanced Cd tolerance. Transgenic wheat revealed that RNA interference (RNAi) lines enhanced the wheat growth concerning the increased shoot or root elongation, dry weight, and chlorophyll accumulation. Furthermore, RNAi lines decreased root-to-grain Cd translocation in wheat by nearly 68% and Cd accumulation in wheat grains by 53%. Meanwhile, the overexpression lines displayed a compromised growth response and increased Cd accumulation in wheat tissues, compared to wild type. These findings show that TaSFT2L is a key gene involved in regulation of Cd translocation in wheat, and its silencing to form transgenic wheat can inhibit Cd accumulation. This has the ability to alleviate the food chain-associated impact of environmental pollution on human health.

中文翻译：

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新的 SFT2 样囊泡转运蛋白 (SFT2L) 增强了对镉的耐受性并减少了普通小麦谷物中的镉积累

镉（Cd）是对环境毒性最大的重金属元素之一，严重威胁粮食作物的安全生产。在这项研究中，我们确定了小麦 ( Triticum aestivum )中细胞膜 TaSFT2L 蛋白的新功能。TaSFT2L 基因在酵母中的表达没有显示出对 Cd 的转运活性，这可以解释TaSFT2L在金属耐受性中的作用。观察到由TaSFT2L的沉默引起的根中自噬活性增加增强对镉的耐受性。转基因小麦表明，RNA 干扰 (RNAi) 系增强了小麦的生长，涉及增加的芽或根伸长、干重和叶绿素积累。此外，RNAi 系减少了小麦中根到粒 Cd 的易位近 68%，小麦籽粒中的 Cd 积累减少了 53%。同时，与野生型相比，过表达系表现出受损的生长反应和增加的小麦组织中 Cd 积累。这些发现表明，TaSFT2L是参与调控小麦中镉易位的关键基因，其沉默形成转基因小麦可以抑制镉的积累。这有能力减轻环境污染对人类健康的食物链相关影响。