Lau Su Ee is a PhD candidate in the Faculty of
Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences at Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM),
focusing on Molecular Biology and Genetic Engineering. She holds a BSc in
Genetics and Molecular Biology from Universiti Malaya (UM) and a Master's
degree in Plant Biotechnology from the same institution.
With over five years of
research experience, Ms. Lau has a strong track record of contributions to
plant molecular biology and biochemistry. She has held various research
positions at UM, including Research Assistant (June 2008 - August 2009, March -
December 2012), Tutor (January - May 2010, February - June 2012) and Research
Officer at the Centre for Research in Biotechnology for Agriculture (CEBAR)
from 2013 onwards. During her time at UM, she received an excellent service
award from the university from 2014 to 2018. In 2019, she was granted a
scholarship of Hadiah Latihan Persekutuan bagi Kakitangan Bukan Akademik IPTA
from the Malaysian Ministry of Higher Education.
Ms. Lau is an active
member of the scientific community, currently holding the status of a life
member of The Malaysian Society for Molecular Biology & Biotechnology
(MSMBB) and a graduate member of the Malaysia Board of Technologists (MBOT).
Her research interests include applying RNA interference technology to combat
biotic stresses in plants and using omics to understand the regulatory
mechanisms of transcription factors in abiotic-stressed monocotyledonous
plants, including bananas and orchids. She has published several papers in
reputed international journals and has presented her work at various
conferences. In addition, she has experience in various laboratory techniques,
such as PCR, qPCR, Western blot, RT-qPCR and omics technologies.
When banana meets drought: How does drought influence
the transcriptome of Musa acuminata cv.
Berangan and specifically MaMYB-86 like gene?
S. E. LAU1,2, N. B. SAIDI1, J. O. ABDULLAH1, D. U. LAMASUDIN1, B. C. TAN2*
1Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Faculty of
Biotechnology and Biomolecular Sciences, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Serdang,
43400, Malaysia
2Centre for Research in Biotechnology for Agriculture
(CEBAR), Universiti Malaya, 50603 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Banana is the
fourth economically important crop worldwide. However, drought stress adversely
affects its yield and productivity worldwide. To combat drought stress, bananas
have developed complex resistance and adaptation mechanisms. However, there is
still a lack of understanding regarding the molecular regulation of drought
stress signalling in the Berangan cultivar. Hence, this study determined the
drought responses of Berangan at the transcriptome level. This study hypothesized
that drought stress could alter gene expression in Berangan and the MYB
transcription factor could be activated. To test this hypothesis,
RNA-sequencing analysis was performed on well-watered, drought-stressed for 7
days, or water-recovered leaf samples. In total, 767 and 542 differentially
expressed genes (DEGs) were identified in drought-stressed and water-recovered
samples, respectively, compared to their respective well-watered plants.
Notably, 81 of these DEGs were transcription factors, with the highest in the MYB
family. To validate the role of the MYB transcription factor, a highly
differentially expressed gene, MaMYB86-like, was ectopically expressed
in yeast, and analyzed for protein-protein interaction. The results showed that
MaMYB86-like-expressing yeast enhanced drought, heat, and salt tolerance
through its interaction with MaC4H. These findings suggest that the MaMYB86-like-MaC4H
interaction may enhance the production of secondary metabolites to cope with
drought stress.