Evaluation of salt tolerance of transgenic tobacco plants bearing the P5CS1 gene of Arabidopsis thaliana

Arabidopsis thaliana Delta(1)-pyrroline-5-carhoxylate synthetase 1 (P5CS1) cDNA was cloned under the control of the potent constitutive 35S RNA promoter of the cauliflower mosaic virus and transferred into genome of tobacco cv. Petit Havana SR-1 (Nicotiana tabacum L.) plants. It is shown that the constitutive level of proline in the transgenic plants T-0 exceeds that of the SR1 reference line by 1.5 to 4 times. Under conditions of salt stress (200, 300 mM NaCl) T-1-generation transgenic plants in early stages of development formed a large biomass, developed more quickly, and had a higher rate of root growth compared to the control, which confirms the involvement of the P5CS1 gene in molecular mechanisms of stress resistance in plants.