Cloning and Sequence of Glycoprotein H Gene of Duck Plague Virus

The glycoprotein H （gH） gene homologue of duck plague virus （DPV） was cloned by degenerate polymerase chain reaction （PCR） and sequenced. It was located immediately downstream from the thymidine kinase gene （TK）. In addition, the 3＇-end of the gene homologue to herpesvirus UL21 was located downstream from the gH gene. DPV gH gene open reading frame （ORF） was 2 505 bp in length and its primary translation product was a polypeptide of 834 amino acids long. It possessed several characteristics of membrane glycoproteins, including an N-terminal hydrophobic signal sequence, an external domain containing eight putative N-linked glycosylation sites, a C-terminal transmembrane domain, and a charged cytoplasmic tail. Comparison with other herpesvirus revealed identities of 20.2, 25.1, 23.0, 23.0, 26.5 and 26.0% with the gH counterparts of the human herpesvirus virus 1 （HSV1）, equine herpesvirus 4 （EHV4）, bovine herpesvirus 1 （BHV1）, pseudorabies virus （PRV）, gallid herpesvirus 2 （GHV2） and gallid herpesvirus 3 （GHV3）, respectively.

新疆哈萨克族H型高血压与MTHFR基因多态性及叶酸水平的相关性研究

目的:探讨哈萨克族H型高血压与同型半胱氨酸(Hcy)代谢相关基因MTHFR多态性和叶酸的关联,为H型高血压发病机制提供理论依据。方法:应用新疆哈萨克族H型高血压现况调查数据库,采用病例-对照研究,随机选取H型高血压患者100例、单纯高血压患者100例、高Hcy血症患者100例,健康人群100例作为对照组。应用Sanger测序法对所有研究对象的MTHFR基因rs1801133、rs1801131位点进行基因型检测。叶酸采用电化学发光法进行检测。采用χ^(2)检验进行Hardy-Weinberg平衡检验;应用二分类非条件Logistic回归分析H型高血压与MTHFR基因位点以及叶酸之间的关联。结果:以健康组为对照,高水平叶酸是哈萨克族H型高血压的保护因素(OR=0.33,95%CI:0.15-0.72),rs1801133-(CT+TT)基因型是危险因素(OR=6.37,95%CI:2.97-13.68);高水平叶酸是哈萨克族高Hcy血症的保护因素(OR=0.45,95%CI:0.23-0.86),rs1801133-(CT+TT)基因型是危险因素(OR=2.92,95%CI:1.52-5.62)。结论:MTHFR基因的rs1801133-T等位基因和rs1801133-(CT+TT)基因型是H型高血压的危险因素;高水平叶酸是H型高血压的保护因素。

茎莴苣F6′H家族基因鉴定及其与鲜切莴苣褐变的关系初探

为深入探究阿魏酰-CoA-6′-羟化酶(feruloyl-CoA 6′-hydroxylase, F6′H)在鲜切莴苣褐变过程中的作用及机制,本研究通过Blastp结合结构域筛选的方法从茎莴苣基因组中搜索鉴定F6′H家族成员,并对其进行生物信息学分析及褐变过程中的表达分析,同时测定了鲜切莴苣贮藏过程中褐变度和总酚含量的变化。结果表明,共鉴定出11个茎莴苣F6′Hs基因,其编码蛋白均为定位于细胞质中的亲水蛋白,氨基酸数在181~840个之间,分子量在20.74~93.35 kDa之间,等电点在5.16~8.36之间,脂肪系数在82.28~102.98之间,不稳定指数为26.13~55.39。鲜切莴苣贮藏过程中LsF6′H9基因明显上调表达,LsF6′H3和LsF6′H11在贮藏4~6 d上调表达,其余基因下调表达或变化较小;褐变度逐渐升高,总酚含量先升高后降低,贮藏6 d时最高。相关性分析结果显示,总酚含量与褐变度呈显著正相关,表明酚类的积累可能是导致鲜切莴苣发生褐变的重要因素;褐变度及总酚含量均与LsF6′H1、LsF6′H2、LsF6′H3、LsF6′H4、LsF6′H9、LsF6′H10和LsF6′H11的表达量呈正相关,特别是总酚含量与LsF6′H9表达量呈极显著正相关,褐变度与LsF6′H9表达量呈显著正相关,表明LsF6′H9可能在鲜切莴苣褐变中扮演重要角色。本研究结果可为深入探究F6′H在鲜切莴苣褐变过程中的作用及机制提供理论依据。

拟南芥TRX-h5基因的克隆和表达分析

硫氧还蛋白(TRX-h)是一类催化二硫键还原的小分子蛋白,在调控氧化应激响应中发挥重要作用。为了研究硫氧还蛋白的结构及其功能,文章以野生型拟南芥(Arabidopsis thaliana)Columbia(Col-0)为研究材料,通过反转录-聚合酶链式反应(reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction,RT-PCR)技术获得TRX-h5基因的编码序列(coding sequence,CDS),体外构建pET28a(+)-TRX-h5及pET28a(+)-TRX-h5M(第39位和第42位半胱氨酸位点突变)的原核表达载体,转化至大肠杆菌感受态细胞BL21(DE3)中,诱导后经镍柱纯化得到带有6个His标签的融合蛋白。通过SDS-PAGE电泳技术检测到14 kDa处的目的条带,与理论值预测一致。运用生物信息学分析得出,TRX-h5基因编码118个氨基酸,相对分子质量为13122.32,理论等电点为5.19,该蛋白的不稳定参数为26.74,属于稳定性蛋白。点突变分析发现,TRX-h5的第39位和第42位半胱氨酸位点决定了该蛋白的催化活性,为进一步探究TRX-h5的蛋白功能和高等植物氧化还原系统的研究提供了新思路。

基于H&E图像和基因表达数据的多模态深度学习模型预测胃癌生存风险

胃癌作为高发恶性肿瘤,其致死率近年来居高不下,因此精准预测胃癌患者的生存风险对于治疗至关重要。文章提出了一种基于多模态深度学习的预测模型,旨在评估胃癌患者的生存风险。该模型整合了H&E(Hematoxylin-Eosin staining)染色图像和基因表达数据,首先,采用ResNet18卷积神经网络模型提取深层H&E图像信息,将其编码为一维特征向量。其次,采用多模态紧凑型双线性池化方法,将图像特征与基因表达数据进行融合,用于预测胃癌患者的风险分数。在TCGA的胃癌样本中,该模型的一致性指数(c-index)为0.70。在测试集上进行的Kaplan-Meier分析结果显示,模型成功地区分出高风险群和低风险群。结果表明,该模型在区分胃癌患者风险层次方面表现出色,具有显著优势。

HBA2:c.2T>C和HBA2:c.2delT两例罕见突变引起血红蛋白H病家系分析

目的:分别对HBA2:c.2T>C和HBA2:c.2delT两种罕见HBA2基因起始密码子突变复合东南亚型α-地贫的血红蛋白H病病例及其家系成员进行致病基因分析,了解HBA2:c.2T>C和HBA2:c.2delT突变与临床表型的关系。方法:采集家系成员外周血进行血细胞分析及毛细管电泳血红蛋白分析,缺口PCR(Gap-PCR)、反向点杂交法(RDB)检测ɑ-地贫基因常见类型突变,Sanger测序法对HBA1和HBA2基因序列进行分析。结果:检测出两个先证者基因型分别为--SEA/αα复合HBA2:c.2T>C和--SEA/αα复合HBA2:c.2delT,家系成员中检出HBA2:c.2T>C/WT和HBA2:c.2delT/WT,均表现为小细胞低色素性贫血。结论:HBA2:c.2T>C和HBA2:c.2delT为杂合突变时机体可出现静止型α-地贫的表型,当其复合轻型α-地贫时可使机体出现血红蛋白H病的临床表现,本研究为遗传咨询提供依据。

怀化地区犬瘟热病毒H、F基因遗传多样性及其遗传进化分析

【目的】探究怀化地区犬瘟热病毒的基因变异与遗传多样性情况,阐明其遗传进化关系。【方法】从怀化地区收集30株犬源犬瘟热病毒样本,用PCR法扩增其H、F基因序列。利用DNAStar软件分析H、F基因序列碱基组成;利用Clustal X、MegAlign软件进行变异位点和遗传多样性分析;运用Clustal X、PhyML 3.0软件,采用最大似然法(ML)对怀化地区犬瘟热病毒进行遗传进化分析,并用FigTree v 1.3.1软件构建遗传进化树。【结果】30株怀化地区犬瘟热病毒均为Asia-Ⅰ型,其H、F基因序列长度分别为1778和1850 bp,其AT含量分别为56.8%~57.9%和54.9%~56.1%,GC含量分别为42.2%~43.0%和44.1%~44.9%。H基因的种内差异为0~3.1%,种间差异为51.36%~60.15%;F基因的种内差异为0~2.4%,种间差异为39.60%~53.09%。基于H、F基因序列所构建的遗传进化树发现,来源于怀化地区的30株犬源犬瘟热病毒全部位于遗传进化树的同一分支上。【结论】来源于怀化地区犬瘟热病毒之间虽存在一定程度的基因变异和遗传多样性,但它们之间的亲缘关系较近。且其H、F基因序列的种内差异小、种间差异大,是研究犬瘟热病毒基因变异、遗传多样性和遗传进化的重要遗传标记。

吉林地方鸡H-FABP基因多态性及其与屠宰性能、肉品质的关联分析

为研究吉林地方鸡H-FABP基因多态性及其对屠宰性能和肉质性状的影响,试验通过基因组PCR测序鉴定出H-FABP基因部分片段SNP位点,并采用竞争性等位基因特异性PCR(KASP)技术对特定多态位点在吉林芦花鸡、矮脚芦花鸡和吉林黑鸡3个亲本群体及正反交6个群体多态性进行了检验,最后对上述9个群体的肉品质及屠宰性能进行了相关性分析。结果显示:H-FABP基因后段存在8个单碱基SNP位点和1处碱基插入位点,其中g.2892 C>T位点位于外显子3,并导致编码氨基酸由丝氨酸(TCG)突变为亮氨酸(TTG)。g.3173G>A和g.3234~3254位于外显子4中,但所处区域为基因3′UTR区,其余SNP均位于内含子区。KASP技术对不同群体g.2980G>A位点多态性分析发现不同群体三种基因型频率差异较大,但卡方检验分析发现仅在3个群体(LL,AA和HA)该位点处于Hardy-Weinberg不平衡状态。进一步针对不同群体屠宰性能和肉品质进行相关分析发现,不同群体中该位点对不同屠宰性能和肉品质相关性存在差异。本试验证实吉林地方鸡H-FABP基因存在丰富的遗传多样性,且个别位点与屠宰及肉质性状存在一定的相关性。

老年女性H型高血压患者亚甲基四氢叶酸还原酶C677T基因多态性与清晨血压的关系

目的探讨老年女性H型高血压患者亚甲基四氢叶酸还原酶(MTHFR)C677T基因多态性与清晨血压的关系。方法选取2021年2月至2022年2月我院收治的老年H型高血压患者310例,根据有无清晨高血压发生分为清晨高血压组232例和无清晨高血压组78例。清晨高血压组又分为女性清晨高血压组146例,男性清晨高血压组86例;无清晨高血压组又分为女性无清晨高血压组38例,男性无清晨高血压组40例。所有患者进行动态血压监测,记录24 h、昼间、夜间收缩压和舒张压,检测各组血浆同型半胱氨酸(Hcy)水平、MTHFR C677T基因型分布及等位基因频率,进行多元logistic回归分析。结果清晨高血压组血清Hcy、肌酐、尿酸及尿微量白蛋白水平明显高于无清晨高血压组(P<0.01)。清晨高血压组MTHFR C677T基因TT基因型和T等位基因频率明显高于无清晨高血压组(P<0.05,P<0.01)。女性清晨高血压组和男性清晨高血压组TT基因型和T等位基因频率明显高于女性无清晨高血压组,差异有统计学意义(P<0.05,P<0.01)。多元logistic回归分析显示,MTHFR C677T位点TT基因型、T等位基因携带者是老年女性H型高血压患者清晨血压增高的独立危险因素(OR=3.025,95%CI:1.526~5.996,P=0.002;OR=2.305,95%CI:1.363~3.897,P=0.002)。结论老年女性H型高血压患者MTHFR C677T基因多态性与清晨高血压密切相关,TT基因型和T等位基因携带者可能影响清晨高血压发生。

Genetic Effects of H-FABP Gene on Some Pig Economic Important Traits in a F2 Resource Population

The F2 design was used in construction of the pig resource population, and 14 economic important traits of 119 F2 offspring were measured. The polymorphisms of heart fatty acid binding protein gene (H-FABP) were detected by PCR-RFLP. The effects of different H-FABP genotypes were analyzed by a fixed model. The results showed that, the carcass composition traits were affected by H-FABP gene significantly, backfat thickness alive, carcass backfat thickness between 6th - 7th rib, and average carcass backfat thickness, of different H-FABP genotypes were significantly different (P<0. 05). The dominant effects on the traits demonstrated that the gene affected the carcass composition traits overdominantly. The results also showed that H-FABP gene affected the growth traits and meat quality traits, and the pH, of different H-FABP genotypes was significantly different.

Relationship between the cytotoxin-associated gene-A status of H pylori strains and cerebral infarction in European Caucasians and Chinese Han: A meta-analysis

AIM:To study the relationship between the cytotoxin-associated gene-A (CagA) status of H pylori strains and cerebral infarction among European Caucasians and Chinese Han by conducting a meta-analysis. METHODS:Ten case-control studies, with data on a total of 907 cases and 966 controls, were retrieved and considered;disqualified studies were excluded. The included studies were then tested for heterogeneity, and a meta-analysis was performed. RESULTS:The combined data revealed CagA-bearing strains of H pylori which cause chronic infection are associated with an increased risk of cerebral infarction (OR = 2.66, 95% CI:2.17-3.26), but no such relationship was found with CagA-negative strains (OR = 0.74, 95% CI:0.49-1.10) in the overall population. We performed subgroup analyses, dividing the overall population into European Caucasians and Chinese Han subgroups, and analyzed the studies according to their subgroup classification. Through the subgroup analysis, an association between cerebral infarction and CagA-bearing strains was found in both subgroups (OR = 2.60, 95% CI:1.93-3.49 in Chinese Han;OR = 2.71, 95% CI:2.05-3.59 in European Caucasians), but no significant association was found between cerebral infarction and CagA-negative strains (OR = 0.81, 95% CI:0.45-1.48 in Chinese Han;OR = 0.64, 95% CI:0.37-1.09 in European Caucasians).CONCLUSION:These results suggest CagA-bearing strains of H pylori are significantly associated with susceptibility to cerebral infarction in Chinese Han and European Caucasians, but that CagA-negative strains are not a definite predisposing factor in either subgroup. The magnitude of this association with cerebral infarction needs to be confirmed by prospective studies and combined studies of H pylori eradication.

Screening for metronidazole-resistance associated gene fragments of H pylori by suppression subtractive hybridization

AIM: To screen for metronidazole (MTZ)-resistance associated gene fragments of H pylori by suppression subtractive hybridization (SSH). METHODS: Five MTZ-resistant (tester, T) and 1 MTZ-susceptible (driver, D) clinical H pylori isolates were selected. Genomic DNAs were prepared and submitted to RsaⅠdigestion. Then two different adaptors were ligated respectively to the 5'-end of two aliquots of the tester DNA fragments and SSH was made between the tester and driver DNAs. The specific inserts of tester strains were screened and MTZ-resistance related gene fragments were identified by dot blotting. RESULTS: Among the randomly selected 120 subtractive colonies, 37 DNA fragments had a different number of DNA copies (≥ 2 times) in resistant and susceptible strains and 17 of them had a significantly different number of DNA copies (≥ 3 times). Among the sequences obtained from the 17 DNA fragments, new sequences were found in 10 DNA fragments and duplicated sequences in 7 DNA fragments, representing respectively the sequences of depeptide ABC transporter periplasmic dipeptide-binding protein (dppA), permease protein (dppB), ribosomal protein S4 (rps4), ribonuclease Ⅲ (rnc), protease (pqqE), diaminopimelate epimerase (dapF), acetatekinase (ackA), H pylori plasmid pHP51 and H pylori gene 1334. CONCLUSION: Gene fragments specific to MTZ-resistant H pylori strains can be screened by SSH and may be associated with MTZ-resistant H pylori.

Cloning of Na^+/H^+ antiport gene from Dunaliella salina

1 Introduction Dunaliella Salina,which taxi Dunaliella,Volvocales,Chlorophyceae Chlorophyta,is unicell algae with double flagllum at top,and cup shaped chloroplast without cell wall.Dunaliella Salina is the most salt tolerance eucaryotes.It can grow at the range of salt concentration

MTHFR C677T基因多态性与H型高血压及其靶器官损害的相关研究进展

H型高血压患者占原发性高血压的75%,同型半胱氨酸(Hcy)作为一种含巯基的毒性氨基酸,在H型高血压人群中,高Hcy与高血压协同对心脑肾等靶器官造成损害,严重危害患者的生命健康和生活质量,故关注H型高血压的病因,对其进行提前预防和治疗至关重要。既往对H型高血压病因的研究更多关注于吸烟、高龄、饮食等环境因素。近年来,随着科研技术水平的提高,亚甲基四氢叶酸还原酶(methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase,MTHFR)基因尤其是C677T位点成为人们研究的热点。MTHFR作为Hcy代谢的关键酶,其基因突变与H型高血压的发病及靶器官的损害有着密不可分的关系。但由于基因的分布具有地区与种族的差异性,故其同一疾病在不同地区与种族的相关性研究结果可能不一致。现将MTHFR C677T基因多态性与H型高血压及其靶器官损害的相关性研究进展进行综述。

Cloning of plasma membrane H^+-ATPase gene in Populus euphratica Oliv.

For this paper, the plasma membrane （PM） H^＋-ATPase gene has been cloned from Populus euphratica Oliv. through a ho- mology based strategy. The isolated 3,210 bp cDNA contains a single 2,862 bp open reading frame （ORF） which encodes a putative H^＋-ATPase protein of 953 amino acid residues, with a significant homology to plasma membrane H^＋-ATPase of Prunus persica, Phaseolus vulgaris, Sesbania rostrata and Daucus carota. The predicted protein has a molecular weight of 104,553 Da. The copy number analysis revealed multiple copies of the PM H^＋-ATPase in the P. euphratica genome after digestion of their genomic DNA by the restriction enzymes EcoRI, NdeI, FbaI and Bg/Ⅱ, and Southern blot.

Construction of Recombinant Expression Plasmids Containing H and F Protein Genes of Canine Distemper Virus Isolated from a Mink and Their Expression in Prokaryotic Cells

[Objective] This study aimed to construct the recombinant expression plasmids containing H and F protein genes of Canine distemper virus isolated from a mink and to express these two genes in prekaryotic cells as well as to study the reactogenieity of the expressed products. [ Method ] RT-PCR amplification was used to obtain H and F protein genes; TA cloning and subclonlng techniques were used to construct the cloning plasmids（pMD-18T-H and pMD-18T-F） and recombinant expression plasmids（pET28a-H and pET28a-F） ; SDS-PAGE and Western-blotting were adopted to verify whether the target proteins were successfully expressed. [ Result] The recombinant expression plasmids pET28a-H and pET28a-F containing H and F protein genes of Canine distemper virus isolated from a mink were successfully constructed, and both the expressed H and F proteins with respectively relative molecular mass of 31 400 and 38 200 produced positive reac- tion with the CDV standard positive serum. [ Conclusion] The H and F proteins expressed in prokaryotic cells were the same with the natural ones in terms of reac- togenicity, which can be utilized for diagnosis of a CDV＇s infection or for an epidemiological investigation. Meanwhile, they also provide a basis for developing ge- netically engineered subunit vaccines.

Restriction fragment length polymorphism of adhesin gene hpaA from different Helicobacter pylori strains of Chongqing, China

AIM: To assess the variability of adhesin gene hpaA between different Helicobacter pylori ( H pylori) strains with PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP). METHODS: Twelve different H pylori strains were chosento amplify the 710-bp segments of gene hpaA. These strains were NCTC11637, SS1; Chongqing clinical isolates CCS9801, CCS9802, CCS9803, CCS9806, CCS9809,CCS9810, CCS9813, which were gained from patients of gastritis; Mongolia gerbil adapted H pylori strains (abbreviation MG), which were gained from the following steps: gastric mucosal specimens of Mongolia gerbils infected by clinical isolate CCS9803 were cultured and detected, the positive H pylori strains were named as the first generation of Mongolia gerbil adapted H pylori strains(abbreviation MG1) and then were subcultured with healthy Mongolia gerbil to generate MG2, in turn to gain the ninth generation (abbreviation MG9). All hpaA segments, obtained from 12 different H pylori strains,were digested by HhaⅠ and HaeⅢ individually and analyzed by agarose gel electrophoresis. RESULTS: In all 12 strains, the 710-bp PCR products were successfully amplified and products were cloned to pMD18T vector respectively, then the recombinant plasmids were digested simultaneously with NcoⅠ and XhoⅠ to recover the small fragments. The objective fragments from 12 different H pylori strains digested with Hae Ⅲ could be seen as 4 types of bands and 5 types with Hha Ⅰ. According to the hpaA RFLP patterns, the 12 H pylori strains could be divided into 5 groups: group Ⅰ, NCTC11637 and SS1; group Ⅱ, CCS9809, which RFLP type digested with HaeⅢ wasthe same as strains of group Ⅰ, but HhaⅠ RFLP showeddifference compared with the other groups; group Ⅲ,CCS9810; group Ⅳ, CCS9803; group Ⅴ: CCS9801,CCS9802, CCS9806, CCS9813, MG1, MG3 and MG9. The sequence data of 12 hpaA segments were analyzed by DNAsis software and it was observed that: (1) The homologies of base pair and amino acid sequence between strains NCTC11637, SS1, CCS9809 were 99.6% and 98.9%, respectively; (2) The homology of base pair and amino acid sequence between CCS9803 and CCS9810 was 97.7% and 99.1%; (3) That of the rest strains, CCS9801, CCS9802, CCS9806, CCS9813, MG1, MG3, MG9 reached 99.4% and98.4%; (4) The base pair homologies between all hpaAfragments of different sources were higher than 94.6%,therefore the correspondence of deduced amino acid sequence was higher than 96.8% between each other. CONCLUSION: The gene hpaA from different H pylori strains revealed variation, and this might provide an effectivemethod for molecular epidemiological survey of H pylori.

陆地棉H^(+)-PPase基因家族全基因组鉴定及表达分析

【目的】鉴定陆地棉跨膜质子泵焦磷酸酶(H^(+)-PPase)基因家族成员,并分析其表达模式,为探究该家族基因的功能和调控机制及优质纤维棉育种提供理论依据。【方法】从Pfam数据库获取H^(+)-PPase基因家族(PF03030)的隐马尔可夫模型文件,从陆地棉基因组中筛选包含H^(+)-PPase家族保守结构域的成员,运用生物信息学方法对其理化性质、进化关系、基因定位、共线性关系、基因结构、顺式作用元件和表达模式进行分析,并利用实时荧光定量PCR检测10个在棉纤维发育中表达的侯选基因表达情况。【结果】从陆地棉全基因组水平上鉴定出20个H^(+)-PPase基因家族成员(GhH_PPase1~GhH_PPase20),分布在12条染色体上,基因长度为2531~11810 bp,编码的氨基酸残基数为575~803个,蛋白分子量为60087.76~85197.58 Da,均为疏水性的酸性蛋白,可分为亚族Ⅰ(4个)、亚族Ⅳ(4个)和亚族Ⅴ(12个)三大分支。片段复制事件是陆地棉H^(+)-PPase基因家族扩张的主要驱动力,位于染色体A05和D05上的H_PPase1、H_PPase2、H_PPase11和H_PPase12可能是进化过程中种间传播的主要基因,且陆地棉基因与单双子叶植物的共线性均较低,可能经历了独立的进化事件。有14个GhH_PPases蛋白含有10个保守基序,且排列顺序完全相同;其余6个基因的保守基序差异较明显,可能具有不同的功能。20个GhH_PPases基因启动子区域存在大量光响应元件、胁迫响应元件和激素反应元件。陆地棉H^(+)-PPase基因家族成员的表达具有时空特异性,且相对于其他亚家族,亚族Ⅴ的较多基因在棉花纤维发育过程中发挥更重要的作用。【结论】陆地棉H^(+)-PPase基因家族发生了一定程度的功能分化,多种响应元件协同参与生长发育和逆境应答,部分基因在陆地棉纤维伸长期和次生壁加厚期发挥重要的调控作用。

Overexpression of the Suaeda salsa SsNHX1 gene confers enhanced salt and drought tolerance to transgenic Zea mays

Maize is one of the most important crops worldwide, but it suffers from salt stress when grown in saline-alkaline soil. There is therefore an urgent need to improve maize salt tolerance and crop yield. In this study, the SsNHX1 gene of Suaeda salsa, which encodes a vacuolar membrane Na~+/H~+ antiporter, was transformed into the maize inbred line 18-599 by Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. Transgenic maize plants overexpressing the SsNHX1 gene showed less growth retardation when treated with an increasing NaCl gradient of up to 1%, indicating enhanced salt tolerance. The improved salt tolerance of transgenic plants was also demonstrated by a significantly elevated seed germination rate(79%) and a reduction in seminal root length inhibition. Moreover, transgenic plants under salt stress exhibited less physiological damage. SsNHX1-overexpressing transgenic maize accumulated more Na~+ and K~+ than wild-type(WT) plants particularly in the leaves, resulting in a higher ratio of K~+/Na~+ in the leaves under salt stress. This result revealed that the improved salt tolerance of SsNHX1-overexpressing transgenic maize plants was likely attributed to SsNHX1-mediated localization of Na~+ to vacuoles and subsequent maintenance of the cytosolic ionic balance. In addition, SsNHX1 overexpression also improved the drought tolerance of the transgenic maize plants, as rehydrated transgenic plants were restored to normal growth while WT plants did not grow normally after dehydration treatment. Therefore, based on our engineering approach, SsNHX1 represents a promising candidate gene for improving the salt and drought tolerance of maize and other crops.