Expression analysis of two receptor-like kinase genes in barley seedling under salt and salicylic acid treatment

Soil salinity is one of the major abiotic stresses that dramatically reducing crop productivity in the world. Recent studies indicate that the application of exogenous salicylic acid (SA) as a key molecule in the signal transduction pathway participates in the signaling of abiotic stresses. The role of salicylic acid in salinity signalling is, however, unclear. In the present study, two barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) varieties (Reyhan and Nosrat) contrasting in their salinity tolerance were used to assess the role of various SA concentrations on the expression of Receptor-like kinases (RLKs) genes. The results demonstrated that that salinity and salicylic have a significant effect on seedling traits of barley cultivars. Salinity stress and salicylic acid increased the expression of Hv3ARK, IdiRLK2 genes in the cultivar Nosrat but in the other cultivar the relative expression of the genes were different. These results suggest the involvement of a number of RLKs in SA-mediated abiotic stress responses.