Saskatoon, Saskatchewan -- Canadian scientists have isolated a gene that has never before been identified as helping plants resist stress.

The University of Saskatchewan researchers said their findings might pave the way for development of agricultural and forestry crops that are more tolerant to environmental stresses such as ultra-violet light and other types of radiation.

"Our next step is to see if plant genes we've isolated also play a similar role in fighting infections," said microbiologist Wei Xiao.

Using Arabidopsis, a research plant closely related to canola, the team cloned and characterized four genes suspected of playing a role in the plant's stress responses. The team found that when plants were subjected to a DNA-damaging stressor, those in which one of the four genes had been turned off produced seedlings that grew slower and often died, compared with a control group.

"This tells us these genes likely play an important role in maintaining the genetic stability of the plant and protecting the plant from stress," said Xiao.

Xiao joined with biochemist Hong Wang, two post-doctoral fellows and three graduate students on the study. Doctoral student Rui Wen is the lead author of the research that appears in the journal Plant Cell.

Copyright 2008 by United Press International.