Abstract: To investigate the function of slow anion channel（SLAC）protein of Phyllostachys edulis in response to drought stress，genes encoding slow anion channel proteins in moso bamboo genome were identified by TBtools software based on SLAC/SLAH genes from Arabidopsis thaliana and Oryza sativa，respectively. Phylogenetic relationship，conserved region and motif，and gene expression pattern were investigated. Moreover，the function of PheSLAC1 in response to drought stress was verified by transgenic method. There were 15 members in SLAC family in bamboo，and the expression of PheSLAC1.1（PH02Gene01933.t1）and PheSLAC1.2（PH02Gene00592.t1）were the highest in leaves. The coding sequence（CDS）of PheSLAC1.1 and PheSLAC1.2 were 1 716 and 1 677 bp in length，encoding 572 and 559 amino acids，respectively. Subcellular localization exhibited that PheSLAC1.1 and PheSLAC1.2 were mainly located in cell membrane. Transgenic plants expressing PheSLAC1.1 and PheSLAC1.2 in slac1-3 mutants showed that PheSLAC1.1 and PheSLAC1.2 were able to restore the drought-sensitive phenotype of slac1-3. These results indicated that both PheSLAC1.1 and PheSLAC1.2 played important roles in response to drought stress by regulating stomatal closure.

Key words: Phyllostachys edulis, SLAC gene family, drought stress, functional identification