The CRK5 and WRKY53 Are Conditional Regulators of Senescence and Stomatal Conductance in Arabidopsis

In the article we provided a molecular evidence that CRK5 acts as a negative regulator of senescence in Arabidopsis thaliana. Transcriptomic data confirmed that premature leaf aging in crk5 mutant plants is followed by the deregulation of many WRKY transcription factors. Moreover, yeast one-hybrid study showed that WRKY53 directly binds to CRK5 promoter and negatively regulates its transcription. Fas exchange analysis revealed a positive effect of CRK5 on water use efficiency.