Tocopherols synthesized exclusively by photosynthetic organisms are major antioxidants in biomembranes. In plants, tocopherol cyclase (TC/VTE1) catalyzes the conversion of 2,3-dimethyl-5-phytyl-1,4-benzoquinone (DMPBQ) to γ-tocopherol. In the present study, OsVTE1, which encodes a rice tocopherol cyclase ortholog, was cloned and characterized. OsVTE1 was induced significantly by abiotic stresses such as high salt, H(2)O(2), drought, cold and by the plant hormones ABA and salicylic acid. The tissue-specific expression pattern and OsVTE1-promoter GUS activity assay showed that OsVTE1 was mainly expressed in the leaf, and also could be detected in the root, stem and panicle. Compared with control plants, transgenic plants with Os-VTE1 RNA interference (OsVTE1-RNAi) were more sensitive to salt stress whereas, in contrast, transgenic plants overexpressing OsVTE1 (OsVTE1-OX) showed higher tolerance to salt stress. The DAB in vivo staining showed that OsVTE1-OX plants accumulated less H(2)O(2) than did control plants.