Trends Plant Sci , IF:18.313 , 2022 Feb doi: 10.1016/j.tplants.2022.01.008
Transcriptional regulatory network of plant cold-stress responses.
Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan. Electronic address: akido@g.ecc.u-tokyo.ac.jp.; Gene Discovery Research Group, RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-0074, Japan.; Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan; Research Institute for Agricultural and Life Sciences, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Setagaya-ku, Tokyo 156-8502, Japan. Electronic address: akys@g.ecc.u-tokyo.ac.jp.
Recent studies have revealed the complex and flexible transcriptional regulatory network involved in cold-stress responses. Focusing on two major signaling pathways that respond to cold stress, we outline current knowledge of the transcriptional regulatory network and the post-translational regulation of transcription factors in the network. Cold-stress signaling pathways are closely associated with other signaling pathways such as those related to the circadian clock, and large amounts of data on their crosstalk and tradeoffs are available. However, it remains unknown how plants sense and transmit cold-stress signals to regulate gene expression. We discuss recent reports on cold-stress sensing and associated signaling pathways that regulate the network. We also emphasize future directions for developing abiotic stress-tolerant crop plants.
PMID: 35210165
J Hazard Mater , IF:10.588 , 2022 Mar , V426 : P127826 doi: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.127826
Low temperature tolerance is impaired by polystyrene nanoplastics accumulated in cells of barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) plants.
Crop Research Institute, Shandong Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Jinan 250100, China.; Key Laboratory of Mollisols Agroecology, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130102, China; College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.; Key Laboratory of Molecular Epigenetics of the Ministry of Education, Northeast Normal University, Changchun 130024, China.; Key Laboratory of Mollisols Agroecology, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 130102, China; College of Advanced Agricultural Sciences, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China. Electronic address: lixiangnan@iga.ac.cn.
With increasing plastic consumption, the large amount of polystyrene nanoplastics (PS-NPs) in agricultural soil may not only directly affect the plant growth, but also indirectly affect the abiotic stress tolerance in crops. In this study, the barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) was irrigated with 2 g L(-1) PS-NPs (65.776 +/- 0.528 nm) solution for 7 days, then subjected to low temperature (2 ) for 24 h. The imaging of protoplasts indicated that polymethylmethacrylate nanoplastics could across the cell wall and accumulate in plant cells. The PS-NPs significantly decreased Rubisco activities and ATP production, hence limiting the photosynthetic carbon assimilation in barley under low temperature. The PS-NPs accumulated in cells also caused the significantly decreased activities of key enzymes involved in sucrolytic, glycolysis and starch metabolism pathways, including UDP-glucose pyrophorylase, ADP-Glucose pyrophosphorylase, phosphoglucomutase, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase, phosphoglucoisomerase, fructokinase and phosphofructokinase. In addition, under low temperature, the PS-NPs presence significantly reduced the activities of superoxide dismutase, ascorbate peroxidase and catalase in chloroplasts, and significantly reduced the activities of ascorbate peroxidase and catalase in mitochondria. Thus, it is suggested that the PS-NPs accumulated in plant cells impaired the low temperature tolerance in barley mainly by the negative effects on photosynthetic carbon assimilation, carbohydrate metabolism and ROS homeostasis in sub-cellular level.
PMID: 34823951
New Phytol , IF:10.151 , 2022 Mar , V233 (5) : P2127-2143 doi: 10.1111/nph.17934
SlFHY3 and SlHY5 act compliantly to enhance cold tolerance through the integration of myo-inositol and light signaling in tomato.
College of Horticulture, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang, 110866, China.; Key Laboratory of Protected Horticulture, Ministry of Education, Shenyang, 110866, China.; National & Local Joint Engineering Research Center of Northern Horticultural Facilities Design & Application Technology (Liaoning), Shenyang, 110866, China.; College of Horticulture and Plant Protection, Henan University of Science and Technology, Luoyang, 471000, China.; College of Land and Environment, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang, 110866, China.
Plants have evolved sophisticated regulatory networks to cope with dynamically changing light and temperature environments during day-night and seasonal cycles. However, the integration mechanisms of light and low temperature remain largely unclear. Here, we show that low red : far-red ratio (LR : FR) induces FAR-RED ELONGATED HYPOCOTYL3 (SlFHY3) transcription under cold stress in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum). Reverse genetic approaches revealed that knocking out SlFHY3 decreases myo-inositol accumulation and increases cold susceptibility, whereas overexpressing SlFHY3 induces myo-inositol accumulation and enhances cold tolerance in tomato plants. SlFHY3 physically interacts with ELONGATED HYPOCOTYL5 (SlHY5) to promote the transcriptional activity of SlHY5 on MYO-INOSITOL-1-PHOSPHATE SYNTHASE 3 (SlMIPS3) and induce myo-inositol accumulation in tomato plants under cold stress. Disruption of SlHY5 and SlMIPS3 largely suppresses the cold tolerance of SlFHY3-overexpressing plants and myo-inositol accumulation in tomato. Furthermore, silencing of SlMIPS3 drastically reduces myo-inositol accumulation and compromises LR : FR-induced cold tolerance in tomato. Together, our results reveal a crucial role of SlFHY3 in LR : FR-induced cold tolerance in tomato and unravel a novel regulatory mechanism whereby plants integrate dynamic environmental light signals and internal cues (inositol biosynthesis) to induce and control cold tolerance in tomato plants.
PMID: 34936108
New Phytol , IF:10.151 , 2022 Feb , V233 (3) : P1067-1073 doi: 10.1111/nph.17745
Redox-mediated structural and functional switching of C-repeat binding factors enhances plant cold tolerance.
Division of Applied Life Science (BK21+) and PMBBRC, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju, 52828, Korea.; Department of Biomedical Science & Engineering, Konkuk University, Seoul, 05029, Korea.
C-repeat binding factors (CBFs) are key cold-responsive transcription factors that play pleiotropic roles in the cold acclimation, growth, and development of plants. Cold-sensitive cbf knockout mutants and cold-tolerant CBF overexpression lines exhibit abnormal phenotypes at warm temperatures, suggesting that CBF activity is precisely regulated, and a critical threshold level must be maintained for proper plant growth under normal conditions. Cold-inducible CBFs also exist in warm-climate plants but as inactive disulfide-bonded oligomers. However, upon translocation to the nucleus under a cold snap, the h2-isotype of cytosolic thioredoxin (Trx-h2), reduces the oxidized (inactive) CBF oligomers and the newly synthesized CBF monomers, thus producing reduced (active) CBF monomers. Thus, the redox-dependent structural switching and functional activation of CBFs protect plants under cold stress.
PMID: 34537981
Plant Physiol , IF:8.34 , 2022 Feb doi: 10.1093/plphys/kiac008
Brassinosteroid-regulated bHLH transcription factor CESTA induces the gibberellin 2-oxidase GA2ox7.
Biotechnology of Horticultural Crops, TUM School of Life Sciences, Technical University of Munich, Freising, Germany.; Sainsbury Laboratory, Cambridge University, Cambridge, UK.; Institute of Plant Biology, Technical University of Braunschweig, Braunschweig, Germany.
Brassinosteroids (BRs) are plant steroids that have growth-promoting capacities, which are partly enabled by an ability to induce biosynthesis of gibberellins (GAs), a second class of plant hormones. In addition, BRs can also activate GA catabolism; here we show that in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) the bHLH transcription factor CESTA (CES) and its homologues BRASSINOSTEROID ENHANCED EXPRESSION (BEE) 1 and 3 contribute to this activity. CES and the BEEs are BR-regulated at the transcriptional and posttranslational level and participate in different physiological processes, including vegetative and reproduction development, shade avoidance, and cold stress responses. We show that CES/BEEs can induce the expression of the class III GA 2-oxidase GA2ox7 and that this activity is increased by BRs. In BR signaling- and CES/BEE-deficient mutants, GA2ox7 expression decreased, yielding reduced levels of GA110, a product of GA2ox7 activity. In plants that over-express CES, GA2ox7 expression is hyper-responsive to BR, GA110 levels are elevated and amounts of bioactive GA are reduced. We provide evidence that CES directly binds to the GA2ox7 promoter and is activated by BRs, but can also act by BRASSINOSTEROID INSENSITIVE 1 (BRI1)-independent means. Based on these results, we propose a model for CES activity in GA catabolism where CES can be recruited for GA2ox7 induction not only by BR, but also by other factors.
PMID: 35148416
Plant Physiol , IF:8.34 , 2022 Feb , V188 (2) : P1312-1334 doi: 10.1093/plphys/kiab532
F-box protein EBF1 and transcription factor ABI5-like regulate banana fruit chilling-induced ripening disorder.
Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Postharvest Science of Fruits and Vegetables/Engineering Research Center for Postharvest Technology of Horticultural Crops in South China, Ministry of Education, College of Horticulture, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China.; College of Life Sciences, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China.
Cold stress adversely affects plant production, both qualitatively and quantitatively. Banana (Musa acuminata) is sensitive to cold stress and suffers chilling injury (CI) when stored under 11 degrees C, causing abnormal fruit softening. However, the mechanism underlying the abnormal fruit softening due to CI remains obscure. This study uncovered the coordinated transcriptional mechanism of ethylene F-box (EBF1) protein and abscisic acid-insensitive 5 (ABI5)-like protein in regulating chilling-induced softening disorders of Fenjiao banana. Cold stress severely inhibited the transcript and protein levels of EBF1, ABI5-like, and fruit softening-related genes. The ABI5-like protein bound to the promoters of key starch and cell wall degradation-related genes such as beta-amylase 8 (BAM8), pectate lyase 8 (PL8), and beta-D-xylosidase23-like (XYL23-like) and activated their activities. EBF1 physically interacted with ABI5-like and enhanced the transcriptional activity of the key starch and cell wall degradation-related genes but did not ubiquitinate or degrade ABI5-like protein. This promoted fruit ripening and ameliorated fruit CI in a manner similar to the effect of exogenous abscisic acid treatment. The ectopic and transient overexpression of EBF1 and ABI5-like genes in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) and Fenjiao banana accelerated fruit ripening and softening by promoting ethylene production, starch and cell wall degradation, and decreasing fruit firmness. EBF1 interacted with EIL4 but did not ubiquitinate or degrade EIL4, which is inconsistent with the typical role of EBF1/2 in Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana). These results collectively highlight that the interaction of EBF1 and ABI5-like controls starch and cell wall metabolism in banana, which is strongly inhibited by chilling stress, leading to fruit softening and ripening disorder.
PMID: 34791491
Food Chem , IF:7.514 , 2022 Feb , V369 : P130913 doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2021.130913
High light intensity at End-Of-Production improves the nutritional value of basil but does not affect postharvest chilling tolerance.
Horticulture and Product Physiology Group, Wageningen University and Research, P.O. Box 16 6700AA, Wageningen, the Netherlands.; Signify Research Laboratories, Eindhoven, the Netherlands.; Horticulture and Product Physiology Group, Wageningen University and Research, P.O. Box 16 6700AA, Wageningen, the Netherlands; Food & Biobased Research, P.O. Box 17 6700AA, Wageningen University and Research, Wageningen, the Netherlands. Electronic address: ernst.woltering@wur.nl.
Basil suffers from chilling injury (CI) when stored at temperatures below 10-12 degrees C which seems related to the imbalance between reactive oxygen species (ROS) and antioxidants. We hypothesized that increased light intensity applied shortly before harvest (EOP, End-Of-Production) increases nutritional value i.e. carbohydrates and antioxidants and could improve the chilling tolerance. Two basil cultivars were grown in a vertical farming set-up at a light intensity of 150 micromol m(-2) s(-1). During the last 5 days of growth, EOP light treatments ranging from 50 to 600 micromol m(-2) s(-1) were applied. After harvest the leaves were stored at 4 or 12 degrees C in darkness. Higher EOP light intensity increased the antioxidant (total ascorbic acid, rosmarinic acid) and carbohydrate contents at harvest. During storage antioxidants decreased more rapidly at 4 than at 12 degrees C. However, increased EOP light intensity did not alleviate chilling symptoms suggesting a minor role of antioxidants studied against chilling stress.
PMID: 34481404
Plant Cell Environ , IF:7.228 , 2022 Feb , V45 (2) : P427-445 doi: 10.1111/pce.14241
Norway spruce deploys tissue-specific responses during acclimation to cold.
Department of Forest Genetics and Plant Physiology, Umea Plant Science Centre, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Umea, Sweden.; Department of Plant Physiology, Umea Plant Science Centre, Umea University, Umea, Sweden.
Climate change in the conifer-dominated boreal forest is expected to lead to warmer but more dynamic winter air temperatures, reducing the depth and duration of snow cover and lowering winter soil temperatures. To gain insight into the mechanisms that have enabled conifers to dominate extreme cold environments, we performed genome-wide RNA-Seq analysis from needles and roots of non-dormant two-year Norway spruce (Picea abies (L.) H. Karst), and contrasted these response to herbaceous model Arabidopsis We show that the main transcriptional response of Norway spruce needles exposed to cold was delayed relative to Arabidopsis, and this delay was associated with slower development of freezing tolerance. Despite this difference in timing, Norway spruce principally utilizes early response transcription factors (TFs) belonging to the same gene families as Arabidopsis, indicating broad evolutionary conservation of cold response networks. In keeping with their different metabolic and developmental states, needles and root of Norway spruce showed contrasting results. Regulatory network analysis identified both conserved TFs with known roles in cold acclimation (e.g. homologs of ICE1, AKS3, and of the NAC and AP2/ERF superfamilies), but also a root-specific bHLH101 homolog, providing functional insights into cold stress response strategies in Norway spruce.
PMID: 34873720
Plant Cell Environ , IF:7.228 , 2022 Feb , V45 (2) : P412-426 doi: 10.1111/pce.14236
Global identification of full-length cassava lncRNAs unveils the role of cold-responsive intergenic lncRNA 1 in cold stress response.
Key Laboratory of Biology and Genetic Resources of Tropical Crops, Institute of Tropical Bioscience and Biotechnology, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Haikou, China.; Haikou Experimental Station, Chinese Academy of Tropical Agricultural Sciences, Haikou, China.; College of Tropical Crops, Hainan University, Haikou, China.; Joint Center for Single Cell Biology, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.; Shanghai Collaborative Innovation Center of Agri-Seeds, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been considered to be important regulators of gene expression in a range of biological processes in plants. A large number of lncRNAs have been identified in plants. However, most of their biological functions still remain to be determined. Here, we identified a total of 3004 lncRNAs in cassava under normal or cold-treated conditions from Iso-seq data. We further characterized a cold-responsive intergenic lncRNA 1 (CRIR1) as a novel positive regulator of the plant response to cold stress. CRIR1 can be significantly induced by cold treatment. Ectopic expression of CRIR1 in cassava enhanced the cold tolerance of transgenic plants. Transcriptome analysis demonstrated that CRIR1 regulated a range of cold stress-related genes in a CBF-independent pathway. We further found that CRIR1 RNA can interact with cassava cold shock protein 5 (MeCSP5), which acts as an RNA chaperone, indicating that CRIR1 may recruit MeCSP5 to improve the translation efficiency of messenger RNA. In summary, our study extends the repertoire of lncRNAs in plants as well as their role in cold stress responses. Moreover, it reveals a mechanism by which CRIR1 affected cold stress response by modulating the expression of stress-responsive genes and increasing their translational yield.
PMID: 34855989
Plant Cell Environ , IF:7.228 , 2022 Mar doi: 10.1111/pce.14313
Genetically-determined variations in photosynthesis indicate roles for specific fatty acid species in chilling responses.
MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory, East Lansing, Michigan, USA.; Cell & Molecular Biology Program, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA.; Department of Biology, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina, USA.; Department of Chemistry, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA.; State Key Laboratory of Soil Erosion and Dryland Farming in the Loess Plateau, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China.; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA.; Department of Plant Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan, USA.
Using a population of recombinant inbred lines (RILs) cowpea (Vigna unguiculata. L. Walp), we tested for co-linkages between lipid contents and chilling responses of photosynthesis. Under low-temperature conditions (19 degrees C/13 degrees C, day/night), we observed co-linkages between quantitative trait loci intervals for photosynthetic light reactions and specific fatty acids, most strikingly, the thylakoid-specific fatty acid 16:1(Delta3trans) found exclusively in phosphatidylglycerol (PG 16:1t). By contrast, we did not observe co-associations with bulk polyunsaturated fatty acids or high-melting-point-PG (sum of PG 16:0, PG 18:0 and PG 16:1t) previously thought to be involved in chilling sensitivity. These results suggest that in cowpea, chilling sensitivity is modulated by specific lipid interactions rather than bulk properties. We were able to recapitulate the predicted impact of PG 16:1t levels on photosynthetic responses at low temperature using mutants and transgenic Arabidopsis lines. Because PG 16:1t synthesis requires the activity of peroxiredoxin-Q, which is activated by H2 O2 and known to be involved in redox signalling, we hypothesise that the accumulation of PG 16:1t occurs as a result of upstream effects on photosynthesis that alter redox status and production of reactive oxygen species.
PMID: 35297062
Plant Cell Environ , IF:7.228 , 2022 Feb , V45 (2) : P392-411 doi: 10.1111/pce.14231
Genotype-dependent contribution of CBF transcription factors to long-term acclimation to high light and cool temperature.
Department of Plant and Microbial Biology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of California, Berkeley, California, USA.; Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, USA.; Molecular Biophysics and Integrated Bioimaging Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California, USA.
When grown under cool temperature, winter annuals upregulate photosynthetic capacity as well as freezing tolerance. Here, the role of three cold-induced C-repeat-binding factor (CBF1-3) transcription factors in photosynthetic upregulation and freezing tolerance was examined in two Arabidopsis thaliana ecotypes originating from Italy (IT) or Sweden (SW), and their corresponding CBF1-3-deficient mutant lines it:cbf123 and sw:cbf123. Photosynthetic, morphological and freezing-tolerance phenotypes, as well as gene expression profiles, were characterized in plants grown from the seedling stage under different combinations of light level and temperature. Under high light and cool (HLC) growth temperature, a greater role of CBF1-3 in IT versus SW was evident from both phenotypic and transcriptomic data, especially with respect to photosynthetic upregulation and freezing tolerance of whole plants. Overall, features of SW were consistent with a different approach to HLC acclimation than seen in IT, and an ability of SW to reach the new homeostasis through the involvement of transcriptional controls other than CBF1-3. These results provide tools and direction for further mechanistic analysis of the transcriptional control of approaches to cold acclimation suitable for either persistence through brief cold spells or for maximisation of productivity in environments with continuous low temperatures.
PMID: 34799867
J Integr Plant Biol , IF:7.061 , 2022 Feb , V64 (2) : P393-411 doi: 10.1111/jipb.13216
Integration of light and temperature signaling pathways in plants.
State Key Laboratory of Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, China.; Department of Biology, Wilkes University, Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, 18766, USA.
As two of the most important environmental factors, light and temperature regulate almost all aspects of plant growth and development. Under natural conditions, light is accompanied by warm temperatures and darkness by cooler temperatures, suggesting that light and temperature are tightly associated signals for plants. Indeed, accumulating evidence shows that plants have evolved a wide range of mechanisms to simultaneously perceive and respond to dynamic changes in light and temperature. Notably, the photoreceptor phytochrome B (phyB) was recently shown to function as a thermosensor, thus reinforcing the notion that light and temperature signaling pathways are tightly associated in plants. In this review, we summarize and discuss the current understanding of the molecular mechanisms integrating light and temperature signaling pathways in plants, with the emphasis on recent progress in temperature sensing, light control of plant freezing tolerance, and thermomorphogenesis. We also discuss the questions that are crucial for a further understanding of the interactions between light and temperature signaling pathways in plants.
PMID: 34984823
J Exp Bot , IF:6.992 , 2022 Feb doi: 10.1093/jxb/erac045
Can we improve the chilling tolerance of maize photosynthesis through breeding?
Department of Plant Sciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
Chilling tolerance is necessary for crops to thrive in temperate regions where cold snaps and lower baseline temperatures place limits on life processes; this is particularly true for crops of tropical origin such as maize. Photosynthesis is often adversely affected by chilling stress, yet the maintenance of photosynthesis is essential for healthy growth and development, and most crucially for yield. In this review we describe the physiological basis for enhancing chilling tolerance of photosynthesis in maize by examining nine key responses to chilling stress. We synthesise current knowledge of genetic variation for photosynthetic chilling tolerance in maize with respect to each of these traits and summarise the extent to which genetic mapping and candidate genes have been used to understand the genomic regions underpinning chilling tolerance. Finally, we provide perspectives on the future of breeding for photosynthetic chilling tolerance in maize. We advocate for holistic and high-throughput approaches to screen for chilling tolerance of photosynthesis in research and breeding programmes in order to develop resilient crops for the future.
PMID: 35143635
J Exp Bot , IF:6.992 , 2022 Mar , V73 (5) : P1655-1667 doi: 10.1093/jxb/erab505
The CBL-interacting protein kinase CaCIPK13 positively regulates defence mechanisms against cold stress in pepper.
College of Horticulture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, P. R. China.; Department of Horticulture, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, P. R. China.
Cold stress is one of the main factors limiting growth and development in pepper. Calcineurin B-like proteins (CBLs) are specific calcium sensors with non-canonical EF-hands to capture calcium signals, and interact with CBL-interacting protein kinases (CIPKs) in the regulation of various stresses. In this study, we isolated a cold-induced CIPK gene from pepper named CaCIPK13, which encodes a protein of 487 amino acids. In silico analyses indicated that CaCIPK13 is a typical CIPK family member with a conserved NAF motif, which consists of the amino acids asparagine, alanine, and phenylalanine. The CaCIPK13 protein was located in the nucleus and plasma membrane. Knock down of CaCIPK13 resulted in enhanced sensitivity to cold stress in pepper, with increased malondialdehyde content, H2O2 accumulation, and electrolyte leakage, while the catalase, peroxidase, superoxide dismutase activities and anthocyanin content were decreased. The transcript level of cold and anthocyanin-related genes was substantially decreased in CaCIPK13-silenced pepper leaves relative to the empty vector control. On the contrary, overexpression of CaCIPK13 in tomato improved cold tolerance via increasing anthocyanin content and activities of reactive oxygen species scavenging enzymes. Furthermore, the interaction of CaCIPK13 with CaCBL1/6/7/8 was Ca2+-dependent. These results indicate that CaCIPK13 plays a positive role in cold tolerance mechanism via CBL-CIPK signalling.
PMID: 35137060
Hortic Res , IF:6.793 , 2022 Feb doi: 10.1093/hr/uhac002
Running title: ABA pathway meets CBF pathway at CmADC.
College of Horticulture, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang, 110866, Liaoning, PR China.; Key Laboratory of Protected Horticulture of Education Ministry and Liaoning Province.; National and Local Joint Engineering Research Centre of Northern Horticultural, Facilities Design and Application Technology (Liaoning), Shenyang, 110866, Liaoning, PR China.
Low temperatures severely restrict melon-seedling growth. However, the mechanisms by which melon adapts to cold stress are poorly understood. Arginine decarboxylase (ADC), a key synthetase, catalyzes putrescine biosynthesis in plants. In this study, we found that CmADC functions as a positive regulator of melon-seedling cold tolerance. In addition, two transcription factors, abscisic acid-responsive element (ABRE)-binding factor 1 (CmABF1) and C-repeat binding factor 4 (CmCBF4), directly target CmADC to trigger its expression. Consistently, virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) of CmABF1 or CmCBF4 downregulated CmADC abundance, decreased putrescine accumulation and reduced cold tolerance. Furthermore, some other CBF and ABF members, at least in part, have functional redundancy and complementarity with CmABF1 and CmCBF4. Overall, our work reveals that the ABA, CBF and polyamine pathways may form a regulatory network to co-participate in plant cold stress.
PMID: 35147169
Hortic Res , IF:6.793 , 2022 Feb doi: 10.1093/hr/uhac031
Rootstock-scion exchanging mRNAs participate in the pathways of amino acids and fatty acid metabolism in cucumber under early chilling stress.
Beijing Key Laboratory of Growth and Developmental Regulation for Protected Vegetable Crops, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.; College of Life Science and Technology, HongHe University, Mengzi, Yunnan 661100, China.
Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) often experiences chilling stress that limits their growth and productivity. Grafting is widely used to improve abiotic stress resistance by alternating a vigorous root system, suggesting there exists systemic signals communication between distant organs. mRNAs are reported to be evolving in fortification strategies by long-distance signaling when plants suffering from chilling stress. However, the potential function of mobile mRNAs alleviating chilling stress in grafted cucumber is still unknown. Here, the physiological changes, mobile mRNAs profiling, transcriptomic and metabolomic changes in above- and underground tissues of all graft combinations of cucumber and pumpkin responding to chilling stress were established and analyzed comprehensively. The co-relationship between the cluster of chilling-induced pumpkin mobile mRNAs with Differentially Expressed Genes (DEGs) and Differentially Intensive Metabolites (DIMs) revealed that four key chilling-induced pumpkin mobile mRNAs were highly related to glycine, serine and threonine synthesis and fatty acid beta-oxidative degradation metabolism in cucumber tissues of heterografts. The verification of mobile mRNAs, potential transport of metabolites and exogenous application of key metabolites of glycerophospholipid metabolism pathway in cucumber seedlings confirmed that the role of mobile mRNAs in regulating chilling responses in grafted cucumber. Our results build a link between the long-distance mRNAs of chilling-tolerant pumpkin and the fatty acid beta-oxidative degradation metabolism of chilling-sensitive cucumber. It helps to uncover the mechanism of signaling interaction between scion and stock responding to chilling tolerant in grafted cucumber.
PMID: 35184197
Cells , IF:6.6 , 2022 Mar , V11 (6) doi: 10.3390/cells11060931
HPLC-PDA-ESI-HRMS-Based Profiling of Secondary Metabolites of Rindera graeca Anatomical and Hairy Roots Treated with Drought and Cold Stress.
Department of Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Protection, University of Lodz, 12/16 Banacha St., 90-237 Lodz, Poland.; Faculty of Chemistry, University of Warsaw, 1 Pasteura St., 02-093 Warsaw, Poland.; Biological and Chemical Research Centre, 101 Zwirki i Wigury St., 02-097 Warsaw, Poland.; Department of Pharmaceutical Biology and Medicinal Plant Biotechnology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Medical University of Warsaw, 1 Banacha St., 02-097 Warsaw, Poland.
To cope with environmental harmful conditions, plant cells developed adaptive strategy that involves production of a wide variety of complex secondary metabolites. The spectrum and quantity of biosynthesized compounds in specific plant species is determined by its genotype, tissue, developmental and physiological stage and environmental factors. This phenomenon was used to exploit the potential of anatomical and hairy root cultures of Rindera graeca to produce bioactive compounds. Cultivated in vitro roots were subjected to abiotic stresses i.e., drought or coldness. Next the extract profiling was performed using HPLC-PDA-ESI-HRMS method, as well quantitative determination of caffeic, rosmarinic and lithospermic B acids, that were present in all root extracts. Phenolic acids, flavonoids and iridoids represent the major groups of compounds detected in chemical profiles growing under various conditions roots. The highest number of phytochemicals was determined in roots subjected to coldness. Lithospermic B acid proved to be the most abundant compound in all investigated extracts. Among applied abiotic stress factors it was demonstrated that coldness affected to the most secondary metabolites production. The results of current study suggest that root cultures of R. graeca could serve as a new and abundant source of lithospermic B acid.
PMID: 35326382
Cells , IF:6.6 , 2022 Feb , V11 (3) doi: 10.3390/cells11030547
Cell Wall Properties Determine Genotype-Specific Response to Cold in Miscanthus x giganteus Plants.
Department of Biochemistry and Biotechnology, Plant Breeding and Acclimatization Institute-National Research Institute, Radzikow, 05-870 Blonie, Poland.; National Centre for Plant Genetic Resources, Plant Breeding and Acclimatization Institute-National Research Institute, Radzikow, 05-870 Blonie, Poland.; Laboratory of Electron Microscopy, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology of Polish Academy of Sciences, 3 Pasteur, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland.; Molecular Biology and Genetics Department, Institute of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology and Environmental Sciences, Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University, Woycickiego 1/3, 01-938 Warsaw, Poland.; Genetically Modified Organisms Controlling Laboratory, Plant Breeding and Acclimatization Institute-National Research Institute, Radzikow, 05-870 Blonie, Poland.; Botanical Garden, National Centre for Plant Genetic Resources, Plant Breeding and Acclimatization Institute-National Research Institute, Jezdziecka 5, 85-867 Bydgoszcz, Poland.; Department of Bioenergetics, Quality Analysis and Seed Science, Plant Breeding and Acclimatization Institute-National Research Institute, Radzikow, 05-870 Blonie, Poland.; Institute of Biology and Biotechnology, University of Rzeszow, Aleja Rejtana 16c, 35-959 Rzeszow, Poland.
The cell wall plays a crucial role in plant growth and development, including in response to environmental factors, mainly through significant biochemical and biomechanical plasticity. The involvement of the cell wall in C4 plants' response to cold is, however, still poorly understood. Miscanthus x giganteus, a perennial grass, is generally considered cold tolerant and, in contrast to other thermophilic species such as maize or sorgo, can maintain a relatively high level of photosynthesis efficiency at low ambient temperatures. This unusual response to chilling among C4 plants makes Miscanthus an interesting study object in cold acclimation mechanism research. Using the results obtained from employing a diverse range of techniques, including analysis of plasmodesmata ultrastructure by means of transmission electron microscopy (TEM), infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), and biomechanical tests coupled with photosynthetic parameters measurements, we present evidence for the implication of the cell wall in genotype-specific responses to cold in this species. The observed reduction in the assimilation rate and disturbance of chlorophyll fluorescence parameters in the susceptible M3 genotype under cold conditions were associated with changes in the ultrastructure of the plasmodesmata, i.e., a constriction of the cytoplasmic sleeve in the central region of the microchannel at the mesophyll-bundle sheath interface. Moreover, this cold susceptible genotype was characterized by enhanced tensile stiffness, strength of leaf wall material, and a less altered biochemical profile of the cell wall, revealed by FTIR spectroscopy, compared to cold tolerant genotypes. These changes indicate that a decline in photosynthetic activity may result from a decrease in leaf CO2 conductance due to the formation of more compact and thicker cell walls and that an enhanced tolerance to cold requires biochemical wall remodelling. Thus, the well-established trade-off between photosynthetic capacity and leaf biomechanics found across multiple species in ecological research may also be a relevant factor in Miscanthus' tolerance to cold. In this paper, we demonstrate that M. giganteus genotypes showing a high degree of genetic similarity may respond differently to cold stress if exposed at earlier growing seasons to various temperature regimes, which has implications for the cell wall modifications patterns.
PMID: 35159356
Antioxidants (Basel) , IF:6.312 , 2022 Mar , V11 (3) doi: 10.3390/antiox11030512
Melatonin Application Alleviates Stress-Induced Photosynthetic Inhibition and Oxidative Damage by Regulating Antioxidant Defense System of Maize: A Meta-Analysis.
Guangxi Colleges and Universities Key Laboratory of Crop Cultivation and Tillage, Agricultural College, Guangxi University, Nanning 530004, China.; Soil Fertility and Plant Nutrition Research Department, Soil, Water and Environment Research Institute, Agricultural Research Center, Giza 12619, Egypt.; Department of Botany and Microbiology, College of Science, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh 11451, Saudi Arabia.; Department of Environmental Sciences, COMSATS University Islamabad, Abbottabad Campus 22060, Pakistan.; University of Gastronomic Sciences, 12042 Pollenzo, Italy.
Melatonin is effective in modulating metabolism and regulating growth and development in many plants under biotic and abiotic stress. However, there is no systematic quantification of melatonin effects on maize growth, gas exchange, chlorophyll content, and the antioxidant defense system. A meta-analysis was conducted on thirty-two currently available published articles to evaluate the effect of stress types, study types, and maize varieties on response ratio (lnRR++) of "melatonin" to "control (no melatonin)" on plant growth, enzyme activities, gas exchange parameters, and photosynthetic pigments. Our findings revealed that melatonin application overall increased plant height, leaf area, root length, fresh and dry root weight and shoot weight, superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxide (POD), catalase (CAT), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), soluble sugar and protein, photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance, transpiration rate, chlorophyll, and carotenoid in maize leaf under stress conditions. In contrast, melatonin application decreased the levels of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), superoxide anion (O2(-)), malondialdehyde (MDA), and electrolyte leakage. The categorical meta-analysis demonstrated that melatonin application to chilling stress resulted in higher SOD activity followed by salt stress. Melatonin application to all stress types resulted in higher POD, CAT and APX activities, except Cd stress, which had no effect on POD and decreased CAT by 38% compared to control. Compared to control, melatonin resulted in lower reactive oxygen species (ROS) and electrolyte leakage under no stress, Cd, drought, salt, lead, heat, and chilling stress in all study types (pot, growth chamber, hydroponic, and field), except O2 content which was not affected in pot and growth chamber studies. It was concluded that melatonin alleviates oxidative damage by improving stress tolerance, regulating the antioxidant defense system, and increasing leaf chlorophyll content compared to control.
PMID: 35326162
Ecotoxicol Environ Saf , IF:6.291 , 2022 Mar , V232 : P113295 doi: 10.1016/j.ecoenv.2022.113295
Lysine decrotonylation of glutathione peroxidase at lysine 220 site increases glutathione peroxidase activity to resist cold stress in chrysanthemum.
Department of Ornamental Horticulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, 211 Huimin Road, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611130, China. Electronic address: 1031635090@qq.com.; Department of Ornamental Horticulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, 211 Huimin Road, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611130, China. Electronic address: 1197596073@qq.com.; Department of Ornamental Horticulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, 211 Huimin Road, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611130, China. Electronic address: 1041278723@qq.com.; Department of Ornamental Horticulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, 211 Huimin Road, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611130, China. Electronic address: 358531033@qq.com.; Department of Ornamental Horticulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, 211 Huimin Road, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611130, China. Electronic address: 1695415472@qq.com.; Department of Ornamental Horticulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, 211 Huimin Road, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611130, China. Electronic address: 1433989501@qq.com.; Department of Ornamental Horticulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, 211 Huimin Road, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611130, China. Electronic address: 1085469002@qq.com.; Department of Ornamental Horticulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, 211 Huimin Road, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611130, China. Electronic address: 13786@sicau.edu.cn.; Department of Ornamental Horticulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, 211 Huimin Road, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611130, China. Electronic address: scpyzls@sicau.edu.cn.; Department of Ornamental Horticulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, 211 Huimin Road, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611130, China. Electronic address: 13305@sicau.edu.cn.; Department of Ornamental Horticulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, 211 Huimin Road, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611130, China. Electronic address: 14069@sicau.edu.cn.; Department of Ornamental Horticulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, 211 Huimin Road, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611130, China. Electronic address: 13864@sicau.edu.cn.; The Key Laboratory of Plant Resources Conservation and Germplasm Innovation in Mountainous Region, (Ministry of Education), Institute of Agro-Bioengineering and College of Life Sciences, Guizhou University, Guiyang 550025, Guizhou, China. Electronic address: yli@gzu.edu.cn.; Department of Ornamental Horticulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, 211 Huimin Road, Wenjiang District, Chengdu, Sichuan 611130, China. Electronic address: qinglinliu@126.com.
Lysine crotonylation is a protein post-translational modification that has been newly discovered in recent years. There are few studies on the lysine crotonylation of proteins in plants, and their functions in response to cold stress are still unclear. In this study, the chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum morifolium Ramat.) glutathione peroxidase (GPX) gene was selected and named DgGPX1, and was found to be responsive to low temperature. Overexpression of DgGPX1 improved the cold resistance of transgenic chrysanthemum by increasing GPX activity to reduce the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) under low-temperature conditions. Furthermore, the level of DgGPX1 lysine crotonylation at lysine (K) 220 decreased under low temperature in chrysanthemum. Lysine decrotonylation of DgGPX1 at K220 further increased GPX activity to reduce ROS accumulation under cold stress, and thereby enhanced the cold resistance of chrysanthemum. The above results show that lysine decrotonylation of DgGPX1 at K220 increases GPX activity to resist cold stress in chrysanthemum.
PMID: 35151212
Commun Biol , IF:6.268 , 2022 Feb , V5 (1) : P141 doi: 10.1038/s42003-022-03092-7
Drone honey bees are disproportionately sensitive to abiotic stressors despite expressing high levels of stress response proteins.
Department of Entomology & Plant Pathology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695, USA. amcafee@ncsu.edu.; Department of Applied Ecology (current), North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695-7617, USA. amcafee@ncsu.edu.; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Michael Smith Laboratories, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, V6T1Z4, Canada. amcafee@ncsu.edu.; Department of Entomology & Plant Pathology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695, USA. bnmetz@ncsu.edu.; Department of Applied Ecology (current), North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695-7617, USA. bnmetz@ncsu.edu.; Department of Entomology & Plant Pathology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695, USA.; Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Michael Smith Laboratories, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, V6T1Z4, Canada.; Department of Applied Ecology (current), North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, 27695-7617, USA.
Drone honey bees (Apis mellifera) are the obligate sexual partners of queens, and the availability of healthy, high-quality drones directly affects a queen's fertility and productivity. Yet, our understanding of how stressors affect adult drone fertility, survival, and physiology is presently limited. Here, we investigated sex biases in susceptibility to abiotic stressors (cold stress, topical imidacloprid exposure, and topical exposure to a realistic cocktail of pesticides). We found that drones (haploid males) were more sensitive to cold and imidacloprid exposure than workers (sterile, diploid females), but the cocktail was not toxic at the concentrations tested. We corroborated this lack of cocktail toxicity with in-hive exposures via pollen feeding. We then used quantitative proteomics to investigate protein expression profiles in the hemolymph of topically exposed workers and drones, and found that 34 proteins were differentially expressed in exposed drones relative to controls, but none were differentially expressed in exposed workers. Contrary to our hypothesis, we show that drones express surprisingly high baseline levels of putative stress response proteins relative to workers. This suggests that drones' stress tolerance systems are fundamentally rewired relative to workers, and susceptibility to stress depends on more than simply gene dose or allelic diversity.
PMID: 35177754
Int J Mol Sci , IF:5.923 , 2022 Mar , V23 (6) doi: 10.3390/ijms23063380
Two Triacylglycerol Lipases Are Negative Regulators of Chilling Stress Tolerance in Arabidopsis.
School of Biotechnology, Jiangsu University of Science and Technology, Zhenjiang 212018, China.; Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA.; State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Horticulture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Xianyang 712100, China.
Cold stress is one of the abiotic stress conditions that severely limit plant growth and development and productivity. Triacylglycerol lipases are important metabolic enzymes for the catabolism of triacylglycerols and, therefore, play important roles in cellular activities including seed germination and early seedling establishment. However, whether they play a role in cold stress responses remains unknown. In this study, we characterized two Arabidopsis triacylglycerol lipases, MPL1 and LIP1 and defined their role in cold stress. The expression of MPL1 and LIP1 is reduced by cold stress, suggesting that they may be negative factors related to cold stress. Indeed, we found that loss-of-function of MPL1 and LIP1 resulted in increased cold tolerance and that the mpl1lip1 double mutant displayed an additive effect on cold tolerance. We performed RNA-seq analysis to reveal the global effect of the mpl1 and lip1 mutations on gene expression under cold stress. The mpl1 mutation had a small effect on gene expression under both under control and cold stress conditions whereas the lip1 mutation caused a much stronger effect on gene expression under control and cold stress conditions. The mpl1lip1 double mutant had a moderate effect on gene expression under control and cold stress conditions. Together, our results indicate that MPL1 and LIP1 triacylglycerol lipases are negative regulators of cold tolerance without any side effects on growth in Arabidopsis and that they might be ideal candidates for breeding cold-tolerant crops through genome editing technology.
PMID: 35328798
Int J Mol Sci , IF:5.923 , 2022 Feb , V23 (5) doi: 10.3390/ijms23052537
CabHLH79 Acts Upstream of CaNAC035 to Regulate Cold Stress in Pepper.
College of Horticulture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling 712100, China.; Shaanxi Engineering Research Center for Vegetables, Yangling 712100, China.
Cold stress is one of the main restricting factors affecting plant growth and agricultural production. Complex cold signaling pathways induce the expression of hundreds of cold-sensitive genes. The NAC transcription factor CaNAC035 has previously been reported to significantly influence the response of pepper to cold stress. Here, using Yeast one-hybrid (Y1H) library screened to search for other relevant molecular factors, we identified that CabHLH79 directly binds to the CaNAC035 promoter. Different basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factors (TFs) in plants significantly respond to multiple plant stresses, but the mechanism of bHLHs in the cold tolerance of pepper is still unclear. This study investigated the functional characterization of CabHLH79 in the regulation of cold resistance in pepper. Down-regulation of CabHLH79 in pepper by virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) increased its sensitivity to low temperature, whereas overexpression of CabHLH79 in pepper or Arabidopsis enhanced cold resistance. Compared with control plants, VIGS mediated of CabHLH79 had lower enzyme activity and related gene expression levels, accompanied by higher reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation, relative electrolyte leakage (REL), and malondialdehyde accumulation (MDA) contents. Transient overexpression of CabHLH79 pepper positively regulated cold stress response genes and ROS genes, which reduced REL and MDA contents. Similarly, ectopic expression of CabHLH79 in Arabidopsis showed less ROS accumulation, and higher enzymes activities and expression levels. These results indicated that CabHLH79 enhanced cold tolerance by enhancing the expression of ROS-related and other cold stress tolerance-related genes. Taken together, our results showed a multifaceted module of bHLH79-NAC035 in the cold stress of pepper.
PMID: 35269676
Int J Mol Sci , IF:5.923 , 2022 Feb , V23 (4) doi: 10.3390/ijms23042319
Low Temperature Affects Fatty Acids Profiling and Key Synthesis Genes Expression Patterns in Zanthoxylum bungeanum Maxim.
College of Forestry, Northwest A&F University, Xianyang 712100, China.; Research Centre for Engineering and Technology of Zanthoxylum, State Forestry Administration, Xianyang 712100, China.
Zanthoxylum bungeanum is one of the most important medicinal and edible homologous plants because of its potential health benefits and unique flavors. The chemical components in compositions and contents vary with plant genotype variations and various environmental stress conditions. Fatty acids participate in various important metabolic pathways in organisms to resist biotic and abiotic stresses. To determine the variations in metabolic profiling and genotypes, the fatty acid profiling and key differential genes under low temperature stress in two Z. bungeanum varieties, cold-tolerant (FG) and sensitive (FX), were investigated. Twelve main fatty acids were found in two Z. bungeanum varieties under cold stress. Results showed that the contents of total fatty acids and unsaturated fatty acids in FG were higher than those in FX, which made FG more resistant to low temperature. Based on the result of orthogonal partial least squares discriminant analysis, palmitic acid, isostearic acid, linolenic acid and eicosenoic acid were the important differential fatty acids in FG under cold stress, while isomyristic acid, palmitic acid, isostearic acid, stearic acid, oleic acid, linolenic acid and eicosenoic acid were the important differential fatty acids in FX. Furthermore, fatty acid synthesis pathway genes fatty acyl-ACP thioesterase A (FATA), Delta (8)-fatty-acid desaturase 2 (SLD2), protein ECERIFERUM 3 (CER3), fatty acid desaturase 3 (FAD3) and fatty acid desaturase 5 (FAD5) played key roles in FG, and SLD2, FAD5, 3-oxoacyl-[acyl-carrier-protein] synthase I (KAS I), fatty acyl-ACP thioesterase B (FATB) and acetyl-CoA carboxylase (ACC) were the key genes responding to low temperature in FX. The variation and strategies of fatty acids in two varieties of Z. bungeanum were revealed at the metabolic and molecular level. This work provides a reference for the study of chemical components in plant stress resistance.
PMID: 35216434
Int J Mol Sci , IF:5.923 , 2022 Feb , V23 (4) doi: 10.3390/ijms23042221
Global Identification and Characterization of C2 Domain-Containing Proteins Associated with Abiotic Stress Response in Rice (Oryza sativa L.).
Department of Plant Bioscience, College of Natural Resources and Life Science, Pusan National University, Miryang 50463, Korea.; Life and Industry Convergence Research Institute, Pusan National University, Miryang 50463, Korea.; Department of Life Science & Environmental Biochemistry, College of Natural Resources and Life Science, Pusan National University, Miryang 50463, Korea.
C2 domain-containing proteins (C2DPs) have been identified in different genomes that contain single or multiple C2 domains in their C- or N-terminal. It possesses higher functional activity in the transmembrane regions. The identification of C2 domains were reported in a previous study, such as multiple C2 domains and transmembrane-region proteins (MCTPs) and N-terminal-TM-C2 domain proteins (NTMC2s) of rice, Arabidopsis thaliana, and cotton, whereas the C2DP gene family in rice has not been comprehensively studied, and the role of the C2DP gene in rice in response to abiotic stress is not yet fully understood. In this study, we identified 82 C2DPs in the rice genome and divided them into seven groups through phylogenetic analysis. The synteny analysis revealed that duplication events were either exhibited within the genome of rice or between the genomes of rice and other species. Through the analysis of cis-acting elements in promoters, expression profiles, and qRT-PCR results, the functions of OsC2DPs were found to be widely distributed in diverse tissues and were extensively involved in phytohormones-related and abiotic stresses response in rice. The prediction of the microRNA (miRNA) targets of OsC2DPs revealed the possibility of regulation by consistent miRNAs. Notably, OsC2DP50/51/52 as a co-tandem duplication exhibited similar expression variations and involved the coincident miRNA-regulation pathway. Moreover, the results of the genotypic variation and haplotype analysis revealed that OsC2DP17, OsC2DP29, and OsC2DP49 were associated with cold stress responses. These findings provided comprehensive insights for characterizations of OsC2DPs in rice as well as for their roles for abiotic stress.
PMID: 35216337
Int J Mol Sci , IF:5.923 , 2022 Feb , V23 (4) doi: 10.3390/ijms23042189
HuNAC20 and HuNAC25, Two Novel NAC Genes from Pitaya, Confer Cold Tolerance in Transgenic Arabidopsis.
Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Postharvest Science of Fruits and Vegetables, Key Laboratory of Biology and Genetic Improvement of Horticultural Crops (South China), Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Horticulture, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China.
NAC transcription factors are one of the largest families of transcriptional regulators in plants, and members of the gene family play vital roles in regulating plant growth and development processes including biotic/abiotic stress responses. However, little information is available about the NAC family in pitaya. In this study, we conducted a genome-wide analysis and a total of 64 NACs (named HuNAC1-HuNAC64) were identified in pitaya (Hylocereus). These genes were grouped into fifteen subgroups with diversities in gene proportions, exon-intron structures, and conserved motifs. Genome mapping analysis revealed that HuNAC genes were unevenly scattered on all eleven chromosomes. Synteny analysis indicated that the segmental duplication events played key roles in the expansion of the pitaya NAC gene family. Expression levels of these HuNAC genes were analyzed under cold treatments using qRT-PCR. Four HuNAC genes, i.e., HuNAC7, HuNAC20, HuNAC25, and HuNAC30, were highly induced by cold stress. HuNAC7, HuNAC20, HuNAC25, and HuNAC30 were localized exclusively in the nucleus. HuNAC20, HuNAC25, and HuNAC30 were transcriptional activators while HuNAC7 was a transcriptional repressor. Overexpression of HuNAC20 and HuNAC25 in Arabidopsis thaliana significantly enhanced tolerance to cold stress through decreasing ion leakage, malondialdehyde (MDA), and H2O2 and O2(-) accumulation, accompanied by upregulating the expression of cold-responsive genes (AtRD29A, AtCOR15A, AtCOR47, and AtKIN1). This study presents comprehensive information on the understanding of the NAC gene family and provides candidate genes to breed new pitaya cultivars with tolerance to cold conditions through genetic transformation.
PMID: 35216304
Int J Mol Sci , IF:5.923 , 2022 Feb , V23 (3) doi: 10.3390/ijms23031794
Overexpression of a Malus baccata MYB Transcription Factor Gene MbMYB4 Increases Cold and Drought Tolerance in Arabidopsis thaliana.
Key Laboratory of Biology and Genetic Improvement of Horticultural Crops (Northeast Region), Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, National-Local Joint Engineering Research Center for Development and Utilization of Small Fruits in Cold Regions, College of Horticulture & Landscape Architecture, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, China.; Horticulture Branch of Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150040, China.
In the natural environment, plants often face unfavorable factors such as drought, cold, and freezing, which affect their growth and yield. The MYB (v-myb avian myeloblastosis viral oncogene homolog) transcription factor family is widely involved in plant responses to biotic and abiotic stresses. In this study, Malus baccata (L.) Borkh was used as the research material, and a gene MbMYB4 of the MYB family was cloned from it. The open reading frame (ORF) of MbMYB4 was found to be 762 bp, encoding 253 amino acids; sequence alignment results and predictions of the protein structure indicated that the MbMYB4 protein contained the conserved MYB domain. Subcellular localization showed that MbMYB4 was localized in the nucleus. In addition, the use of quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) technology found that the expression of MbMYB4 was enriched in the young leaf and root, and it was highly affected by cold and drought treatments in M. baccata seedlings. When MbMYB4 was introduced into Arabidopsis thaliana, it greatly increased the cold and drought tolerance in the transgenic plant. Under cold and drought stresses, the proline and chlorophyll content, and peroxidase (POD) and catalase (CAT) activities of transgenic A. thaliana increased significantly, and the content of malondialdehyde (MDA) and the relative conductivity decreased significantly, indicating that the plasma membrane damage of transgenic A. thaliana was lesser. Therefore, the overexpression of the MbMYB4 gene in A. thaliana can enhance the tolerance of transgenic plants to cold and drought stresses.
PMID: 35163716
Int J Mol Sci , IF:5.923 , 2022 Feb , V23 (4) doi: 10.3390/ijms23042351
Genome-Wide Identification and Analysis of bZIP Gene Family and Resistance of TaABI5 (TabZIP96) under Freezing Stress in Wheat (Triticum aestivum).
College of Life Science, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, China.
The basic leucine zipper (bZIP) regulates plant growth and responds to stress as a key transcription factor of the Abscisic acid (ABA) signaling pathway. In this study, TabZIP genes were identified in wheat and the gene structure, physicochemical properties, cis-acting elements, and gene collinearity were analyzed. RNA-Seq and qRT-PCR analysis showed that ABA and abiotic stress induced most TabZIP genes expression. The ectopic expression of TaABI5 up-regulated the expression of several cold-responsive genes in Arabidopsis. Physiological indexes of seedlings of different lines under freezing stress showed that TaABI5 enhanced the freezing tolerance of plants. Subcellular localization showed that TaABI5 is localized in the nucleus. Furthermore, TaABI5 physically interacted with cold-resistant transcription factor TaICE1 in yeast two-hybrid system. In conclusion, this study identified and analyzed members of the TabZIP gene family in wheat. It proved for the first time that the gene TaABI5 affected the cold tolerance of transgenic plants and was convenient for us to understand the cold resistance molecular mechanism of TaABI5. These results will provide a new inspiration for further study on improving plant abiotic stress resistance.
PMID: 35216467
Front Plant Sci , IF:5.753 , 2022 , V13 : P840360 doi: 10.3389/fpls.2022.840360
Expression Patterns and Functional Analysis of 11 E3 Ubiquitin Ligase Genes in Rice.
College of Life Science, Taizhou University, Taizhou, China.; National Key Laboratory for Rice Biology, Institute of Biotechnology, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China.
E3 ubiquitin ligases are involved in many processes, regulating the response to biotic and abiotic stresses. In this study, 11 E3 ubiquitin ligase genes from Arabidopsis, which were hypothesized to function in response to biotic or abiotic stresses were selected, and the homologous genes in rice were found. Their functions were analyzed in rice. These 11 E3 ubiquitin ligase genes showed different patterns of expression under different treatments. The BMV:OsPUB39-infiltrated seedlings showed decreased resistance to Magnaporthe grisea (M. grisea) when compared with BMV:00-infiltrated seedlings, whereas the BMV:OsPUB34- and BMV:OsPUB33-infiltrated seedlings showed increased resistance. The involvement of these genes in the resistance against M. grisea may be attributed to the regulation of the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and expression levels of defense-related genes. Seedlings infiltrated by BMV:OsATL69 showed decreased tolerance to drought stress, whereas BMV:OsPUB33-infiltraed seedlings showed increased tolerance, possibly through the regulation of proline content, sugar content, and expression of drought-responsive genes. BMV:OsATL32-infiltrated seedlings showed decreased tolerance to cold stress by regulating malondialdehyde (MDA) content and the expression of cold-responsive genes.
PMID: 35310657
Front Plant Sci , IF:5.753 , 2022 , V13 : P760460 doi: 10.3389/fpls.2022.760460
Transcriptome Analysis Revealed a Cold Stress-Responsive Transcription Factor, PaDREB1A, in Plumbago auriculata That Can Confer Cold Tolerance in Transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana.
College of Landscape Architecture, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, China.; Chengdu Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Chengdu, China.
The tropical plant Plumbago auriculata can tolerate subzero temperatures without induction of apoptosis after cold acclimation in autumn, making it more cold tolerant than conventional tropical plants. In this study, we found that low temperatures significantly affected the photosynthetic system of P. auriculata. Using transcriptome sequencing, PaDREB1A was identified as a key transcription factor involved in the response to cold stress in P. auriculata. This transcription factor may be regulated by upstream JA signaling and regulates downstream ERD4 and ERD7 expression to resist cold stress. Overexpression of PaDREB1A significantly enhanced freezing resistance, protected the photosynthetic system, and enhanced the ROS scavenging mechanism under cold stress in Arabidopsis thaliana. Additionally, PaDREB1A significantly enhanced the expression of CORs and CAT1 in A. thaliana, which further activated the downstream pathway to enhance plant cold tolerance. This study explored the possible different regulatory modes of CBFs in tropical plants and can serve as an important reference for the introduction of tropical plants to low-temperature regions.
PMID: 35310656
Front Plant Sci , IF:5.753 , 2022 , V13 : P811791 doi: 10.3389/fpls.2022.811791
Multi-Approach Analysis Reveals Pathways of Cold Tolerance Divergence in Camellia japonica.
Research Institute of Subtropical Forestry, Chinese Academy of Forestry, Hangzhou, China.
Understanding the molecular mechanism of the cold response is critical to improve horticultural plant cold tolerance. Here, we documented the physiological, transcriptome, proteome, and hormonal dynamics to cold stress in temperate genotype (Tg) and subtropical genotype (Sg) populations of Camellia japonica. Tg C. japonica suffered minimal osmotic and oxidative damage compared to Sg C. japonica under the same cold treatment. Transcriptional and translational differences increased under the cold treatment, indicating that Tg C. japonica was affected by the environment and displayed both conserved and divergent mechanisms. About 60% of the genes responding to cold had similar dynamics in the two populations, but 1,896 transcripts and 455 proteins differentially accumulated in response to the cold between Tg and Sg C. japonica. Co-expression analysis showed that the ribosomal protein and genes related to photosynthesis were upregulated in Tg C. japonica, and tryptophan, phenylpropanoid, and flavonoid metabolism were regulated differently between the two populations under cold stress. The divergence of these genes reflected a difference in cold responsiveness. In addition, the decrease in the abscisic acid (ABA)/gibberellic acid (GA) ratio regulated by biosynthetic signal transduction pathway enhanced cold resistance in Tg C. japonica, suggesting that hormones may regulate the difference in cold responsiveness. These results provide a new understanding of the molecular mechanism of cold stress and will improve cold tolerance in horticultural plants.
PMID: 35283896
Front Plant Sci , IF:5.753 , 2022 , V13 : P847225 doi: 10.3389/fpls.2022.847225
Estimation of Cold Stress, Plant Age, and Number of Leaves in Watermelon Plants Using Image Analysis.
Department of Biosystems Machinery Engineering, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, South Korea.; Department of Smart Agriculture Systems, Chungnam National University, Daejeon, South Korea.; Environmental Microbial and Food Safety Laboratory, Agricultural Research Service, United States Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, MD, United States.
Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) is a widely consumed, nutritious fruit, rich in water and sugars. In most crops, abiotic stresses caused by changes in temperature, moisture, etc., are a significant challenge during production. Due to the temperature sensitivity of watermelon plants, temperatures must be closely monitored and controlled when the crop is cultivated in controlled environments. Studies have found direct responses to these stresses include reductions in leaf size, number of leaves, and plant size. Stress diagnosis based on plant morphological features (e.g., shape, color, and texture) is important for phenomics studies. The purpose of this study is to classify watermelon plants exposed to low-temperature stress conditions from the normal ones using features extracted using image analysis. In addition, an attempt was made to develop a model for estimating the number of leaves and plant age (in weeks) using the extracted features. A model was developed that can classify normal and low-temperature stress watermelon plants with 100% accuracy. The R(2), RMSE, and mean absolute difference (MAD) of the predictive model for the number of leaves were 0.94, 0.87, and 0.88, respectively, and the R(2) and RMSE of the model for estimating the plant age were 0.92 and 0.29 weeks, respectively. The models developed in this study can be utilized in high-throughput phenotyping systems for growth monitoring and analysis of phenotypic traits during watermelon cultivation.
PMID: 35251113
Front Plant Sci , IF:5.753 , 2021 , V12 : P812396 doi: 10.3389/fpls.2021.812396
Grafting Watermelon Onto Pumpkin Increases Chilling Tolerance by Up Regulating Arginine Decarboxylase to Increase Putrescine Biosynthesis.
Key Laboratory of Horticultural Plant Biology, Ministry of Education, College of Horticulture and Forestry Sciences, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China.
Low temperature is a major environmental factor that severely impairs plant growth and productivity. Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) is a chilling-sensitive crop. Grafting of watermelon onto pumpkin rootstock is an effective technique to increase the chilling tolerance of watermelon when exposure to short-time chilling stress. However, the mechanism by which pumpkin rootstock increases chilling tolerance remains poorly understood. Under 10 degrees C/5 degrees C (day/night) chilling stress treatment, pumpkin-grafted watermelon seedlings showed higher chilling tolerance than self-grafted watermelon plants with significantly reduced lipid peroxidation and chilling injury (CI) index. Physiological analysis revealed that pumpkin rootstock grafting led to the notable accumulation of putrescine in watermelon seedlings under chilling conditions. Pre-treat foliar with 1 mM D-arginine (inhibitor of arginine decarboxylase, ADC) increased the electrolyte leakage (EL) of pumpkin-grafted watermelon leaves under chilling stress. This result can be ascribed to the decrease in transcript levels of ADC, ornithine decarboxylase, spermidine synthase, and polyamine oxidase genes involved in the synthesis and metabolism of polyamines. Transcriptome analysis showed that pumpkin rootstock improved chilling tolerance in watermelon seedlings by regulating differential gene expression under chilling stress. Pumpkin-grafted seedling reduced the number and expression level of differential genes in watermelon scion under chilling stress. It specifically increased the up-regulated expression of ADC (Cla97C11G210580), a key gene in the polyamine metabolism pathway, and ultimately promoted the accumulation of putrescine. In conclusion, pumpkin rootstock grafting increased the chilling tolerance of watermelon through transcription adjustments, up regulating the expression level of ADC, and promoting the synthesis of putrescine, which ultimately improved the chilling tolerance of pumpkin-grafted watermelon plants.
PMID: 35242149
Plant Sci , IF:4.729 , 2022 Mar , V316 : P111155 doi: 10.1016/j.plantsci.2021.111155
A rice tubulin tyrosine ligase like 12 regulates phospholipase D activity and tubulin synthesis.
Molecular Cell Biology, Botanical Institute, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Fritz-Haber-Weg 4, 76131, Karlsruhe, Germany.; College of Horticulture, Hebei Agricultural University, Baoding, 071001, Hebei, China.; Plant Imaging and Mass Spectrometry (PIMS), Institut de Biologie Moleculaire des Plantes, Centre National du Recherche Scientifique (CNRS-IBMP), Universite de Strasbourg, 12 rue du General Zimmer, 67084, Strasbourg, France.; Molecular Cell Biology, Botanical Institute, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Fritz-Haber-Weg 4, 76131, Karlsruhe, Germany. Electronic address: peter.nick@kit.edu.
All plant alpha-tubulins encode a C-terminal tyrosine. An elusive tubulin tyrosine carboxypeptidase can cleave off, and a tubulin tyrosine ligase (TTL) re-ligate this tyrosine. The biological function of this cycle remains unclear but may correlate with microtubule stability. To get insight into the functional context of this phenomenon, we used cold-induced elimination of microtubules as experimental model. In previous work, we had analysed a rice TTL-like 12 (OsTTLL12), the only potential candidate of plant TTL. To follow the effect of OsTTLL12 upon microtubule responses in vivo, we expressed OsTTLL12-RFP into tobacco BY-2 cells stably overexpressing NtTUA3-GFP. We found that overexpression of OsTTLL12-RFP made microtubules disappear faster in response to cold stress, accompanied with more rapid Ca(2+) influx, culminating in reduced cold tolerance. Treatment with different butanols indicated that alpha-tubulin detyrosination/tyrosination differently interacts with phospholipase D (PLD) dependent signalling. In fact, rice PLDalpha1 decorated microtubules and increased detyrosinated alpha-tubulin. Unexpectedly, overexpression of the two proteins (OsTTLL12-RFP, NtTUA3-GFP) mutually regulated the accumulation of their transcripts, leading us to a model, where tubulin detyrosination feeds back upon tubulin transcripts and defines a subset of microtubules for interaction with PLD dependent stress signalling.
PMID: 35151438
Front Genet , IF:4.599 , 2021 , V12 : P784878 doi: 10.3389/fgene.2021.784878
Genome-Wide Evolution and Comparative Analysis of Superoxide Dismutase Gene Family in Cucurbitaceae and Expression Analysis of Lagenaria siceraria Under Multiple Abiotic Stresses.
Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, Key Laboratory of Forest Genetics and Biotechnology, College of Biology and the Environment, Nanjing Forestry University, Ministry of Education, Nanjing, China.; State Key Laboratory of Tea Plant Biology and Utilization, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, China.; School of Life Sciences, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, China.; State Key Laboratory of Subtropical Silviculture, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou, China.; Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Resources Protection and Innovation of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Zhejiang A&F University, Hangzhou, China.
Superoxide dismutase (SOD) is an important enzyme that serves as the first line of defense in the plant antioxidant system and removes reactive oxygen species (ROS) under adverse conditions. The SOD protein family is widely distributed in the plant kingdom and plays a significant role in plant growth and development. However, the comprehensive analysis of the SOD gene family has not been conducted in Cucurbitaceae. Subsequently, 43 SOD genes were identified from Cucurbitaceae species [Citrullus lanatus (watermelon), Cucurbita pepo (zucchini), Cucumis sativus (cucumber), Lagenaria siceraria (bottle gourd), Cucumis melo (melon)]. According to evolutionary analysis, SOD genes were divided into eight subfamilies (I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII). The gene structure analysis exhibited that the SOD gene family had comparatively preserved exon/intron assembly and motif as well. Phylogenetic and structural analysis revealed the functional divergence of Cucurbitaceae SOD gene family. Furthermore, microRNAs 6 miRNAs were predicted targeting 3 LsiSOD genes. Gene ontology annotation outcomes confirm the role of LsiSODs under different stress stimuli, cellular oxidant detoxification processes, metal ion binding activities, SOD activity, and different cellular components. Promoter regions of the SOD family revealed that most cis-elements were involved in plant development, stress response, and plant hormones. Evaluation of the gene expression showed that most SOD genes were expressed in different tissues (root, flower, fruit, stem, and leaf). Finally, the expression profiles of eight LsiSOD genes analyzed by qRT-PCR suggested that these genetic reserves responded to drought, saline, heat, and cold stress. These findings laid the foundation for further study of the role of the SOD gene family in Cucurbitaceae. Also, they provided the potential for its use in the genetic improvement of Cucurbitaceae.
PMID: 35211150
Front Genet , IF:4.599 , 2022 , V13 : P800019 doi: 10.3389/fgene.2022.800019
Identification and Expression Analysis of WRKY Gene Family in Response to Abiotic Stress in Dendrobium catenatum.
Key Laboratory for Quality Regulation of Tropical Horticultural Crops of Hainan Province, School of Horticulture, Hainan University, Haikou, China.; Hainan Key Laboratory for Biotechnology of Salt Tolerant Crops, School of Tropical Crops, Hainan University, Haikou, China.
Dendrobium catenatum has become a rare and endangered medicinal plant due to habitat loss in China. As one of the most important and largest transcription factors, WRKY plays a critical role in response to abiotic stresses in plants. However, little is known regarding the functions of the WRKY family in D. catenatum. In this study, a total of 62 WRKY genes were identified from the D. catenatum genome. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that DcWRKY proteins could be divided into three groups, a division supported by the conserved motif compositions and intron/exon structures. DcWRKY gene expression and specific responses under drought, heat, cold and salt stresses were analyzed through RNA-seq data and RT-qPCR assay. The results showed that these genes had tissue-specificity and displayed different expression patterns in response to abiotic stresses. The expression levels of DcWRKY22, DcWRKY36 and DcWRKY45 were up-regulated by drought stress. Meanwhile, DcWRKY22 was highly induced by heat in roots, and DcWRKY45 was significantly induced by cold stress in leaves. Furthermore, DcWRKY27 in roots and DcWRKY58 in leaves were extremely induced under salt treatment. Finally, we found that all the five genes may function in ABA- and SA-dependent manners. This study identified candidate WRKY genes with possible roles in abiotic stress and these findings not only contribute to our understanding of WRKY family genes, but also provide valuable information for stress resistance development in D. catenatum.
PMID: 35186030
Plant Cell Rep , IF:4.57 , 2022 Mar doi: 10.1007/s00299-022-02841-6
H2O2 participates in ABA regulation of grafting-induced chilling tolerance in cucumber.
State Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Key Laboratory of Crop Biology and Genetic Improvement of Horticultural Crops in Huanghuai Region, College of Horticulture Science and Engineering, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai'an, 271018, Shandong, China.; State Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Key Laboratory of Crop Biology and Genetic Improvement of Horticultural Crops in Huanghuai Region, College of Horticulture Science and Engineering, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai'an, 271018, Shandong, China. bhg@sdau.edu.cn.
KEY MESSAGE: Rootstock provides more abscisic acid (ABA) content to scions to increase the chilling tolerance of seedlings. H2O2 is involved in ABA regulation of grafting-induced chilling tolerance of cucumber. Here we examined the role of ABA in the response of grafted cucumber to chilling stress. The data showed chilling induced an increase in leaf and root ABA content and there was a positive correlation between ABA content and the chilling tolerance of the varieties. The increase of ABA content and NCED mRNA abundance in the leaf of both Cs/Cs (self-root) and Cs/Cm (grafted with pumpkin as rootstock) showed a delay under aerial stress compared with those under whole plant and root-zone stress. Intriguingly, an increase in ABA in xylem was found under whole-plant and root-zone chilling stress but was not detected under aerial stress, implying the increases in ABA content in leaves were mainly from root ABA transportation. Compared to Cs/Cs, a higher ABA content and NCED mRNA abundance were observed in Cs/Cm, which showed that Cm could output more ABA than Cs. The removal of endogenous ABA decreased the difference in chilling tolerance induced by Cm, as evidenced by the observed similar oxidative stress levels and photosynthetic capacity between Cs/Cs and Cs/Cm after chilling stress. Moreover, we found that the H2O2 signal in grafted cucumber could respond to chilling stress earlier than the H2O2 signal in self-rooted cucumber. The inhibition of endogenous H2O2 decreased the chilling tolerance of grafted cucumber induced by ABA by reducing photosynthesis and the mRNA abundance of CBF1 and COR. Thus, our results indicate that H2O2, as the downstream signal, participated in the rootstock-induced chilling tolerance of grafted seedlings induced by ABA.
PMID: 35260922
Plant Cell Rep , IF:4.57 , 2022 Feb doi: 10.1007/s00299-022-02839-0
Glycinebetaine mitigates tomato chilling stress by maintaining high-cyclic electron flow rate of photosystem I and stability of photosystem II.
College of Life Science, State Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Shandong Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, 271018, Shandong, China.; Xinzhou Teachers University, Xinzhou, 034000, Shanxi, China.; Maize Research Institution, Shanxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences, XinzhouShanxi, 034000, China.; Department of Horticulture, Oregon State University, ALS 4017, Corvallis, OR, 97331, USA.; Department of Plant Physiology, Slovak University of Agriculture, A. Hlinku 2, Nitra, 94976, Slovak Republic.; College of Life Science, State Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Shandong Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, 271018, Shandong, China. liuy@sdau.edu.cn.; College of Life Science, State Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Shandong Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, 271018, Shandong, China. xhyang@sdau.edu.cn.
KEY MESSAGE: Glycinebetaine alleviates chilling stress by protecting photosystems I and II in BADH-transgenic and GB-treated tomato plants, which can be an effective strategy for improving crop chilling tolerance. Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) is one of the most cultivated vegetables in the world, but is highly susceptible to chilling stress and does not naturally accumulate glycinebetaine (GB), one of the most effective stress protectants. The protective mechanisms of GB on photosystem I (PSI) and photosystem II (PSII) against chilling stress, however, remain poorly understood. Here, we address this problem through exogenous GB application and generation of transgenic tomatoes (Moneymaker) with a gene encoding betaine aldehyde dehydrogenase (BADH), which is the key enzyme in the synthesis of GB, from spinach. Our results demonstrated that GB can protect chloroplast ultramicrostructure, alleviate PSII photoinhibition and maintain PSII stability under chilling stress. More importantly, GB increased the electron transfer between QA and QB and the redox potential of QB and maintained a high rate of cyclic electron flow around PSI, contributing to reduced production of reactive oxygen species, thereby mitigating PSI photodamage under chilling stress. Our results highlight the novel roles of GB in enhancing chilling tolerance via the protection of PSI and PSII in BADH transgenic and GB-treated tomato plants under chilling stress. Thus, introducing GB-biosynthetic pathway into tomato and exogenous GB application are effective strategies for improving chilling tolerance.
PMID: 35150305
Plant Cell Rep , IF:4.57 , 2022 Feb , V41 (2) : P337-345 doi: 10.1007/s00299-021-02811-4
Potential roles for pattern molecule of PAMP-triggered immunity in improving crop cold tolerance.
Hubei Key Laboratory of Genetic Regulation and Integrative Biology, School of Life Sciences, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, 430079, China.; Hubei Key Laboratory of Genetic Regulation and Integrative Biology, School of Life Sciences, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, 430079, China. yangwn@mail.ccnu.edu.cn.
KEY MESSAGE: The application of flagellin 22 (flg22), the most widely studied PAMP, enhance crop cold tolerance. ICE1-CBF pathway and SA signaling is involved in the alleviation of cold injury by flg22 treatment. Pathogen infection cross-activates cold response and increase cold tolerance of host plants. However, it is not possible to use the infection to increase cold tolerance of field plants. Here flagellin 22 (flg22), the most widely studied PAMP (pathogen-associated molecular patterns), was used to mimic the pathogen infection to cross-activate cold response. Flg22 treatment alleviated the injury caused by freezing in Arabidopsis, oilseed and tobacco. In Arabidopsis, flg22 activated the expression of immunity and cold-related genes. Moreover, the flg22 induced alleviation of cold injury was lost in NahG transgenic line (SA-deficient), sid2-2 and npr1-1 mutant plants, and flg22-induced expression of cold tolerance-related genes, which indicating that salicylic acid signaling pathway is required for the alleviation of cold injury by flg22 treatment. In short flg22 application can be used to enhance cold tolerance in field via a salicylic acid-depended pathway.
PMID: 34817656
Sci Rep , IF:4.379 , 2022 Feb , V12 (1) : P3141 doi: 10.1038/s41598-022-07268-3
Jasmonate resistant 1 and ethylene responsive factor 11 are involved in chilling sensitivity in pepper fruit (Capsicum annuum L.).
Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Bioresources, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea.; Plant Genomics and Breeding Institute, Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea.; Korea Food Research Institute, Wanju-gun, Jeollabuk-do, 55365, Republic of Korea.; Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Bioresources, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea. ejinlee3@snu.ac.kr.; Research Institute of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, 08826, Republic of Korea. ejinlee3@snu.ac.kr.
Pepper fruit (Capsicum annuum L.) is sensitive to chilling stress with chilling injuries occurring below 7 degrees C; however, chilling injuries occur at different temperatures depending on the genotype. The present study aimed to identify the factors that affect chilling sensitivity in pepper fruits. A total of 112 F2 pepper fruits crossed between chilling-insensitive 'UZB-GJG-1999-51' and chilling-sensitive 'C00562' pepper were grouped according to the seed browning rate, which is a typical chilling symptom of pepper fruit under chilling conditions. Physiological traits, amino acids, fatty acids, as well as ethylene responsive factor (ERF) and jasmonate resistant 1 (JAR1) expression levels were analyzed, and their correlations with the seed browning rate were confirmed. The expression level of JAR1 showed a strong negative correlation with the seed browning rate (r = - 0.7996). The expression level of ERF11 and content of hydrogen peroxide showed strong positive correlation with the seed browning rate (r = 0.7622 and 0.6607, respectively). From these results, we inferred that JAR1 and ERF11 are important factors influencing the chilling sensitivity of pepper fruit.
PMID: 35210544
Plant Physiol Biochem , IF:4.27 , 2022 Feb , V172 : P167-179 doi: 10.1016/j.plaphy.2022.01.011
CfAPX, a cytosolic ascorbate peroxidase gene from Cryptomeria fortunei, confers tolerance to abiotic stress in transgenic Arabidopsis.
Key Laboratory of Forest Genetics & Biotechnology of Ministry of Education, Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Forestry, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, 210037, China. Electronic address: ytzhang@njfu.edu.cn.; Key Laboratory of Forest Genetics & Biotechnology of Ministry of Education, Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Forestry, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, 210037, China. Electronic address: yanglw@njfu.edu.cn.; Key Laboratory of Forest Genetics & Biotechnology of Ministry of Education, Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Forestry, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, 210037, China. Electronic address: 17805151500@163.com.; Key Laboratory of Forest Genetics & Biotechnology of Ministry of Education, Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Forestry, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, 210037, China. Electronic address: yangjj@njfu.edu.cn.; Key Laboratory of Forest Genetics & Biotechnology of Ministry of Education, Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Forestry, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, 210037, China. Electronic address: cuijiebing@163.com.; Key Laboratory of Forest Genetics & Biotechnology of Ministry of Education, Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Forestry, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, 210037, China. Electronic address: hhl1198264682@163.com.; Key Laboratory of Forest Genetics & Biotechnology of Ministry of Education, Co-Innovation Center for Sustainable Forestry in Southern China, College of Forestry, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, 210037, China. Electronic address: xjinhsh@njfu.edu.cn.
Plants subjected to biotic or abiotic stresses produce a large amount of reactive oxygen species (ROS). If ROS cannot be cleared in time, they cause a series of harmful reactions in plants. Ascorbate peroxidase (APX) is a key enzyme that removes ROS from plant cells and plays a vital role in plant stress resistance. However, to date, no studies on APX homologs in Cryptomeria fortunei have been reported. In this study, we isolated complementary DNA (cDNA) encoding APXfrom C. fortunei needles, which is referred to as CfAPX, by rapid amplification of cDNA ends (RACE). The full-length CfAPX sequence was 1226 bp in length and included a 750-bp open reading frame (ORF) encoding a protein of 249 amino acids. Phylogenetic analysis showed that APXs of different plant species have been highly evolutionarily conserved. CfAPX was shown to belong to the cytoplasmic subgroup and was more closely related to GbAPX of the gymnosperm Ginkgo biloba. CfAPX showed no transcriptional activity in yeast cells but was highly expressed in cones. To better handle abiotic stresses, compared with wild-type (WT) Arabidopsis thaliana, 35S::CfAPX transgenic Arabidopsis strongly expressed CfAPX, presented increased antioxidant enzyme activities, ascorbic acid (AsA) contents, chlorophyll levels and fluorescence parameter and reduced malondialdehyde (MDA) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) contents. In addition, CfAPX expression in C. fortunei was mostly upregulated under stress. In summary, CfAPX confers abiotic stress responses to plants, which provides a scientific basis for subsequent breeding for increased stress resistance in C. fortunei.
PMID: 35091196
Environ Sci Pollut Res Int , IF:4.223 , 2022 Mar doi: 10.1007/s11356-022-19759-x
Gold nanoparticles as adaptogens increazing the freezing tolerance of wheat seedlings.
K.A. Timiryazev Institute of Plant Physiology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, 127276, Russia. jul.venzhik@gmail.com.; K.A. Timiryazev Institute of Plant Physiology, Russian Academy of Sciences, Moscow, 127276, Russia.; Institute of Biochemistry and Physiology of Plants and Microorganisms, Saratov Scientific Centre of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Saratov, 410049, Russia.
The intensive development of nanotechnology led to the widespread application of various nanoparticles and nanomaterials. As a result, nanoparticles enter the environment and accumulate in ecosystems and living organisms. The consequences of possible impact of nanoparticles on living organisms are not obvious. Experimental data indicate that nanoparticles have both toxic and stimulating effects on organisms. In this study, we demonstrated for the first time that gold nanoparticles can act as adaptogens increasing plant freezing tolerance. Priming winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L., var. Moskovskaya 39, Poaceae) seeds for 1 day in solutions of gold nanoparticles (15-nm diameter, concentrations of 5, 10, 20, and 50 microg/ml) led to an increase in freezing tolerance of 7-day-old wheat seedlings. A relationship between an increase in wheat freezing tolerance and changes in some important indicators for its formation-growth intensity, the activity of the photosynthetic apparatus and oxidative processes, and the accumulation of soluble sugars in seedlings-was established. Assumptions on possible mechanisms of gold nanoparticles effects on plant freezing tolerance are discussed.
PMID: 35316488
BMC Plant Biol , IF:4.215 , 2022 Mar , V22 (1) : P114 doi: 10.1186/s12870-022-03507-x
Cold stress tolerance of the intertidal red alga Neoporphyra haitanensis.
State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-products, Ningbo University, Ningbo, 315211, Zhejiang, China.; College of Life Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, Zhejiang, China.; Collaborative Innovation Center for Zhejiang Marine High-efficiency and Healthy Aquaculture, Ningbo University, Ningbo, 315211, Zhejiang, China.; Zhejiang Mariculture Research Institute, Wenzhou, 325005, China.; State Key Laboratory for Managing Biotic and Chemical Threats to the Quality and Safety of Agro-products, Ningbo University, Ningbo, 315211, Zhejiang, China. chenhaimin@nbu.edu.cn.; Collaborative Innovation Center for Zhejiang Marine High-efficiency and Healthy Aquaculture, Ningbo University, Ningbo, 315211, Zhejiang, China. chenhaimin@nbu.edu.cn.
BACKGROUND: Red algae Porphyra sensu lato grow naturally in the unfavorable intertidal environment, in which they are exposed to substantial temperature fluctuations. The strategies of Porphyra to tolerate cold stress are poorly understood. RESULTS: Herein, investigations revealed that chilling and freezing induced alterations in the physiological properties, gene transcriptional profiles and metabolite levels in the economically important red algae species, Neoporphyra haitanensis. Control samples (kept at 20 degrees C) were compared to chilled thalli (10 and 4 degrees C) and to thalli under - 4 degrees C conditions. Chilling stress did not affect the health or photosynthetic efficiency of gametophytes, but freezing conditions resulted in the arrest of growth, death of some cells and a decrease in photosynthetic activity as calculated by Fv/Fm. Transcriptome sequencing analysis revealed that the photosynthetic system was down-regulated along with genes associated with carbon fixation and primary metabolic biosynthesis. Adaptive mechanisms included an increase in unsaturated fatty acids levels to improve membrane fluidity, an increase in floridoside and isofloridoside content to enhance osmotic resistance, and an elevation in levels of some resistance-associated phytohormones (abscisic acid, salicylic acid, and methyl jasmonic acid). These physiochemical alterations occurred together with the upregulation of ribosome biogenesis. CONCLUSIONS: N. haitanensis adopts multiple protective mechanisms to maintain homeostasis of cellular physiology in tolerance to cold stress.
PMID: 35287582
BMC Plant Biol , IF:4.215 , 2022 Mar , V22 (1) : P104 doi: 10.1186/s12870-022-03473-4
ROS1-mediated decrease in DNA methylation and increase in expression of defense genes and stress response genes in Arabidopsis thaliana due to abiotic stresses.
The School of Life Sciences, Jilin Normal University, Siping, China.; The School of Life Sciences, Northwest A&F University, Xianyang, Shanxi, China.; The School of Life Sciences, Jilin University, Changchun, China.; The School of Life Sciences, Jilin Normal University, Siping, China. jintaicheng2535@163.com.; The School of Life Sciences, Jilin Normal University, Siping, China. yangliping781124@163.com.
BACKGROUND: Small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) target homologous genomic DNA sequences for cytosine methylation, known as RNA-directed DNA methylation (RdDM), plays an important role in transposon control and regulation of gene expression in plants. Repressor of silencing 1 (ROS1) can negatively regulate the RdDM pathway. RESULTS: In this paper, we investigated the molecular mechanisms by which an upstream regulator ACD6 in the salicylic acid (SA) defense pathway, an ABA pathway-related gene ACO3, and GSTF14, an endogenous gene of the glutathione S-transferase superfamily, were induced by various abiotic stresses. The results demonstrated that abiotic stresses, including water deficit, cold, and salt stresses, induced demethylation of the repeats in the promoters of ACD6, ACO3, and GSTF14 and transcriptionally activated their expression. Furthermore, our results revealed that ROS1-mediated DNA demethylation plays an important role in the process of transcriptional activation of ACD6 and GSTF14 when Arabidopsis plants are subjected to cold stress. CONCLUSIONS: This study revealed that ROS1 plays an important role in the molecular mechanisms associated with genes involved in defense pathways in response to abiotic stresses.
PMID: 35255815
BMC Plant Biol , IF:4.215 , 2022 Mar , V22 (1) : P91 doi: 10.1186/s12870-022-03468-1
An integrated analysis of the rice transcriptome and lipidome reveals lipid metabolism plays a central role in rice cold tolerance.
Key Laboratory of Germplasm Enhancement, Physiology and Ecology of Food Crops in Cold Region, Ministry of Education, Northeast Agricultural University, 150030, Harbin, China.; Innovation Center, Suihua Branch of Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Science, 152052, Suihua, China. zoudtneau@126.com.; Key Laboratory of Germplasm Enhancement, Physiology and Ecology of Food Crops in Cold Region, Ministry of Education, Northeast Agricultural University, 150030, Harbin, China. nsj-0821@163.com.
BACKGROUND: Rice (Oryza sativa L.) is one of the most widely grown food crops, and its yield and quality are particularly important for a warm-saturated diet. Cold stress restricts rice growth, development, and yield; however, the specific mechanism of cold tolerance in rice remains unknown. RESULTS: The analysis of leaf physiological and photosynthetic characteristics showed that the two rice varieties were significantly affected by cold stress, but the cold-tolerant variety KY131 had more stable physiological characteristics, maintaining relatively good photosynthetic capacity. To better explore the transcriptional regulation mechanism and biological basis of rice response to cold stress, a comprehensive analysis of the rice transcriptome and lipidome under low temperature and control temperature conditions was carried out. The transcriptomic analysis revealed that lipid metabolism, including membrane lipid and fatty acid metabolism, may be an important factor in rice cold tolerance, and 397 lipid metabolism related genes have been identified. Lipidomics data confirmed the importance of membrane lipid remodeling and fatty acid unsaturation for rice adaptation to cold stress. This indicates that the changes in the fluidity and integrity of the photosynthetic membrane under cold stress lead to the reduction of photosynthetic capacity, which could be relieved by increased levels of monogalactosyldiacylglycerol that mainly caused by markedly increased expression of levels of 1,2-diacylglycerol 3-beta-galactosyltransferase (MGD). The upregulation of phosphatidate phosphatase (PAP2) inhibited the excessive accumulation of phosphatidate (PA) to produce more phosphatidylcholine (PC), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), and phosphatidylglycerol (PG), thereby preventing of membrane phase transition under cold stress. In addition, fatty acid beta-oxidation is worth further study in rice cold tolerance. Finally, we constructed a metabolic model for the regulatory mechanism of cold tolerance in rice, in which the advanced lipid metabolism system plays a central role. CONCLUSIONS: Lipidome analysis showed that membrane lipid composition and unsaturation were significantly affected, especially phospholipids and galactolipids. Our study provides new information to further understand the response of rice to cold stress.
PMID: 35232394
BMC Plant Biol , IF:4.215 , 2022 Feb , V22 (1) : P59 doi: 10.1186/s12870-022-03445-8
SPL9 mediates freezing tolerance by directly regulating the expression of CBF2 in Arabidopsis thaliana.
Laboratory of Plant Molecular and Developmental Biology, Zhejiang Agriculture and Forestry University, Hangzhou, 311300, China.; Laboratory of Plant Molecular and Developmental Biology, Zhejiang Agriculture and Forestry University, Hangzhou, 311300, China. yujing2009@zafu.edu.cn.; Laboratory of Plant Molecular and Developmental Biology, Zhejiang Agriculture and Forestry University, Hangzhou, 311300, China. guock@zafu.edu.cn.
BACKGROUND: Freezing stress inhibits plant development and causes significant damage to plants. Plants therefore have evolved a large amount of sophisticated mechanisms to counteract freezing stress by adjusting their growth and development correspondingly. Plant ontogenetic defense against drought, high salt, and heat stresses, has been extensively studied. However, whether the freezing tolerance is associated with ontogenetic development and how the freezing signals are delivered remain unclear. RESULTS: In this study, we found that the freezing tolerance was increased with plant age at the vegetative stage. The expressions of microRNA156 (miR156) and SQUAMOSA PROMOTER BINDING PROTEIN-LIKE 9 (SPL9), playing roles in regulation of ontogenetic development, were induced by cold stress. Overexpression of SPL9 (rSPL9) promoted the expression of C-REPEAT BINDING FACTOR 2 (CBF2) and hereafter enhanced the freezing tolerance. Genetic analysis indicated that the effect of rSPL9 on freezing tolerance is partially restored by cbf2 mutant. Further analysis confirmed that SPL9 directly binds to the promoter of CBF2 to activate the expression of CBF2, and thereafter increased the freezing tolerance. CONCLUSIONS: Therefore, our study uncovers a new role of SPL9 in fine-tuning CBF2 expression and thus mediating freezing tolerance in plants, and implies a role of miR156-SPL pathway in balancing the vegetative development and freezing response in Arabidopsis.
PMID: 35109794
Tree Physiol , IF:4.196 , 2022 Mar , V42 (3) : P646-663 doi: 10.1093/treephys/tpab130
Characterization of the early gene expression profile in Populus ussuriensis under cold stress using PacBio SMRT sequencing integrated with RNA-seq reads.
State Key Laboratory of Forest Genetics and Tree Breeding, Northeast Forestry University, 26 Hexing Road, Harbin 150040, China.; School of Pharmacy, Harbin University of Commerce, No.138 Tongdajie Street, Harbin 150028, China.
Populus ussuriensis is an important and fast-growing afforestation plant species in north-eastern China. The whole-genome sequencing of P. ussuriensis has not been completed. Also, the transcriptional network of P. ussuriensis response to cold stress remains unknown. To unravel the early response of P. ussuriensis to chilling (3 degrees C) stress and freezing (-3 degrees C) stresses at the transcriptional level, we performed single-molecule real-time (SMRT) and Illumina RNA sequencing for P. ussuriensis. The SMRT long-read isoform sequencing led to the identification of 29,243,277 subreads and 575,481 circular consensus sequencing reads. Approximately 50,910 high-quality isoforms were generated, and 2272 simple sequence repeats and 8086 long non-coding RNAs were identified. The Ca2+ content and abscisic acid (ABA) content in P. ussuriensis were significantly increased under cold stresses, while the value in the freezing stress treatment group was significantly higher than the chilling stress treatment group. A total of 49 genes that are involved in the signal transduction pathways related to perception and transmission of cold stress signals, such as the Ca2+ signaling pathway, ABA signaling pathway and MAPK signaling cascade, were found to be differentially expressed. In addition, 158 transcription factors from 21 different families, such as MYB, WRKY and AP2/ERF, were differentially expressed during chilling and freezing treatments. Moreover, the measurement of physiological indicators and bioinformatics observations demonstrated the altered expression pattern of genes involved in reactive oxygen species balance and the sugar metabolism pathway during chilling and freezing stresses. This is the first report of the early responses of P. ussuriensis to cold stress, which lays the foundation for future studies on the regulatory mechanisms in cold-stress response. In addition the full-length reference transcriptome of P. ussuriensis deciphered could be used in future studies on P. ussuriensis.
PMID: 34625806
Planta , IF:4.116 , 2022 Mar , V255 (4) : P81 doi: 10.1007/s00425-022-03858-7
The network centered on ICEs play roles in plant cold tolerance, growth and development.
College of Life Science, State Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Shandong Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, 271018, China.; Department of Plant Physiology, Slovak University of Agriculture, A. Hlinku 2, Nitra, 94976, Slovak Republic.; College of Life Science, State Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Shandong Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, 271018, China. xhyang@sdau.edu.cn.
MAIN CONCLUSION: ICEs are key transcription factors in response to cold in plant, they also balance plant growth and stress tolerance. Thus, we systematize the information about ICEs published to date. Low temperature is an important factor affecting plant growth and development. Exposing to cold condition results in a suit of effects on plants including reduction of plant growth and reproduction, and decrease in crop yield and quality. Plants have evolved a series of strategies to deal with cold stress such as reprogramming of the expression of genes and transcription factors. ICEs (Inducer of CBF Expression), as transcription factors regulating CBFs (C-repeat binding factor), play key roles in balancing plant growth and stress tolerance. Studies on ICEs focused on the function of ICEs on cold tolerance, growth and development; post-translational modifications of ICEs and crosstalk between the ICEs and phytohormones. In this review, we focus on systematizing the information published to date. We summarized the main advances of the functions of ICEs on the cold tolerance, growth and development. And we also elaborated the regulation of ICEs protein stability including phosphorylation, ubiquitination and SUMOylation of ICE. Finally, we described the function of ICEs in the crosstalk among different phytohormone signaling pathway and cold stress. This review provides perspectives for ongoing research about cold tolerance, growth and development in plant.
PMID: 35249133
Genes (Basel) , IF:4.096 , 2022 Feb , V13 (2) doi: 10.3390/genes13020329
The Caucasian Clover Gene TaMYC2 Responds to Abiotic Stress and Improves Tolerance by Increasing the Activity of Antioxidant Enzymes.
College of Animal Science and Technology, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin 150030, China.
Abiotic stress affects metabolic processes in plants and restricts plant growth and development. In this experiment, Caucasian clover (Trifolium ambiguum M. Bieb.) was used as a material, and the CDS of TaMYC2, which is involved in regulating the response to abiotic stress, was cloned. The CDS of TaMYC2 was 726 bp in length and encoded 241 amino acids. The protein encoded by TaMYC2 was determined to be unstable, be highly hydrophilic, and contain 23 phosphorylation sites. Subcellular localization results showed that TaMYC2 was localized in the nucleus. TaMYC2 responded to salt, alkali, cold, and drought stress and could be induced by IAA, GA3, and MeJA. By analyzing the gene expression and antioxidant enzyme activity in plants before and after stress, we found that drought and cold stress could induce the expression of TaMYC2 and increase the antioxidant enzyme activity. TaMYC2 could also induce the expression of ROS scavenging-related and stress-responsive genes and increase the activity of antioxidant enzymes, thus improving the ability of plants to resist stress. The results of this experiment provide references for subsequent in-depth exploration of both the function of TaMYC2 in and the molecular mechanism underlying the resistance of Caucasian clover.
PMID: 35205373
Phytopathology , IF:4.025 , 2022 Mar , V112 (3) : P501-510 doi: 10.1094/PHYTO-07-21-0310-R
Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae Exoribonuclease R Is Required for Complete Virulence in Rice, Optimal Motility, and Growth Under Stress.
CSIR-Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Uppal Road, Hyderabad, Telangana State, India 500007.; MRC Human Genetics Unit, University of Edinburgh, Crewe Road South, Edinburgh, UK, EH4 2XU.; Center for Plant Molecular Biology, Osmania University, Tarnaka, Hyderabad, Telangana State, India 500007.; Indian Institute of Science Education and Research, Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh, India 517507.
Exoribonuclease R (RNase R) is a 3' hydrolytic exoribonuclease that can degrade structured RNA. Mutation in RNase R affects virulence of certain human pathogenic bacteria. The aim of this study was to determine whether RNase R is necessary for virulence of the phytopathogen that causes bacterial blight in rice, Xanthomonas oryzae pv. oryzae (Xoo). In silico analysis has indicated that RNase R is highly conserved among various xanthomonads. Amino acid sequence alignment of Xoo RNase R with RNase R from various taxa indicated that Xoo RNase R clustered with RNase R of order Xanthomonadales. To study its role in virulence, we generated a gene disruption mutant of Xoo RNase R. The Xoo rnr(-) mutant is moderately virulence deficient, and the complementing strain (rnr(-)/pHM1::rnr) rescued the virulence deficiency of the mutant. We investigated swimming and swarming motilities in both nutrient-deficient minimal media and nutrient-optimal media. We observed that RNase R mutation has adversely affected the swimming and swarming motilities of Xoo in optimal media. However, in nutrient-deficient media only swimming motility was noticeably affected. Growth curves in optimal media at suboptimal temperature (15 degrees C cold stress) indicate that the Xoo rnr(-) mutant grows more slowly than the Xoo wild type and complementing strain (rnr(-)/pHM1::rnr). Given these findings, we report for the first time that RNase R function is necessary for complete virulence of Xoo in rice. It is also important for motility of Xoo in media and for growth of Xoo at suboptimal temperature.
PMID: 34384245
BMC Genomics , IF:3.969 , 2022 Feb , V23 (1) : P137 doi: 10.1186/s12864-022-08311-3
Transcriptome analysis and differential gene expression profiling of wucai (Brassica campestris L.) in response to cold stress.
College of Horticulture, Vegetable Genetics and Breeding Laboratory, Anhui Agricultural University, 130 West Changjiang Road, Hefei, Anhui, 230036, China.; Provincial Engineering Laboratory for Horticultural Crop Breeding of Anhui, 130 West of Changjiang Road, Hefei, Anhui, 230036, China.; Wanjiang Vegetable Industrial Technology Institute, Maanshan, 238200, Anhui, China.; Department of Horticulture, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, 210095, China.; College of Horticulture, Vegetable Genetics and Breeding Laboratory, Anhui Agricultural University, 130 West Changjiang Road, Hefei, Anhui, 230036, China. houjinfeng@ahau.edu.cn.; Provincial Engineering Laboratory for Horticultural Crop Breeding of Anhui, 130 West of Changjiang Road, Hefei, Anhui, 230036, China. houjinfeng@ahau.edu.cn.; Wanjiang Vegetable Industrial Technology Institute, Maanshan, 238200, Anhui, China. houjinfeng@ahau.edu.cn.
BACKGROUND: Wucai suffers from low temperature during the growth period, resulting in a decline in yield and poor quality. But the molecular mechanisms of cold tolerance in wucai are still unclear. RESULTS: According to the phenotypes and physiological indexes, we screened out the cold-tolerant genotype "W18" (named CT) and cold-sensitive genotype "Sw-1" (named CS) in six wucai genotypes. We performed transcriptomic analysis using seedling leaves after 24 h of cold treatment. A total of 3536 and 3887 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified between the low temperature (LT) and control (NT) comparative transcriptome in CT and CS, respectively, with 1690 DEGs specific to CT. The gene ontology (GO) analysis showed that the response to cadmium ion (GO:0,046,686), response to jasmonic acid (GO:0,009,753), and response to wounding (GO:0,009,611) were enriched in CT (LT vs NT). The DEGs were enriched in starch and sucrose metabolism and glutathione metabolism in both groups, and alpha-linolenic acid metabolism was enriched only in CT (LT vs NT). DEGs in these processes, including glutathione S-transferases (GSTs), 13S lipoxygenase (LOX), and jasmonate ZIM-domain (JAZ), as well as transcription factors (TFs), such as the ethylene-responsive transcription factor 53 (ERF53), basic helix-loop-helix 92 (bHLH92), WRKY53, and WRKY54.We hypothesize that these genes play important roles in the response to cold stress in this species. CONCLUSIONS: Our data for wucai is consistent with previous studies that suggest starch and sucrose metabolism increased the content of osmotic substances, and the glutathione metabolism pathway enhance the active oxygen scavenging. These two pathways may participated in response to cold stress. In addition, the activation of alpha-linolenic acid metabolism may promote the synthesis of methyl jasmonate (MeJA), which might also play a role in the cold tolerance of wucai.
PMID: 35168556
BMC Genomics , IF:3.969 , 2022 Mar , V23 (1) : P205 doi: 10.1186/s12864-022-08443-6
Transcriptomic analysis of Vigna radiata in response to chilling stress and uniconazole application.
Department of Biotechnology, College of Coastal Agricultural Sciences, Guangdong Ocean University, Guangdong, 524088, Zhanjiang, China.; Shenzhen Research Institute of Guangdong Ocean University, Shenzhen, 518108, China.; Department of Biotechnology, College of Coastal Agricultural Sciences, Guangdong Ocean University, Guangdong, 524088, Zhanjiang, China. zdffnj@263.net.; Shenzhen Research Institute of Guangdong Ocean University, Shenzhen, 518108, China. zdffnj@263.net.
BACKGROUND: Chilling injury of mung bean (Vigna radiata (L.)) during the blooming and podding stages is a major agricultural threat in Northeast China. Uniconazole (UNZ) can alleviate water deficit stress in soybean and waterlogging stress in mung bean. However, there has been no report on the effect of UNZ application on the growth and transcriptomic profile of mung bean under chilling stress. RESULTS: UNZ application before chilling stress at the R1 stage alleviated the decline in mung bean yield. UNZ delayed the decrease in leaf chlorophyll content under chilling stress at the R1 stage and accelerated the increase in leaf chlorophyll content during the recovery period. Eighteen separate RNA-Seq libraries were generated from RNA samples collected from leaves exposed to six different treatment schemes. The numbers of DEGs specific for UNZ treatment between D1 + S vs. D1 and D4 + S vs. D4 were 708 and 810, respectively. GO annotations showed that photosynthesis genes were obviously enriched among the genes affected by chilling stress and UNZ application. KEGG pathway enrichment analysis indicated that 4 pathways (cutin, suberin and wax biosynthesis; photosynthesis; porphyrin and chlorophyll metabolism; and ribosome) were downregulated, while plant-pathogen interaction was upregulated, by chilling stress. UNZ application effectively prevented the further downregulation of the gene expression of members of these 4 KEGG pathways under chilling stress. CONCLUSIONS: UNZ application effectively delayed the decrease in photosynthetic pigment content under chilling stress and accelerated the increase in photosynthetic pigment content during the recovery period, thus effectively limiting the decline in mung bean yield. UNZ application effectively prevented the further downregulation of the gene expression of members of 4 KEGG pathways under chilling stress and increased mung bean tolerance to chilling stress.
PMID: 35287570
Plants (Basel) , IF:3.935 , 2022 Mar , V11 (6) doi: 10.3390/plants11060828
The Reactions of Photosynthetic Capacity and Plant Metabolites of Sedum hybridum L. in Response to Mild and Moderate Abiotic Stresses.
Faculty of Biology and Biotechnology and Faculty of Chemistry and Chemical Technology, Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, Al-Farabi Avenue 71, Almaty 050040, Kazakhstan.; Institute of Genetic and Physiology, Al-Farabi Avenue 93, Almaty 050040, Kazakhstan.
In this article, for the first time, an experimental study of the effect of mild and moderate osmotic stress, NaCl content and the effect of low positive temperature on photosynthetic activity and composition of metabolites of immature plants Sedum hybridum L. is reported. In this representative of the genus Sedum adapted to arid conditions and having the properties of a succulent, a change in photosynthetic activity and an increase in the level of protective metabolites in the shoots were revealed when exposed to mild and moderate stress factors. The results of this study can be used in work on the adaptation of succulent plants to arid conditions, environmental monitoring and work on the directed induction of valuable secondary metabolites in succulents to obtain new herbal medicines.
PMID: 35336710
Plants (Basel) , IF:3.935 , 2022 Feb , V11 (3) doi: 10.3390/plants11030442
Transcriptome Analysis Revealed a Positive Role of Ethephon on Chlorophyll Metabolism of Zoysia japonica under Cold Stress.
College of Grassland Science, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China.; CCTEG Ecological Environment Technology Co., Ltd., Beijing 100013, China.; Animal Science College, Tibet Agriculture & Animal Husbandry University, Nyingchi 860000, China.
Zoysia japonica is a warm-season turfgrass with a good tolerance and minimal maintenance requirements. However, its use in Northern China is limited due to massive chlorophyll loss in early fall, which is the main factor affecting its distribution and utilization. Although ethephon treatment at specific concentrations has reportedly improved stress tolerance and extended the green period in turfgrass, the potential mechanisms underlying this effect are not clear. In this study, we evaluated and analyzed chlorophyll changes in the physiology and transcriptome of Z. japonica plants in response to cold stress (4 degrees C) with and without ethephon pretreatment. Based on the transcriptome and chlorophyll content analysis, ethephon pretreatment increased the leaf chlorophyll content under cold stress by affecting two processes: the stimulation of chlorophyll synthesis by upregulating ZjMgCH2 and ZjMgCH3 expression; and the suppression of chlorophyll degradation by downregulating ZjPAO, ZjRCCR, and ZjSGR expression. Furthermore, ethephon pretreatment increased the ratio of chlorophyll a to chlorophyll b in the leaves under cold stress, most likely by suppressing the conversion of chlorophyll a to chlorophyll b due to decreased chlorophyll b synthesis via downregulation of ZjCAO. Additionally, the inhibition of chlorophyll b synthesis may result in energy redistribution between photosystem II and photosystem I.
PMID: 35161421
Plants (Basel) , IF:3.935 , 2022 Mar , V11 (6) doi: 10.3390/plants11060812
Molecular Insights into Freezing Stress in Peach Based on Multi-Omics and Biotechnology: An Overview.
Department of Horticultural Science, Gyeongsang National University, Jinju 52725, Korea.; Department of Biotechnology, Sri Shakthi Institute of Engineering and Technology, Coimbatore 641062, Tamil Nadu, India.; Department of Biotechnology, Science Campus, Alagappa University, Karaikudi 630003, Tamil Nadu, India.; Department of Life Sciences, National University of Kaohsiung, Kaohsiung 811, Taiwan.
In nature or field conditions, plants are frequently exposed to diverse environmental stressors. Among abiotic stresses, the low temperature of freezing conditions is a critical factor that influences plants, including horticultural crops, decreasing their growth, development, and eventually quality and productivity. Fortunately, plants have developed a mechanism to improve the tolerance to freezing during exposure to a range of low temperatures. In this present review, current findings on freezing stress physiology and genetics in peach (Prunus persica) were refined with an emphasis on adaptive mechanisms for cold acclimation, deacclimation, and reacclimation. In addition, advancements using multi-omics and genetic engineering approaches unravel the molecular physiological mechanisms, including hormonal regulations and their general perceptions of freezing tolerance in peach were comprehensively described. This review might pave the way for future research to the horticulturalists and research scientists to overcome the challenges of freezing temperature and improvement of crop management in these conditions.
PMID: 35336695
J Plant Physiol , IF:3.549 , 2022 Apr , V271 : P153664 doi: 10.1016/j.jplph.2022.153664
Interplay between glutathione and mitogen-activated protein kinase 3 via transcription factor WRKY40 under combined osmotic and cold stress in Arabidopsis.
Plant Biology Laboratory, CSIR- Indian Institute of Chemical Biology, 4, Raja S. C. Mullick Road, Kolkata 700 032, West Bengal, India.; Department of Botany, JK College, Purulia, West bengal 723 101, India.; Plant Biology Laboratory, CSIR- Indian Institute of Chemical Biology, 4, Raja S. C. Mullick Road, Kolkata 700 032, West Bengal, India. Electronic address: sharmila@iicb.res.in.
Glutathione (GSH) plays a fundamental role in plant defense. Recent reports showed that enhanced GSH content activates mitogen-activated protein kinases (MPKs). However, the molecular mechanism behind this GSH-mediated MPKs expression during environmental challenges is unexplored. Here, we found that under control and combined abiotic stress-treated conditions, GSH feeding activates MPK3 expression in Arabidopsis thaliana by inducing its promoter, as established through the promoter activation assay. Additionally, transgenic A. thaliana overexpressing the LeMPK3 gene (AtMPK3 line) showed increased gamma-ECS expression, which was decreased in mpk3, the MPK3-depleted mutant. An in-gel kinase assay exhibited hyperphosphorylation of Myelin Basic Protein (MBP) in the GSH-fed AtMPK3 transgenic line. Under control and combined abiotic stress treated conditions, expression of transcription factor WRKY40 binding to MPK3 promoter was up-regulated under enhanced GSH condition. Interestingly, GSH feeding was rendered ineffective in altering MPK3 expression in the Atwrky40 mutant, emphasizing the involvement of WRKY40 in GSH-MPK3 interplay. This was further confirmed by a wrky40 co-transformation assay. The immunoprecipitation assay followed by ChIP-qPCR showed a significant increase in the binding of WRKY40 to MPK3 promoter, which further established MPK3-WRKY40 association upon GSH feeding. In conclusion, this study demonstrated that GSH modulates MPK3 expression via WRKY40 in response to stress.
PMID: 35279560
J Plant Physiol , IF:3.549 , 2022 Feb , V269 : P153602 doi: 10.1016/j.jplph.2021.153602
Cold responses in rice: From physiology to molecular biology.
State Key Laboratory of Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing, 100193, China. Electronic address: yangshuhua@cau.edu.cn.
As rice originated in tropical or subtropical areas, it is generally sensitive to cold stress. Understanding the physiological and molecular mechanisms underlying rice responses to cold stress can provide new power for engineering cold-tolerant and high-yielding rice varieties.
PMID: 34954427
Funct Integr Genomics , IF:3.41 , 2022 Feb , V22 (1) : P113-130 doi: 10.1007/s10142-021-00808-6
Proteomic analysis of a plastid gene encoding RPS4 mutant in Chinese cabbage (Brassica campestris L. ssp. pekinensis).
Department of Horticulture, Shenyang Agricultural University, 120 Dongling Road, Shenhe District, Shenyang, 110866, China.; Anhui Provincial Engineering Laboratory of Horticultural Crop Breeding College of Horticulture, Anhui Agricultural University, 130 Changjiang West Road, Shushan District, Hefei, China.; Biotechnology Research Institute, Xiqing District, Tianjin Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Jinjing Road 17 km, Tianjin, 300384, China.; Department of Horticulture, Shenyang Agricultural University, 120 Dongling Road, Shenhe District, Shenyang, 110866, China. fenghuiaaa@syau.edu.cn.
Plastids are important plant cell organelles containing a genome and bacterial-type 70S ribosomes-primarily composed of plastid ribosomal proteins and ribosomal RNAs. In this study, a chlorophyll-deficient mutant (cdm) obtained from double-haploid Chinese cabbage 'FT' was identified as a plastome mutant with an A-to-C base substitution in the plastid gene encoding the ribosomal protein RPS4. To further elucidate the function and regulatory mechanisms of RPS4, a comparative proteomic analysis was conducted between cdm and its wild-type 'FT' plants by isobaric tags and a relative and absolute quantitation (iTRAQ)-based strategy. A total of 6,245 proteins were identified, 540 of which were differentially abundant proteins (DAPs) in the leaves of cdm as compared to those of 'FT'-including 233 upregulated and 307 downregulated proteins. Upregulated DAPs were mainly involved in translation, organonitrogen compound biosynthetic process, ribosomes, and spliceosomes. Meanwhile, downregulated DAPs were mainly involved in photosynthesis, photosynthetic reaction centres, photosynthetic light harvesting, carbon fixation, and chlorophyll binding. These results indicated an important role of RPS4 in the regulation of growth and development of Chinese cabbage, possibly by regulating plastid translation activity by affecting the expression of specific photosynthesis- and cold stress-related proteins. Moreover, a multiple reaction monitoring (MRM) test and quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction analysis confirmed our iTRAQ results. Quantitative proteomic analysis allowed us to confirm diverse changes in the metabolic pathways between cdm and 'FT' plants. This work provides new insights into the regulation of chlorophyll biosynthesis and photosynthesis in Chinese cabbage.
PMID: 34881421
J Appl Genet , IF:3.24 , 2022 Feb , V63 (1) : P15-33 doi: 10.1007/s13353-021-00660-1
Quantitative trait loci and candidate genes associated with freezing tolerance of winter triticale (x Triticosecale Wittmack).
Institute of Biology, Pedagogical University of Cracow, Podchorazych 2, 30-084, Krakow, Poland.; Institute of Biology, Pedagogical University of Cracow, Podchorazych 2, 30-084, Krakow, Poland. gabriela.golebiowska@up.krakow.pl.; Department of Biotechnology and Bioinformatics, Faculty of Chemistry, Rzeszow University of Technology, Powstancow Warszawy 6, 35-959, Rzeszow, Poland.; Department of Plant Breeding, Physiology and Seed Science, University of Agriculture in Krakow, Podluzna 3, 30-239, Krakow, Poland.; Plant Breeding and Acclimatization Institute, National Research Institute, 05-870, Radzikow, Blonie, Poland.; The Franciszek Gorski Institute of Plant Physiology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Krakow, Poland.
Freezing tolerance of triticale is a major trait contributing to its winter hardiness. The identification of genomic regions - quantitative trait loci (QTL) and molecular markers associated with freezing tolerance in winter hexaploid triticale - was the aim of this study. For that purpose, a new genetic linkage map was developed for the population of 92 doubled haploid lines derived from 'Hewo' x 'Magnat' F1 hybrid. Those lines, together with parents were subjected to freezing tolerance test three times during two winter seasons. Plants were grown and cold-hardened under natural fall/winter conditions and then subjected to freezing in controlled conditions. Freezing tolerance was assessed as the plants recovery (REC), the electrolyte leakage (EL) from leaves and chlorophyll fluorescence parameters (JIP) after freezing. Three consistent QTL for several fluorescence parameters, electrolyte leakage, and the percentage of the survived plants were identified with composite interval mapping (CIM) and single marker analysis (SMA). The first locus Qfr.hm-7A.1 explained 9% of variation of both electrolyte leakage and plants recovery after freezing. Two QTL explaining up to 12% of variation in plants recovery and shared by selected chlorophyll fluorescence parameters were found on 4R and 5R chromosomes. Finally, main locus Qchl.hm-5A.1 was detected for chlorophyll fluorescence parameters that explained up to 19.6% of phenotypic variation. The co-located QTL on chromosomes 7A.1, 4R and 5R, clearly indicated physiological and genetic relationship of the plant survival after freezing with the ability to maintain optimal photochemical activity of the photosystem II and preservation of the cell membranes integrity. The genes located in silico within the identified QTL include those encoding BTR1-like protein, transmembrane helix proteins like potassium channel, and phosphoric ester hydrolase involved in response to osmotic stress as well as proteins involved in the regulation of the gene expression, chloroplast RNA processing, and pyrimidine salvage pathway. Additionally, our results confirm that the JIP test is a valuable tool to evaluate freezing tolerance of triticale under unstable winter environments.
PMID: 34491554
Plant Biol (Stuttg) , IF:3.081 , 2022 Mar doi: 10.1111/plb.13406
Hydrogen sulphide-mediated alleviation and its interplay with other signalling molecules during temperature stress.
Department of Botany, School of Life Sciences, Central University of Jammu, Samba, Jammu and Kashmir (UT), India.
The sessile habit of plants does not provide choices to escape the environmental constraints, leading to negative impacts on their growth and development. This causes significant losses in the agriculture sector and raises serious issues on global food security. Extreme temperatures (high or low) influence several aspects of plant life and can cause reproduction malfunction. Therefore, a strategy for temperature amelioration is necessary for the management of agricultural productivity. Supplementation with various chemicals (e.g. phytohormones, gasotransmitters, osmolytes) is considered a good choice to manage plant stress. Gasotransmitters are well-recognized for stress mitigation in plants, among which hydrogen sulphide (H2 S) has proved promising to alleviate stress. Temperature (heat/cold) stress can stimulate the endogenous production of H2 S in plants, and many studies have reported the significance of H2 S for temperature stress amelioration. Here, H2 S led to positive changes in plant physiological, biochemical and molecular responses, which are usually compromised during stress. Further, H2 S also coordinate with other signalling components that act either upstream or downstream during stress mitigation. This review focuses on the significance of H2 S for mitigation of temperature stress, with a comprehensive discussion on cross-talk with other signalling components or supplements (e.g. NO, H2 O2 , salicylic acid, trehalose, proline). Finally, the review provides a rational assessment and holistic understanding of H2 S-mediated mitigation of extreme temperature stress and addresses the prospects for development of an effective strategy to manage temperature stress.
PMID: 35238126
J Microsc , IF:1.758 , 2022 Mar doi: 10.1111/jmi.13101
Visualizing the effect of freezing on the vascular system of wheat in 3 dimensions by in-block imaging of dye-infiltrated plants.
USDA-ARS and North Carolina State University.; USDA-ARS.; North Carolina State University.
Infrared thermography has shown after roots of grasses freeze, ice spreads into the crown and then acropetally into leaves initially through vascular bundles. Leaves freeze singly with the oldest leaves freezing first and the youngest freezing later. Visualizing the vascular system in its native 3 dimensional state will help in the understanding of this freezing process. A 2 cm section of the crown that had been infiltrated with aniline blue was embedded in paraffin and sectioned with a microtome. A photograph of the surface of the tissue in the paraffin block was taken after the microtome blade removed each 20 micron section. Two hundred to 300 images were imported into Adobe After Effects and a 3D volume of the region infiltrated by aniline blue dye was constructed. The reconstruction revealed that roots fed into what is functionally a region inside the crown that could act as a reservoir from which all the leaves are able to draw water. When a single root was fed dye solution, the entire region filled with dye and the vascular bundles of every leaf took up the dye; this indicated that the vascular system of roots were not paired with individual leaves. Fluorescence microscopy suggested the edge of the reservoir might be composed of phenolic compounds. When plants were frozen, the edges of the reservoir became leaky and dye solution spread into the mesophyll outside the reservoir. The significance of this change with regard to freezing tolerance is not known at this time. Thermal cameras that allow visualization of water freezing in plants have shown that in crops like wheat, oats and barley, ice forms first at the bottom of the plant and then moves upward into leaves through water conducting channels. Leaves freeze one at a time with the oldest leaves freezing first and then younger ones further up the stem freeze later. To better understand why plants freeze like this we reconstructed a 3 dimensional view of the water conducting channels. After placing the roots of a wheat plant in a blue dye and allowing it to pull the dye upwards into leaves, we took a part of the stem just above the roots and embedded it in paraffin. We used a microtome, to slice a thin layer of the paraffin containing the plant and then photographed the surface after each layer was removed. After taking about 300 images we used Adobe After Effects software to re-construct the plant with the water conducting system in 3 dimensions. The 3D reconstruction showed that roots fed into a roughly spherical area at the bottom of the stem that could act as a kind of tank or reservoir from which the leaves pull up water. When we put just one root in dye, the entire reservoir filled up and the water conducting channels in every leaf took up the dye. This indicates that the water channels in roots were not directly connected to specific leaves as we had thought. When plants were frozen, the dye leaked out of the reservoir and spread into cells outside. Research is continuing to understand the significance of this change during freezing. It is possible that information about this effect can be used to help breeders develop more winter-hardy crop plants. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
PMID: 35319110
Heliyon , 2022 Mar , V8 (3) : Pe09049 doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2022.e09049
Nanostructured mesoporous silica materials induce hormesis on chili pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) under greenhouse conditions.
Biosystems Engineering Group, School of Engineering, Autonomous University of Queretaro-Campus Amazcala, Highway Amazcala-Chichimequillas S/N, Km 1, C.P 76265, Amazcala, El Marques, Queretaro, Mexico.; Center of Applied Physics and Advanced Technology-National Autonomous University of Mexico, Department of Nanotechnology, A.P1-1010, Queretaro, Queretaro, Mexico.; The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, 123 Huntington Street, New Haven, Connecticut, 06504, USA.; National Technologic of Mexico Campus Roque-Apaseo el Alto, C.P 38525, Apaseo el alto, Guanajuato, Mexico.; Postgraduate Studies Division, School of Engineering-Universitary Center, Autonomous University of Queretaro, C.P. 76010, Queretaro, Queretaro, Mexico.
Current agricultural practices for vegetable production are unsustainable, and the use of certain nanomaterials has shown significant potential for either plant growth promotion or defense induction in crop species. The aim of the present work was to evaluate the possible effects of two SBA nano-structured silica materials differing in morphology; SBA-15, with porous structure in parallel and with a highly ordered hexagonal array and SBA-16, with spheric nano-cages located in cubic arrays, as plant growth promoters/eustressors on chili pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) during cultivation under greenhouse conditions. The study was carried out at three foliarly applied concentrations (20, 50 and 100 ppm) of either SBA materials to determine effects on seed germination, seedling growth, plant performance and cold tolerance under greenhouse. Phytotoxicity tests were carried out using higher concentrations (100, 1000 and 200 ppm) applied by dipping or spraying onto chili pepper plants. Deionized water controls were included. The results showed that the SBA materials did not affect seed germination; however, SBA-15 at 50 ppm and 100 ppm applied by imbibition significantly increased seedling height (up to 8-fold) and provided enhanced growth performance in comparison with controls under select treatment regimes. Weekly application of SBA-15 at 20 ppm significantly increased stem diameter and cold tolerance; however, SBA-16 showed significant decreases in plant height (20 ppm biweekly applied) and stem diameter (20, 50 and 100 ppm biweekly applied). The results demonstrate that both SBA materials provided hormetic effects in a dose dependent manner on chili pepper production and protection to cold stress. No phytotoxic response was evident. These findings suggested the nanostructured mesoporous silica have potential as a sustainable amendment strategy to increase crop production under stress-inducing cultivation conditions.
PMID: 35287323