Trends Plant Sci , IF:18.313 , 2022 Sep , V27 (9) : P922-935 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
Dev Cell , IF:12.27 , 2022 Aug , V57 (15) : P1883-1898.e5 doi: 10.1016/j.devcel.2022.06.012
Sulfenylation of ENOLASE2 facilitates H2O2-conferred freezing tolerance in Arabidopsis.
State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Adaptation and Improvement, State Key Laboratory of Cotton Biology, School of Life Sciences, Key Laboratory of Plant Stress Biology, College of Agriculture, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China. Electronic address: liuwencheng@henu.edu.cn.; Key Laboratory of Biotechnology of Salt Tolerant Crops of Hainan Province, Hainan Key Laboratory for Sustainable Utilization of Tropical Bioresources (Provincial Ministry Building State Key Laboratory Breeding Base), College of Tropical Crops, Hainan University, Haikou, Hainan 570228, China.; Key Laboratory of Biotechnology of Salt Tolerant Crops of Hainan Province, Hainan Key Laboratory for Sustainable Utilization of Tropical Bioresources (Provincial Ministry Building State Key Laboratory Breeding Base), College of Tropical Crops, Hainan University, Haikou, Hainan 570228, China; Sanya Nanfan Research Institute of Hainan University, Hainan Yazhou Bay Seed Laboratory, Sanya, Hainan 572025, China.; State Key Laboratory of Hybrid Rice, College of Life Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan 430072, China.; Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Marine Pharmaceutical Compound Screening, Jiangsu Ocean University, Lianyungang 222005, China.; State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Adaptation and Improvement, State Key Laboratory of Cotton Biology, School of Life Sciences, Key Laboratory of Plant Stress Biology, College of Agriculture, Henan University, Kaifeng 475004, China.; Key Laboratory of Biotechnology of Salt Tolerant Crops of Hainan Province, Hainan Key Laboratory for Sustainable Utilization of Tropical Bioresources (Provincial Ministry Building State Key Laboratory Breeding Base), College of Tropical Crops, Hainan University, Haikou, Hainan 570228, China; Sanya Nanfan Research Institute of Hainan University, Hainan Yazhou Bay Seed Laboratory, Sanya, Hainan 572025, China. Electronic address: yuanhongmei@hainanu.edu.cn.
H2O2 affects the expression of genes that are involved in plant responses to diverse environmental stresses; however, the underlying mechanisms remain elusive. Here, we demonstrate that H2O2 enhances plant freezing tolerance through its effect on a protein product of low expression of osmotically responsive genes2 (LOS2). LOS2 is translated into a major product, cytosolic enolase2 (ENO2), and sometimes an alternative product, the transcription repressor c-Myc-binding protein (MBP-1). ENO2, but not MBP-1, promotes cold tolerance by binding the promoter of C-repeat/DRE binding factor1 (CBF1), a central transcription factor in plant cold signaling, thus activating its expression. Overexpression of CBF1 restores freezing sensitivity of a LOS2 loss-of-function mutant. Furthermore, cold-induced H2O2 increases nuclear import and transcriptional binding activity of ENO2 by sulfenylating cysteine 408 and thereby promotes its oligomerization. Collectively, our results illustrate how H2O2 activates plant cold responses by sulfenylating ENO2 and promoting its oligomerization, leading to enhanced nuclear translocation and transcriptional activation of CBF1.
PMID: 35809562
Plant Cell , IF:11.277 , 2022 Aug doi: 10.1093/plcell/koac253
WRKY53 negatively regulates rice cold tolerance at the booting stage by fine-tuning anther gibberellin levels.
Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Key Laboratory of Soybean Molecular Design Breeding, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Harbin 150081, China.; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China.; State Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Germplasm Enhancement, Jiangsu Collaborative Innovation Center for Modern Crop Production, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China.; Key Laboratory of Saline-alkali Vegetation Ecology Restoration (Northeast Forestry University), Ministry of Education, Harbin 150040, China.; College of Life Science, Northeast Forestry University, Harbin 150040, China.; The Innovative Academy of Seed Design, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Cold tolerance at the booting stage (CTB) is a major factor limiting rice (Oryza sativa L.) productivity and geographical distribution. A few cold-tolerance genes have been identified, but they either need to be overexpressed to result in CTB or cause yield penalties, limiting their utility for breeding. Here, we characterize the function of the cold-induced transcription factor WRKY53 in rice. The wrky53 mutant displays increased CTB, as determined by higher seed setting. Low temperature is associated with lower gibberellin (GA) contents in anthers in the wild type but not in the wrky53 mutant, which accumulates slightly more GA in its anthers. WRKY53 directly binds to the promoters of GA biosynthesis genes and transcriptionally represses them in anthers. In addition, we uncover a possible mechanism by which GA regulates male fertility: SLENDER RICE1 (SLR1) interacts with and sequesters two critical transcription factors for tapetum development, UNDEVELOPED TAPETUM1 (UDT1) and TAPETUM DEGENERATION RETARDATION (TDR), and GA alleviates the sequestration by SLR1, thus allowing UDT1 and TDR to activate transcription. Finally, knocking out WRKY53 in diverse varieties increases cold tolerance without a yield penalty, leading to a higher yield in rice subjected to cold stress. Together, these findings provide a target for improving CTB in rice.
PMID: 35972376
New Phytol , IF:10.151 , 2022 Sep , V235 (6) : P2331-2349 doi: 10.1111/nph.18304
Two AT-Hook proteins regulate A/NINV7 expression to modulate sucrose catabolism for cold tolerance in Poncirus trifoliata.
Key Laboratory of Horticultural Plant Biology (MOE), College of Horticulture and Forestry Science, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.; Department of Horticulture, Faculty of Agriculture, Tishreen University, Lattakia, Syria.; Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Wuhan, 430070, China.
Invertase (INV)-mediated sucrose (Suc) hydrolysis, leading to the irreversible production of glucose (Glc) and fructose (Frc), plays an essential role in abiotic stress tolerance of plants. However, the regulatory network associated with the Suc catabolism in response to cold environment remains largely elusive. Herein, the cold-induced alkaline/neutral INV gene PtrA/NINV7 of trifoliate orange (Poncirus trifoliata (L.) Raf.) was shown to function in cold tolerance via mediating the Suc hydrolysis. Meanwhile, a nuclear matrix-associated region containing A/T-rich sequences within its promoter was indispensable for the cold induction of PtrA/NINV7. Two AT-Hook Motif Containing Nuclear Localized (AHL) proteins, PtrAHL14 and PtrAHL17, were identified as upstream transcriptional activators of PtrA/NINV7 by interacting with the A/T-rich motifs. PtrAHL14 and PtrAHL17 function positively in the cold tolerance by modulating PtrA/NINV7-mediated Suc catabolism. Furthermore, both PtrAHL14 and PtrAHL17 could form homo- and heterodimers between each other, and interacted with two histone acetyltransferases (HATs), GCN5 and TAF1, leading to elevated histone3 acetylation level under the cold stress. Taken together, our findings unraveled a new cold-responsive signaling module (AHL14/17-HATs-A/NINV7) for orchestration of Suc catabolism and cold tolerance, which shed light on the molecular mechanisms underlying Suc catabolism catalyzed by A/NINVs under cold stress.
PMID: 35695205
Plant Physiol , IF:8.34 , 2022 Aug , V190 (1) : P605-620 doi: 10.1093/plphys/kiac267
A natural antisense RNA improves chrysanthemum cold tolerance by regulating the transcription factor DgTCP1.
Department of Ornamental Horticulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, Sichuan 611130, People's Republic of China.
Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are widely involved in the regulation of plant growth and development, but their mechanism of action in response to cold stress in plants remains unclear. Here, we found an lncRNA transcribed from the antisense strand of DgTCP1 (class I Teosinte branched1/Cycloidea/Proliferating [TCP] transcription factor) of chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum morifolium Ramat.), named DglncTCP1. During the response of chrysanthemum to cold stress, overexpression of DgTCP1 improved the cold tolerance of chrysanthemum, while the DgTCP1 editing line (dgtcp1) showed decreased tolerance to cold stress. Overexpression of DglncTCP1 also increased the cold tolerance of chrysanthemum, while the DglncTCP1 amiRNA lines (DglncTCP1 amiR-18/38) also showed decreased tolerance to cold stress. Additionally, the overexpression of DglncTCP1 upregulated the expression of DgTCP1. This indicated that DglncTCP1 may play a cis-regulatory role in the regulatory process of DgTCP1 in cold tolerance. DglncTCP1 acts as a scaffold to recruit the histone modification protein DgATX (ARABIDOPSIS TRITHORAX from chrysanthemum) to DgTCP1 to enhance H3K4me3 levels, thereby activating DgTCP1 expression. Moreover, DgTCP1 can directly target DgPOD (peroxidase gene from chrysanthemum) to promote its expression and reduce reactive oxygen species accumulation, thereby improving the cold tolerance of chrysanthemum. In conclusion, these results suggest that natural antisense lncRNA plays a key role in improving the cold tolerance of chrysanthemum.
PMID: 35728057
Food Chem , IF:7.514 , 2022 Aug , V386 : P132720 doi: 10.1016/j.foodchem.2022.132720
Characterization of honey peach (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch) aroma variation and unraveling the potential aroma metabolism mechanism through proteomics analysis under abiotic stress.
Institute of Food Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), Beijing 100193, China.; Institute of Food Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), Beijing 100193, China; Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hubei 445000, China.; Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hubei 445000, China.; Institute of Food Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), Beijing 100193, China. Electronic address: liyi01@caas.cn.; Institute of Food Science and Technology, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), Beijing 100193, China. Electronic address: lijianxun@caas.cn.
Honey peach (Prunus persica (L.) Batsch) is a climacteric fruit with short storage period. Generally, the low temperature storage (LTS) technology is implemented to lessen aroma loss and keep the quality. However, the LTS procedure brings about cold stress issues and affects the aroma metabolism. It is essential to unravel the primary aroma and the corresponding metabolism mechanism through key proteins under abiotic stress. In this study, the primary components were characterized under LTS at 1 degrees C during 0 to 40 days. Furthermore, the proteomics analysis was performed to acquire differentially expressed proteins to clarify the underlying metabolism mechanisms of the primary aroma and potential proteins. As a result, four proteins were considered as potential key proteins that associated with fatty acid and amino acid metabolism under cold stress. Additionally, this study provides theoretical cornerstones for regulating and improving the quality of honey peach.
PMID: 35339764
Plant Cell Environ , IF:7.228 , 2022 Sep , V45 (9) : P2762-2779 doi: 10.1111/pce.14386
Modulation of plant development and chilling stress responses by alternative splicing events under control of the spliceosome protein SmEb in Arabidopsis.
School of Life Sciences, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, Anhui, China.; Shanghai Center for Plant Stress Biology and Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, China.; Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, USA.; State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas and College of Horticulture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, China.
Cold stress resulting from chilling and freezing temperatures substantially inhibits plant growth and reduces crop production worldwide. Tremendous research efforts have been focused on elucidating the molecular mechanisms of freezing tolerance in plants. However, little is known about the molecular nature of chilling stress responses in plants. Here we found that two allelic mutants in a spliceosome component gene SmEb (smeb-1 and smeb-2) are defective in development and responses to chilling stress. RNA-seq analysis revealed that SmEb controls the splicing of many pre-messenger RNAs (mRNAs) under chilling stress. Our results suggest that SmEb is important to maintain proper ratio of the two COP1 splicing variants (COP1a/COP1b) to fine tune the level of HY5. In addition, the transcription factor BES1 shows a dramatic defect in pre-mRNA splicing in the smeb mutants. Ectopic expression of the two BES1 splicing variants enhances the chilling sensitivity of the smeb-1 mutant. Furthermore, biochemical and genetic analysis showed that CBFs act as negative upstream regulators of SmEb by directly suppressing its transcription. Together, our results demonstrate that proper alternative splicing of pre-mRNAs controlled by the spliceosome component SmEb is critical for plant development and chilling stress responses.
PMID: 35770732
Plant Cell Environ , IF:7.228 , 2022 Aug doi: 10.1111/pce.14432
Comparative transcriptomics analysis reveals a calcineurin B-like gene to positively regulate constitutive and acclimated freezing tolerance in potato.
Key Laboratory of Biology and Genetic Improvement of Tuber and Root Crop, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs/Lingnan Guangdong Laboratory of Modern Agriculture/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, People's Republic of China.; Key Laboratory of Horticultural Plant Biology, MOE; Key Laboratory of Potato Biology and Biotechnology, MARA; College of Horticulture and Forestry Science, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, People's Republic of China.; Max Planck Institute of Molecular Plant Physiology, Potsdam-Golm, Germany.
Freezing stress is a major limiting factor in crop production. To increase frost-hardiness of crops via breeding, deciphering the genes conferring freezing-tolerance is vital. Potato cultivars (Solanum tuberosum) are generally freezing-sensitive, but some potato wild species are freezing-tolerant, including Solanum commersonii, Solanum malmeanum and Solanum acaule. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms conferring the freezing-tolerance to the wild species remain to be deciphered. In this study, five representative genotypes of the above-mentioned species with distinct freezing-tolerance were investigated. Comparative transcriptomics analysis showed that SaCBL1-like (calcineurin B-like protein) was upregulated substantially in all of the freezing-tolerant genotypes. Transgenic overexpression and known-down lines of SaCBL1-like were examined. SaCBL1-like was shown to confer freezing-tolerance without significantly impacting main agricultural traits. A functional mechanism analysis showed that SaCBL1-like increases the expression of the C-repeat binding factor-regulon as well as causes a prolonged higher expression of CBF1 after exposure to cold conditions. Furthermore, SaCBL1-like was found to only interact with SaCIPK3-1 (CBL-interacting protein kinase) among all apparent cold-responsive SaCIPKs. Our study identifies SaCBL1-like to play a vital role in conferring freezing tolerance in potato, which may provide a basis for a targeted potato breeding for frost-hardiness.
PMID: 36041917
J Integr Plant Biol , IF:7.061 , 2022 Sep doi: 10.1111/jipb.13356
Brassinosteroid signaling positively regulates abscisic acid biosynthesis in response to chilling stress in tomato.
Department of Horticulture, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, 310058, China.; Hainan Institute, Zhejiang University, Sanya, 572025, China.; Key Laboratory of Horticultural Plants Growth, Development and Quality Improvement, Agricultural Ministry of China, Hangzhou, 310058, China.
Brassinosteroids (BRs) and abscisic acid (ABA) are essential regulators of plant growth and stress tolerance. Although the antagonistic interaction of BRs and ABA is proposed to ensure the balance between growth and defense in model plants, the crosstalk between BRs and ABA in response to chilling in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), a warm-climate horticultural crop, is unclear. Here, we determined that overexpression of the BR biosynthesis gene DWARF (DWF) or the key BR signaling gene BRASSINAZOLE-RESISTANT1 (BZR1) increases ABA levels in response to chilling stress via positively regulating the expression of the ABA biosynthesis gene 9-CIS-EPOXYCAROTENOID DIOXYGENASE1 (NCED1). BR-induced chilling tolerance was mostly dependent on ABA biosynthesis. Chilling stress or high BR levels decreased the abundance of BRASSINOSTEROID-INSENSITIVE2 (BIN2), a negative regulator of BR signaling. Moreover, we observed that chilling stress increases BR levels and results in the accumulation of BZR1. BIN2 negatively regulated both the accumulation of BZR1 protein and chilling tolerance by suppressing ABA biosynthesis. Our results demonstrate that BR signaling positively regulates chilling tolerance via ABA biosynthesis in tomato. The study has implications in production of warm-climate crops in horticulture. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
PMID: 36053143
J Exp Bot , IF:6.992 , 2022 Sep doi: 10.1093/jxb/erac370
The SlMYB15 transcription factor targeted by sly-miR156e-3p positively regulates ABA-mediated cold tolerance in tomato.
Department of Horticulture, Zijingang Campus, Zhejiang University, 866 Yuhangtang Road, Hangzhou, 310058, P.R. China.; Henan International Joint Laboratory of Crop Gene Resources and Improvements, School of Agricultural Sciences, Zhengzhou University, Henan, Zhengzhou 45001, China.; Key Laboratory of Horticultural Plants Growth and Development, Agricultural Ministry of China, Yuhangtang Road 866, Hangzhou, 310058, P.R. China.
Cold is a common abiotic environmental stress that seriously affects plant growth and development. MYB transcription factors are regulatory molecules that play important roles in various biological processes. We have previously demonstrated that SlMYB15 positively regulates cold tolerance in tomato. However, the underlying mechanism of SlMYB15-induced cold tolerance remains largely unexplored. Here, cold-induced SlMYB15 was found to be targeted by Solanum lycopersicum (sly)-miR156e-3p, which was decreased by cold stimulus in tomato. Tomato plants overexpressing sly-MIR156e-3p displayed significant enhancement in the susceptibility to cold stress, while silencing of sly-miR156e-3p by an artificial microRNA interference strategy caused tomato plants to be more tolerant to cold. Moreover, both overexpression of SlMYB15 and silencing of sly-miR156e-3p increased the accumulation of ABA, owing to that SlMYB15 can directly bind to the promoter regions of ABA biosynthesis and signalling genes, SlNCED1 and SlABF4, resulting in an enhanced cold tolerance. Further experiments showed that SlMYB15 and sly-miR156e-3p also coordinated the cold tolerance of tomato via reactive oxygen species (ROS) signalling pathway, as reflected by the increased expression of SlRBOH1, enhanced H2O2 and O2*accumulation, amplified activity of antioxidant enzymes in SlMYB15-overexpressing and sly-miR156e-3p-silencing plants. Taken together, our results demonstrate that SlMYB15 targeted by sly-miR156e-3p confers higher survivability of cold stress of plants via ABA and ROS signals. This study will be valuable for breeding improved crop cultivars better equipped with cold resistance.
PMID: 36103722
J Exp Bot , IF:6.992 , 2022 Aug , V73 (14) : P4981-4995 doi: 10.1093/jxb/erac195
Genetic basis and adaptive implications of temperature-dependent and temperature-independent effects of drought on chickpea reproductive phenology.
School of Agriculture, Food and Wine, The University of Adelaide, Australia.; South Australian Research and Development Institute, Australia.; Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Kingaroy, Australia.
Water deficit often hastens flowering of pulses partially because droughted plants are hotter. Separating temperature-independent and temperature-dependent effects of drought is important to understand, model, and manipulate phenology. We define a new trait, drought effect on phenology (DEP), as the difference in flowering time between irrigated and rainfed crops, and use FST genome scanning to probe for genomic regions under selection for this trait in chickpea (Cicer arietinum). Owing to the negligible variation in daylength in our dataset, variation in phenology with sowing date was attributed to temperature and water; hence, genomic regions overlapping for early- and late-sown crops would associate with temperature-independent effects and non-overlapping genomic regions would associate with temperature-dependent effects. Thermal-time to flowering was shortened with increasing water stress, as quantified with carbon isotope composition. Genomic regions on chromosomes 4-8 were under selection for DEP. An overlapping region for early and late sowing on chromosome 8 revealed a temperature-independent effect with four candidate genes: BAM1, BAM2, HSL2, and ANT. The non-overlapping regions included six candidate genes: EMF1, EMF2, BRC1/TCP18, BZR1, NPGR1, and ERF1. Modelling showed that DEP reduces the likelihood of drought and heat stress at the expense of increased likelihood of cold stress. Accounting for DEP would improve genetic and phenotypic models of phenology.
PMID: 35526198
Plant J , IF:6.417 , 2022 Aug doi: 10.1111/tpj.15950
The OsWRKY63-OsWRKY76-OsDREB1B module regulates chilling tolerance in rice.
Jilin Province Engineering Laboratory of Plant Genetic Improvement, College of Plant Science, Jilin University, Changchun, China.
Rice (Oryza sativa) is sensitive to low temperatures, which affects the yield and quality of rice. Therefore, uncovering the molecular mechanisms behind chilling tolerance is a critical task for improving cold tolerance in rice cultivars. Here, we report that OsWRKY63, a WRKY transcription factor with an unknown function, negatively regulates chilling tolerance in rice. OsWRKY63-overexpressing rice lines are more sensitive to cold stress. Conversely, OsWRKY63-knockout mutants generated using a CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing approach exhibited increased chilling tolerance. OsWRKY63 was expressed in all rice tissues, and OsWRKY63 expression was induced under cold stress, dehydration stress, high salinity stress, and ABA treatment. OsWRKY63 localized in the nucleus plays a role as a transcription repressor and downregulates many cold stress-related genes and reactive oxygen species scavenging-related genes. Molecular, biochemical, and genetic assays showed that OsWRKY76 is a direct target gene of OsWRKY63 and that its expression is suppressed by OsWRKY63. OsWRKY76-knockout lines had dramatically decreased cold tolerance, and the cold-induced expression of five OsDREB1 genes was repressed. OsWRKY76 interacted with OsbHLH148, transactivating the expression of OsDREB1B to enhance chilling tolerance in rice. Thus, our study suggests that OsWRKY63 negatively regulates chilling tolerance through the OsWRKY63-OsWRKY76-OsDREB1B transcriptional regulatory cascade in rice.
PMID: 35996876
Plant J , IF:6.417 , 2022 Aug doi: 10.1111/tpj.15944
Temperature modulation of CAMTA3 gene induction activity is mediated through the DNA binding domain.
MSU-DOE Plant Research Laboratory, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48824, USA.; MSU Plant Resilience Institute, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48824, USA.; Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48824, USA.
The calmodulin-binding transcription activator (CAMTA) proteins of Arabidopsis thaliana play a major role in cold acclimation, contributing to the rapid induction of the C-REPEAT BINDING FACTOR (CBF) genes and other genes that impart freezing tolerance in plants exposed to cold temperature (4 degrees C). The goal of this study was to better understand how the gene induction activity of CAMTA3 is modulated by temperature. Our results indicate that a severely truncated version of CAMTA3, CAMTA3(334) , which includes the N-terminal CG-1 DNA binding domain and a newly identified transcriptional activation domain (TAD), was able to rapidly induce the expression of CBF2 and two newly identified target genes, EXPANSIN-LIKE A1 (EXPL1) and NINE-CIS-EPOXYCAROTENOID DIOXYGENASE 3 (NCED3), in response to cold temperature. Additionally, CAMTA3(334) was able to restore freezing tolerance when expressed in a camta23 double mutant. The ability of CAMTA3 and CAMTA3(334) to induce target genes at cold temperature did not involve increased levels of these proteins or increased binding of these proteins to target gene promoters in cold-treated plants. Rather, domain-swapping experiments indicated that the CAMTA3 CG-1 domain conferred temperature dependence to the ability of the CAMTA3 TAD to induce gene expression. The CG-1 domain also enabled the TAD to induce the expression of target genes at a moderate temperature (22 degrees C) in response to cycloheximide treatment, consistent with the TAD activity not being intrinsically temperature dependent. We propose a working model in which the temperature modulation of CAMTA3 gene induction activity occurs independently from the C-terminal calmodulin-binding domains that previously have been proposed to activate CAMTA3 transcriptional activity in response to cold temperature.
PMID: 35960653
Mol Ecol , IF:6.185 , 2022 Aug doi: 10.1111/mec.16666
Polygenic adaptation contributes to the invasive success of the Colorado potato beetle.
Key Laboratory of Zoological Systematics and Evolution, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.; Beijing Academy of Agriculture and Forestry Sciences, Institute of Plant and Environmental Protection, Beijing, China.; Department of Entomology and Wildlife Ecology, University of Delaware, Newark, Delaware, USA.; Institute for Evolution & Biodiversity, University of Munster, Munster, Germany.; Laboratory of Biological Plant Protection and Biotechnology, Novosibirsk State Agrarian University, Novosibirsk, Russia.; College of Life Science, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
How invasive species cope with novel selective pressures with limited genetic variation is a fundamental question in molecular ecology. Several mechanisms have been proposed, but they can lack generality. Here, we addressed an alternative solution, polygenic adaptation, wherein traits that arise from multiple combinations of loci may be less sensitive to loss of variation during invasion. We tested the polygenic signal of environmental adaptation of Colorado potato beetle (CPB) introduced in Eurasia. Population genomic analyses showed declining genetic diversity in the eastward expansion of Eurasian populations, and weak population genetic structure (except for the invasion fronts in Asia). Demographic history showed that all populations shared a strong bottleneck about 100 years ago when CPB was introduced to Europe. Genome scans revealed a suite of genes involved in activity regulation functions that are plausibly related to cold stress, including some well-founded functions (e.g., the activity of phosphodiesterase, the G-protein regulator) and discrete functions. Such polygenic architecture supports the hypothesis that polygenic adaptation and potentially genetic redundancy can fuel the adaptation of CPB despite strong genetic depletion, thus representing a promising general mechanism for resolving the genetic paradox of invasion. More broadly, most complex traits based on polygenes may be less sensitive to invasive bottlenecks, thus ensuring the evolutionary success of invasive species in novel environments.
PMID: 35984732
Int J Mol Sci , IF:5.923 , 2022 Sep , V23 (18) doi: 10.3390/ijms231810538
Overexpression of a Fragaria vesca MYB Transcription Factor Gene (FvMYB82) Increases Salt and Cold 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.; Institute of Rural Revitalization Science and Technology, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin 150028, China.
The MYB transcription factor (TF) family is one of the largest transcription families in plants, which is widely involved in the responses to different abiotic stresses, such as salt, cold, and drought. In the present study, a new MYB TF gene was cloned from Fragaria vesca (a diploid strawberry) and named FvMYB82. The open reading frame (ORF) of FvMYB82 was found to be 960 bp, encoding 319 amino acids. Sequence alignment results and predictions of the protein structure indicated that the FvMYB82 contained the conserved R2R3-MYB domain. Subcellular localization analysis showed that FvMYB82 was localized onto the nucleus. Furthermore, the qPCR showed that the expression level of FvMYB82 was higher in new leaves and roots than in mature leaves and stems. When dealing with different stresses, the expression level of FvMYB82 in F. vesca seedlings changed markedly, especially for salt and cold stress. When FvMYB82 was introduced into Arabidopsis thaliana, the tolerances to salt and cold stress of FvMYB82-OE A. thaliana were greatly improved. When dealt with salt and cold treatments, compared with wild-type and unloaded line (UL) A. thaliana, the transgenic lines had higher contents of proline and chlorophyll, as well as higher activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), and catalase (CAT). However, the transgenic A. thaliana had lower level of malondialdehyde (MDA) and electrolytic leakage (EL) than wild-type and UL A. thaliana under salt and cold stress. Meanwhile, FvMYB82 can also regulate the expression of downstream genes associated with salt stress (AtSnRK2.4, AtSnRK2.6, AtKUP6, and AtNCED3) and cold stress (AtCBF1, AtCBF2, AtCOR15a, and AtCOR78). Therefore, these results indicated that FvMYB82 probably plays an important role in the response to salt and cold stresses in A. thaliana by regulating downstream related genes.
PMID: 36142448
Int J Mol Sci , IF:5.923 , 2022 Sep , V23 (18) doi: 10.3390/ijms231810270
Identification of the WRKY Gene Family and Characterization of Stress-Responsive Genes in Taraxacum kok-saghyz Rodin.
National Engineering Laboratory of Crop Stress Resistance Breeding, School of Life Sciences, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, China.
WRKY transcription factors present unusual research value because of their critical roles in plant physiological processes and stress responses. Taraxacum kok-saghyz Rodin (TKS) is a perennial herb of dandelion in the Asteraceae family. However, the research on TKS WRKY TFs is limited. In this study, 72 TKS WRKY TFs were identified and named. Further comparison of the core motifs and the structure of the WRKY motif was analyzed. These TFs were divided into three groups through phylogenetic analysis. Genes in the same group of TkWRKY usually exhibit a similar exon-intron structure and motif composition. In addition, virtually all the TKS WRKY genes contained several cis-elements related to stress response. Expression profiling of the TkWRKY genes was assessed using transcriptome data sets and Real-Time RT-PCR data in tissues during physiological development, under abiotic stress and hormonal treatments. For instance, the TkWRKY18, TkWRKY23, and TkWRKY38 genes were significantly upregulated during cold stress, whereas the TkWRKY21 gene was upregulated under heat-stress conditions. These results could provide a basis for further studies on the function of the TKS WRKY gene family and genetic amelioration of TKS germplasm.
PMID: 36142183
Int J Mol Sci , IF:5.923 , 2022 Sep , V23 (17) doi: 10.3390/ijms23179999
Genome-Wide Identification of Polyamine Oxidase (PAO) Family Genes: Roles of CaPAO2 and CaPAO4 in the Cold Tolerance of Pepper (Capsicum annuum L.).
College of Horticulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China.; Institute for Processing and Storage of Agricultural Products, Chengdu Academy of Agricultural and Forest Sciences, Chengdu 611130, China.; Institute of Pomology and Olericulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu 611130, China.
Polyamine oxidases (PAOs), which are flavin adenine dinucleotide-dependent enzymes, catalyze polyamine (PA) catabolism, producing hydrogen peroxide (H2O2). Several PAO family members have been identified in plants, but their expression in pepper plants remains unclear. Here, six PAO genes were identified in the 'Zunla-1' pepper genome (named CaPAO1-CaPAO6 according to their chromosomal positions). The PAO proteins were divided into four subfamilies according to phylogenetics: CaPAO1 belongs to subfamily I; CaPAO3 and CaPAO5 belong to subfamily III; and CaPAO2, CaPAO4, and CaPAO6 belong to subfamily IV (none belong to subfamily II). CaPAO2, CaPAO4, and CaPAO6 were ubiquitously and highly expressed in all tissues, CaPAO1 was mainly expressed in flowers, whereas CaPAO3 and CaPAO5 were expressed at very low levels in all tissues. RNA-seq analysis revealed that CaPAO2 and CaPAO4 were notably upregulated by cold stress. CaPAO2 and CaPAO4 were localized in the peroxisome, and spermine was the preferred substrate for PA catabolism. CaPAO2 and CaPAO4 overexpression in Arabidopsis thaliana significantly enhanced freezing-stress tolerance by increasing antioxidant enzyme activity and decreasing malondialdehyde, H2O2, and superoxide accumulation, accompanied by the upregulation of cold-responsive genes (AtCOR15A, AtRD29A, AtCOR47, and AtKIN1). Thus, we identified candidate PAO genes for breeding cold-stress-tolerant transgenic pepper cultivars.
PMID: 36077395
Int J Mol Sci , IF:5.923 , 2022 Aug , V23 (17) doi: 10.3390/ijms23179827
Isolation and Functional Analysis of MbCBF2, a Malus baccata (L.) Borkh CBF Transcription Factor Gene, with Functions in Tolerance to Cold and Salt Stress in Transgenic 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.
CBF transcription factors (TFs) are key regulators of plant stress tolerance and play an integral role in plant tolerance to adverse growth environments. However, in the current research situation, there are few reports on the response of the CBF gene to Begonia stress. Therefore, this experiment investigated a novel CBF TF gene, named MbCBF2, which was isolated from M. baccata seedlings. According to the subcellular localization results, the MbCBF2 protein was located in the nucleus. In addition, the expression level of MbCBF2 was higher in new leaves and roots under low-temperature and high-salt induction. After the introduction of MbCBF2 into Arabidopsis thaliana, the adaptability of transgenic A. thaliana to cold and high-salt environments was significantly enhanced. In addition, the high expression of MbCBF2 can also change many physiological indicators in transgenic A. thaliana, such as increased chlorophyll and proline content, superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD) and catalase (CAT) activity, and reduced malondialdehyde (MDA) content. Therefore, it can be seen from the above results that MbCBF2 can positively regulate the response of A. thaliana to low-temperature and osmotic stress. In addition, MbCBF2 can also regulate the expression of its downstream genes in transgenic lines. It can not only positively regulate the expression of the downstream key genes AtCOR15a, AtERD10, AtRD29a/b and AtCOR6.6/47, related to cold stress at low temperatures, but can also positively regulate the expression of the downstream key genes AtNCED3, AtCAT1, AtP5CS, AtPIF1/4 and AtSnRK2.4, related to salt stress. That is, the overexpression of the MbCBF2 gene further improved the adaptability and tolerance of transgenic plants to low-temperature and high-salt environments.
PMID: 36077223
Int J Mol Sci , IF:5.923 , 2022 Aug , V23 (16) doi: 10.3390/ijms23169472
A Long Noncoding RNA Derived from lncRNA-mRNA Networks Modulates Seed Vigor.
National Engineering Research Center of Plant Space Breeding, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China.
The discovery of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) has filled a great gap in our understanding of posttranscriptional gene regulation in a variety of biological processes related to plant stress responses. However, systematic analyses of the lncRNAs expressed in rice seeds that germinate under cold stress have been elusive. In this study, we performed strand-specific whole transcriptome sequencing in germinated rice seeds under cold stress and normal temperature. A total of 6258 putative lncRNAs were identified and expressed in a stage-specific manner compared to mRNA. By investigating the targets of differentially expressed (DE) lncRNAs of LT-I (phase I of low temperature)/NT-I (phase I of normal temperature), it was shown that the auxin-activated signaling pathway was significantly enriched, and twenty-three protein-coding genes with most of the members of the SAUR family located in chromosome 9 were identified as the candidate target genes that may interact with five lncRNAs. A seed vigor-related lncRNA, SVR, which interplays with the members of the SAUR gene family in cis was eventually identified. The CRISPR/Cas 9 engineered mutations in SVR cause delay of germination. The findings provided new insights into the connection between lncRNAs and the auxin-activated signaling pathway in the regulation of rice seed vigor.
PMID: 36012737
Int J Mol Sci , IF:5.923 , 2022 Aug , V23 (16) doi: 10.3390/ijms23169439
Overexpression of PgCBF3 and PgCBF7 Transcription Factors from Pomegranate Enhances Freezing Tolerance in Arabidopsis under the Promoter Activity Positively Regulated by PgICE1.
College of Horticulture, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450002, China.
Cold stress limits plant growth, development and yields, and the C-repeat binding factors (CBFs) function in the cold resistance in plants. However, how pomegranate CBF transcription factors respond to cold signal remains unclear. Considering the significantly up-regulated expression of PgCBF3 and PgCBF7 in cold-tolerant Punica granatum 'Yudazi' in comparison with cold-sensitive 'Tunisia' under 4 degrees C, the present study focused on the two CBF genes. PgCBF3 was localized in the nucleus, while PgCBF7 was localized in the cell membrane, cytoplasm, and nucleus, both owning transcriptional activation activity in yeast. Yeast one-hybrid and dual-luciferase reporter assay further confirmed that PgICE1 could specifically bind to and significantly enhance the activation activity of the promoters of PgCBF3 and PgCBF7. Compared with the wild-type plants, the PgCBF3 and PgCBF7 transgenic Arabidopsis thaliana lines had the higher survival rate after cold treatment; exhibited increased the contents of soluble sugar and proline, while lower electrolyte leakage, malondialdehyde content, and reactive oxygen species production, accompanying with elevated enzyme activity of catalase, peroxidase, and superoxide dismutase; and upregulated the expression of AtCOR15A, AtCOR47, AtRD29A, and AtKIN1. Collectively, PgCBFs were positively regulated by the upstream PgICE1 and mediated the downstream COR genes expression, thereby enhancing freezing tolerance.
PMID: 36012703
Int J Mol Sci , IF:5.923 , 2022 Aug , V23 (16) doi: 10.3390/ijms23168914
Characterization of the SWEET Gene Family in Longan (Dimocarpus longan) and the Role of DlSWEET1 in Cold Tolerance.
Institute of Genetics and Breeding in Horticultural Plants, College of Horticulture, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China.
Sugars will eventually be exported transporters (SWEET), a group of relatively novel sugar transporters, that play important roles in phloem loading, seed and fruit development, pollen development, and stress response in plants. Longan (Dimocarpus longan), a subtropic fruit tree with high economic value, is sensitive to cold. However, whether the SWEET gene family plays a role in conferring cold tolerance upon longan remains unknown. Here, a total of 20 longan SWEET (DlSWEET) genes were identified, and their phylogenetic relationships, gene structures, cis-acting elements, and tissue-specific expression patterns were systematically analyzed. This family is divided into four clades. Gene structures and motifs analyses indicated that the majority of DlSWEETs in each clade shared similar exon-intron organization and conserved motifs. Tissue-specific gene expression suggested diverse possible functions for DlSWEET genes. Cis-elements analysis and quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) analysis revealed that DlSWEET1 responded to cold stress. Notably, the overexpression of DlSWEET1 improved cold tolerance in transgenic Arabidopsis, suggesting that DlSWEET1 might play a positive role in D. longan's responses to cold stress. Together, these results contribute to a better understanding of SWEET genes, which could serve as a foundation for the further functional identification of these genes.
PMID: 36012186
Int J Mol Sci , IF:5.923 , 2022 Sep , V23 (18) doi: 10.3390/ijms231810739
Transcriptome Analysis of the Responses of Rice Leaves to Chilling and Subsequent Recovery.
Fujian Provincial Key Laboratory of Agroecological Processing and Safety Monitoring, College of Life Sciences, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China.; Key Laboratory of Crop Ecology and Molecular Physiology, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China.; Crop Science Department, Faculty of Agriculture, National University of Lesotho, Maseru 100, Lesotho.; Agricultural College, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China.
Improving chilling tolerance at the seedling stage in rice is essential for agricultural research. We combined a physiological analysis with transcriptomics in a variety Dular subjected to chilling followed by recovery at normal temperature to better understand the chilling tolerance mechanisms of rice. Chilling inhibited the synthesis of chlorophyll and non-structural carbohydrate (NSC) and disrupted the ion balance of the plant, resulting in the impaired function of rice leaves. The recovery treatment can effectively reverse the chilling-related injury. Transcriptome results displayed that 21,970 genes were identified at three different temperatures, and 11,732 genes were differentially expressed. According to KEGG analysis, functional categories for differentially expressed genes (DEGs) mainly included ribosome (8.72%), photosynthesis-antenna proteins (7.38%), phenylpropanoid biosynthesis (11.41%), and linoleic acid metabolism (10.07%). The subcellular localization demonstrated that most proteins were located in the chloroplasts (29.30%), cytosol (10.19%), and nucleus (10.19%). We proposed that some genes involved in photosynthesis, ribosome, phenylpropanoid biosynthesis, and linoleic acid metabolism may play key roles in enhancing rice adaptation to chilling stress and their recovery capacity. These findings provide a foundation for future research into rice chilling tolerance mechanisms.
PMID: 36142652
Int J Mol Sci , IF:5.923 , 2022 Sep , V23 (17) doi: 10.3390/ijms231710049
Coronatine Enhances Chilling Tolerance of Tomato Plants by Inducing Chilling-Related Epigenetic Adaptations and Transcriptional Reprogramming.
Beijing Key Laboratory for Agricultural Application and New Technique, College of Plant Science and Technology, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing 102206, China.; State Key Laboratory of Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, College of Biological Sciences, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.; State Key Laboratory of Plant Physiology and Biochemistry, College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, Beijing 100193, China.
Low temperature is an important environmental factor limiting the widespread planting of tropical and subtropical crops. The application of plant regulator coronatine, which is an analog of Jasmonic acid (JA), is an effective approach to enhancing crop's resistance to chilling stress and other abiotic stresses. However, the function and mechanism of coronatine in promoting chilling resistance of tomato is unknown. In this study, coronatine treatment was demonstrated to significantly increase tomato chilling tolerance. Coronatine increases H3K4me3 modifications to make greater chromatin accessibility in multiple chilling-activated genes. Corresponding to that, the expression of CBFs, other chilling-responsive transcription factor (TF) genes, and JA-responsive genes is significantly induced by coronatine to trigger an extensive transcriptional reprogramming, thus resulting in a comprehensive chilling adaptation. These results indicate that coronatine enhances the chilling tolerance of tomato plants by inducing epigenetic adaptations and transcriptional reprogramming.
PMID: 36077443
Front Plant Sci , IF:5.753 , 2022 , V13 : P847166 doi: 10.3389/fpls.2022.847166
Tolerant mechanism of model legume plant Medicago truncatula to drought, salt, and cold stresses.
College of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing, China.; State Key Laboratory of Vegetation and Environmental Change, Institute of Botany, Chinese Academy of Sciencess, Beijing, China.; Key Laboratory of Mollisols Agroecology, Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciencess, Changchun, China.; Inner Mongolia Academy of Agricultural and Animal Husbandry Sciences, Hohhot, China.; Department of Life Sciences, Pohang University of Science and Technology, Pohang, South Korea.; College of Resources and Environment, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Legume plants produce one-third of the total yield of primary crops and are important food sources for both humans and animals worldwide. Frequent exposure to abiotic stresses, such as drought, salt, and cold, greatly limits the production of legume crops. Several morphological, physiological, and molecular studies have been conducted to characterize the response and adaptation mechanism to abiotic stresses. The tolerant mechanisms of the model legume plant Medicago truncatula to abiotic stresses have been extensively studied. Although many potential genes and integrated networks underlying the M. truncatula in responding to abiotic stresses have been identified and described, a comprehensive summary of the tolerant mechanism is lacking. In this review, we provide a comprehensive summary of the adaptive mechanism by which M. truncatula responds to drought, salt, and cold stress. We also discuss future research that need to be explored to improve the abiotic tolerance of legume plants.
PMID: 36160994
Front Plant Sci , IF:5.753 , 2022 , V13 : P1012439 doi: 10.3389/fpls.2022.1012439
WRKY41/WRKY46-miR396b-5p-TPR module mediates abscisic acid-induced cold tolerance of grafted cucumber seedlings.
College of Horticulture, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China.
Grafting is one of the key agronomic measures to enhance the tolerance to environmental stresses in horticultural plants, but the specific molecular regulation mechanism in this tolerance largely remains unclear. Here, we found that cucumber grafted onto figleaf gourd rootstock increased cold tolerance through abscisic acid (ABA) activating WRKY41/WRKY46-miR396b-5p-TPR (tetratricopeptide repeat-like superfamily protein) module. Cucumber seedlings grafted onto figleaf gourd increased cold tolerance and induced the expression of miR396b-5p. Furthermore, overexpression of cucumber miR396b-5p in Arabidopsis improved cold tolerance. 5' RNA ligase-mediated rapid amplification of cDNA ends (5' RLM-RACE) and transient transformation experiments demonstrated that TPR was the target gene of miR396b-5p, while TPR overexpression plants were hypersensitive to cold stress. The yeast one-hybrid and dual-luciferase assays showed that both WRKY41 and WRKY46 bound to MIR396b-5p promoter to induce its expression. Furthermore, cold stress enhanced the content of ABA in the roots and leaves of figleaf gourd grafted cucumber seedlings. Exogenous application of ABA induced the expression of WRKY41 and WRKY46, and cold tolerance of grafted cucumber seedlings. However, figleaf gourd rootstock-induced cold tolerance was compromised when plants were pretreated with ABA biosynthesis inhibitor. Thus, ABA mediated figleaf gourd grafting-induced cold tolerance of cucumber seedlings through activating the WRKY41/WRKY46-miR396b-5p-TPR module.
PMID: 36160963
Front Plant Sci , IF:5.753 , 2022 , V13 : P983460 doi: 10.3389/fpls.2022.983460
Dynamic changes in the transcriptome landscape of Arabidopsis thaliana in response to cold stress.
State Key Laboratory of Hybrid Rice, College of Life Sciences, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China.; Hubei Hongshan Laboratory, Wuhan, China.; RNA Institute, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China.
Plants must reprogram gene expression to adapt constantly changing environmental temperatures. With the increased occurrence of extremely low temperatures, the negative effects on plants, especially on growth and development, from cold stress are becoming more and more serious. In this research, strand-specific RNA sequencing (ssRNA-seq) was used to explore the dynamic changes in the transcriptome landscape of Arabidopsis thaliana exposed to cold temperatures (4 degrees C) at different times. In total, 7,623 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) exhibited dynamic temporal changes during the cold treatments. Gene Ontology (GO) and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathway enrichment analysis showed that the DEGs were enriched in cold response, secondary metabolic processes, photosynthesis, glucosinolate biosynthesis, and plant hormone signal transduction pathways. Meanwhile, long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) were identified after the assembly of the transcripts, from which 247 differentially expressed lncRNAs (DElncRNAs) and their potential target genes were predicted. 3,621 differentially alternatively spliced (DAS) genes related to RNA splicing and spliceosome were identified, indicating enhanced transcriptome complexity due to the alternative splicing (AS) in the cold. In addition, 739 cold-regulated transcription factors (TFs) belonging to 52 gene families were identified as well. This research analyzed the dynamic changes of the transcriptome landscape in response to cold stress, which reveals more complete transcriptional patterns during short- and long-term cold treatment and provides new insights into functional studies of that how plants are affected by cold stress.
PMID: 36110360
Front Plant Sci , IF:5.753 , 2022 , V13 : P942937 doi: 10.3389/fpls.2022.942937
Identification and expression analysis of the lipid phosphate phosphatases gene family reveal their involvement in abiotic stress response in kiwifruit.
College of Horticulture, Northwest Agricultural and Forestry University, Yangling, China.; Institute of Horticulture, Sichuan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Chengdu, China.
Lipid phosphate phosphatases (LPPs) are a key enzyme in the production and degradation of phosphatidic acid (PA), which plays an important role in plant growth, development, stress resistance and plant hormone response. Thus far, little is known about the LPP family genes in kiwifruit (Actinidia spp.). According to this study, 7 members in the AcLPP family were identified from the whole genome of kiwifruit, the subcellular localization predictions were mainly on the plasma membrane. Chromosomal localization analysis showed that the AcLPP genes were unevenly distributed on 5 chromosomes, it was determined to have undergone strong purifying selection pressure. There were 5 duplicate gene pairs and all underwent segmental duplication events. The LPP genes of kiwifruit were conserved when compared with other plants, especially in terms of evolutionary relationships, conserved motifs, protein sequences, and gene structures. Cis-regulatory elements mainly included hormone response elements and abiotic response elements. Functional annotation of GO revealed that AcLPP genes were closely related to phosphatase/hydrolase activity, phosphorus metabolism and dephosphorylation. AcLPP genes family were predicted to be targets of miRNA. Transcript level analysis revealed that the AcLPP family played diverse functions in different tissues and during growth, development, and postharvest storage stages. qPCR analysis showed that the members of AcLPP gene family might be regulated by ETH, ABA, GA3, and IAA hormone signals. The family members were regulated by the stress of salt stress, osmotic stress, cold stress, and heat stress. These results would provide a basis and reference for studying the agricultural characteristics of kiwifruit and improving its stress resistance.
PMID: 36092394
Front Plant Sci , IF:5.753 , 2022 , V13 : P959118 doi: 10.3389/fpls.2022.959118
The effect of cold acclimation, deacclimation and reacclimation on metabolite profiles and freezing tolerance in winter wheat.
Lithuanian Research Centre for Agriculture and Forestry, Institute of Agriculture, Akademija, Lithuania.; Univ. Bordeaux, INRAE, Bordeaux Metabolome, UMR 1332 BFP, Villenave d'Ornon, France.
Global climate change will cause longer and warmer autumns, thus negatively affecting the quality of cold acclimation (CA) and reducing the freezing tolerance (FT) of winter wheat. Insufficient FT and fluctuating temperatures during winter can accelerate the deacclimation (DEA) process, whereas reacclimation (REA) is possible only while the vernalization requirement is unfulfilled. Six winter wheat genotypes with different winter hardiness profiles were used to evaluate the impact of constant low-temperature (2 degrees C) and prolonged higher low-temperature (28 days at 10 degrees C followed by 2 degrees C until day 49) on shoot biomass and metabolite accumulation patterns in leaf and crown tissues throughout 49 days of CA, 7 days of DEA, and 14 days of REA. The FT of winter wheat was determined as LT30 values by conducting freezing tests after CA, DEA, and REA. Shoot biomass accumulation, projected as the green leaf area (GLA), was investigated by non-destructive RGB imaging-based phenotyping. Dynamics of carbohydrates, hexose phosphates, organic acids, proteins, and amino acids were assessed in leaf and crown tissues. Results revealed that exposure to higher low-temperature induced higher accumulation of shoot biomass and had a negative impact on FT of winter wheat. Prolonged higher low-temperature negatively affected the accumulation of soluble carbohydrates, protein content and amino acids, and had a positive effect on starch accumulation in leaf and crown tissues after CA, in comparison with the constant low-temperature treatment. DEA resulted in significantly reduced FT. Lower concentrations of glucose-6-phosphate, sucrose and proline, as well as higher concentrations of starch in leaves and crowns were found after DEA. The majority of the genotypes regained FT after REA; higher concentrations of glucose and malate in leaves, and sucrose in crown tissue were observed, whereas starch accumulation was decreased in both tissues. Negative correlations were determined between FT and starch concentration in leaves and crowns, while proline and proteins, accumulated in crowns, showed positive correlations with FT. This study broadens the knowledge regarding the effect of different low-temperature regimes on the dynamics of metabolite accumulation in winter wheat throughout CA, DEA, and REA, and its relationship to biomass accumulation and FT.
PMID: 36046584
Front Plant Sci , IF:5.753 , 2022 , V13 : P936602 doi: 10.3389/fpls.2022.936602
Identification of AP2/ERF transcription factors in Tetrastigma hemsleyanum revealed the specific roles of ERF46 under cold stress.
College of Agriculture, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China.; Key Laboratory of Ministry of Education for Genetics, Breeding and Multiple Utilization of Crops, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China.; Ningbo Municipal Hospital of TCM, Affiliated Hospital of Zhejiang Chinese Medical University, Ningbo, China.; Medicinal Plant Resource Center, Ningbo Research Institute of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Ningbo, China.
Tetrastigma hemsleyanum (T. hemsleyanum) is a traditional medicinal plant that is widely used in China. Cultivated T. hemsleyanum usually encounters cold stress, limiting its growth and quality at key developmental stages. APETALA2 (AP2)/ethylene-responsive factor (ERF) transcription factors (TFs) comprise one of the largest gene superfamilies in plants and are widely involved in biotic and abiotic stresses. To reveal the roles of AP2/ERF TFs during T. hemsleyanum development, 70 AP2/ERF TFs were identified in T. hemsleyanum. Among them, 18 and 2 TFs were classified into the AP2 and RAV families, respectively. The other 50 TFs belonged to the ERF family and were further divided into the ERF and (dehydration reaction element binding factor) DREB subfamilies. The ERF subfamily contained 46 TFs, while the DREB subfamily contained 4 TFs. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that AP2/ERF TFs could be classified into five groups, in which 10 conserved motifs were confirmed. Several motifs were group- or subgroup-specific, implying that they were significant for the functions of the AP2/ERF TFs of these clades. In addition, 70 AP2/ERF TFs from the five groups were used for an expression pattern analysis under three low-temperature levels, namely, -4, 0, and 4 degrees C. The majority of these AP2/ERF TFs exhibited a positive response to cold stress conditions. Specifically, ThERF5, ThERF31, ThERF46, and ThERF55 demonstrated a more sensitive response to cold stress. Moreover, AP2/ERF TFs exhibited specific expression patterns under cold stress. Transient overexpression and RNA interference indicated that ThERF46 has a specific tolerance to cold stress. These new insights provide the basis for further studies on the roles of AP2/ERF TFs in cold stress tolerance in T. hemsleyanum.
PMID: 36017255
Front Plant Sci , IF:5.753 , 2022 , V13 : P1000430 doi: 10.3389/fpls.2022.1000430
Selenium enhances chilling stress tolerance in coffee species by modulating nutrient, carbohydrates, and amino acids content.
Department of Soil Science, Federal University of Lavras, Lavras, Brazil.; Department of Biology, Plant Physiology Sector, Federal University of Lavras, Lavras, Brazil.; Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of California, Hanford, Hanford, CA, United States.; Department of Plant Sciences, College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States.
The effects of selenium (Se) on plant metabolism have been reported in several studies triggering plant tolerance to abiotic stresses, yet, the effects of Se on coffee plants under chilling stress are unclear. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of foliar Se application on coffee seedlings submitted to chilling stress and subsequent plant recovery. Two Coffea species, Coffea arabica cv. Arara, and Coffea canephora clone 31, were submitted to foliar application of sodium selenate solution (0.4 mg plant(-1)) or a control foliar solution, then on day 2 plants were submitted to low temperature (10 degrees C day/4 degrees C night) for 2 days. After that, the temperature was restored to optimal (25 degrees C day/20 degrees C night) for 2 days. Leaf samples were collected three times (before, during, and after the chilling stress) to perform analyses. After the chilling stress, visual leaf injury was observed in both species; however, the damage was twofold higher in C. canephora. The lower effect of cold on C. arabica was correlated to the increase in ascorbate peroxidase and higher content of starch, sucrose, and total soluble sugars compared with C. canephora, as well as a reduction in reducing sugars and proline content during the stress and rewarming. Se increased the nitrogen and sulfur content before stress but reduced their content during low temperature. The reduced content of nitrogen and sulfur during stress indicates that they were remobilized to stem and roots. Se supply reduced the damage in C. canephora leaves by 24% compared with the control. However, there was no evidence of the Se effects on antioxidant enzymatic pathways or ROS activity during stress as previously reported in the literature. Se increased the content of catalase during the rewarming. Se foliar supply also increased starch, amino acids, and proline, which may have reduced symptom expression in C. canephora in response to low temperature. In conclusion, Se foliar application can be used as a strategy to improve coffee tolerance under low-temperature changing nutrient remobilization, carbohydrate metabolism, and catalase activity in response to rewarming stress, but C. arabica and C. canephora respond differently to chilling stress and Se supply.
PMID: 36172560
Front Plant Sci , IF:5.753 , 2022 , V13 : P991983 doi: 10.3389/fpls.2022.991983
Physiological genetic variation in tomato fruit chilling tolerance during postharvest storage.
Department of Postharvest Science, Volcani Institute, Agricultural Research Organization, Rishon LeZion, Israel.; Robert H. Smith Faculty of Agriculture Food and Environment, The Robert H. Smith Institute of Plant Sciences and Genetics in Agriculture, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot, Israel.; Department of Plant Science, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, United States.
Storage at low temperatures is a common practice to prolong postharvest life of fruit and vegetables with a minimal negative impact on human/environmental health. Storage at low temperatures, however, can be restricted due to produce susceptibility to non-freezing chilling temperatures, when injuries such as physiological disorders and decays may result in unmarketable produce. We have investigated tomato fruit response to postharvest chilling stress in a recombinant inbred line (RIL) population developed from a cross between a chilling-sensitive cultivated tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) breeding line and a chilling-tolerant inbred accession of the tomato wild species S. pimpinellifolium L. Screening of the fruit of 148 RILs under cold storage (1.5 degrees C) indicated presence of significant variations in chilling tolerance, manifested by varying degrees of fruit injury. Two extremely contrasting groups of RILs were identified, chilling-tolerant and chilling-sensitive RILs. The RILs in the two groups were further investigated under chilling stress conditions, and several physiological parameters, including weight loss, chlorophyll fluorescence parameters Fv/Fm, and Performance Index (PI), were determined to be efficient markers for identifying response to chilling stress in postharvest fruit. The Fv/Fm values reflected the physiological damages endured by the fruit after cold storage, and PI was a sensitive marker for early changes in photosystem II function. These two parameters were early indicators of chilling response before occurrence of visible chilling injuries. Antioxidant activities and ascorbic acid content were significantly higher in the chilling-tolerant than the chilling-sensitive lines. Further, the expression of C-repeat/DREB binding factors (CBFs) genes swiftly changed within 1-hr of fruit exposure to the chilling temperature, and the SlCBF1 transcript level was generally higher in the chilling-tolerant than chilling-sensitive lines after 2-hr exposure to the low temperature. This research demonstrates the presence of potential genetic variation in fruit chilling tolerance in the tomato RIL population. Further investigation of the RIL population is underway to better understand the genetic, physiological, and biochemical mechanisms involved in postharvest fruit chilling tolerance in tomato.
PMID: 36160961
J Agric Food Chem , IF:5.279 , 2022 Sep , V70 (38) : P11880-11891 doi: 10.1021/acs.jafc.2c01549
Heterologous Expression and Characterization of Tea (Camellia sinensis) Polyamine Oxidase Homologs and Their Involvement in Stresses.
College of Biological Science and Agriculture, Qiannan Normal University for Nationalities, Duyun 558000, China.; South China Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xingke Road 723, Tianhe District, Guangzhou 510650, China.
Polyamine oxidase (PAO) is a key enzyme maintaining polyamine homeostasis, which affects plant physiological activities. Until now, the gene members and function of PAOs in tea (Camellia sinenesis) have not been fully identified. Here, through the expression in Escherichia coli and Nicotiana benthamiana, we identified six genes annotated as CsPAO in tea genome and transcriptome and determined their enzyme reaction modes and gene expression profiles in tea cultivar 'Yinghong 9'. We found that CsPAO1,2,3 could catalyze spermine, thermospermine, and norspermidine, and CsPAO2,3 could catalyze spermidine in the back-conversion mode, which indicated that the precursor of gamma-aminobutyric acid might originate from the oxidation of putrescin but not spermidine. We further investigated the changes of CsPAO activity with temperature and pH and their stability. Kinetic parameters suggested that CsPAO2 was the major PAO modifying polyamine composition in tea, and it could be inactivated by beta-hydroxyethylhydrazine and aminoguanidine. Putrescine content and CsPAO2 expression were high in tea flowers. CsPAO2 responded to wound, drought, and salt stress; CsPAO1 might be the main member responding to cold stress; anoxia induced CsPAO3. We conclude that in terms of phylogenetic tree, enzyme characteristics, and expression profile, CsPAO2 might be the dominant CsPAO in the polyamine degradation pathway.
PMID: 36106904
Plant Sci , IF:4.729 , 2022 Sep , V325 : P111463 doi: 10.1016/j.plantsci.2022.111463
CsCBF5 depletion impairs cold tolerance in tea plants.
State Key Laboratory of Tea Plant Biology and Utilization, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, China.; College of Horticulture, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, Henan, China.; State Key Laboratory of Tea Plant Biology and Utilization, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, China; College of Horticulture, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou, Henan, China.; State Key Laboratory of Tea Plant Biology and Utilization, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei 230036, China. Electronic address: Liyeyun360@163.com.
CBFs play important roles in tea plant cold tolerance. In our study, 16 tea varieties were used to investigate the relationship between the expression level of CsCBFs and cold tolerance in field experiments. A strong and positive correlation was found between cold stress-regulated CsCBF1, CsCBF3 and CsCBF5 expression levels (R(2) > 0.8) in tea mesophyll cells and cold tolerance in 16 tea varieties. A previous study reported that CsCBF1 and CsCBF3 were important components associated with cold tolerance in tea plants; thus, the function of CsCBF5 in the CsCBF family was targeted. Our previous study reported that CsCBF5 was localized in the nucleus and exhibited transcriptional activity. In the current study, MDA content in leaves was significantly increased in CsCBF5-silenced leaves, which exhibited poor cold tolerance, compared with WT plants under cold stress. In contrast, increased germination rates and antioxidant enzyme activities under cold conditions compared with WT plants. Furthermore, CsCBF5 overexpression in Arabidopsis promoted the expression levels of the cold-regulated genes AtCOR15a, AtCOR78, AtERD4 and AtRD29B; however, the expression levels of downstream genes, including CsCOR47, CsCOR413, CsERD4 and CsRD29B, were significantly reduced in CsCBF5-silenced tea leaves. Taken together, our results indicated that CsCBF5 could function as a positive regulator in the cold stress response.
PMID: 36126878
Plant Sci , IF:4.729 , 2022 Sep , V325 : P111450 doi: 10.1016/j.plantsci.2022.111450
vvi-miPEP172b and vvi-miPEP3635b increase cold tolerance of grapevine by regulating the corresponding MIRNA genes.
Department of Plant Science, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China; State Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, College of Horticulture Science and Engineering, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai'an 271000, China.; Department of Horticulture, College of Agriculture, Shihezi University, Shihezi 832003, Xinjiang, China; Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps Key Laboratory of Special Fruits and Vegetables Cultivation Physiology and Germplasm Resources Utilization, Shihezi 832003, Xinjiang, China.; Department of Plant Science, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China.; Department of Plant Science, School of Agriculture and Biology, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai 200240, China. Electronic address: chaoma2015@sjtu.edu.cn.
As a kind of small molecular weight proteins, many peptides have been discovered, including peptides encoded by pri-miRNA (miPEPs). Similar as traditional phytohormone or signaling molecular, these peptides participate in numerous plant growth processes. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play an important regulatory role in plant stress response. While the roles of miPEPs in response to abiotic stress has not been studied now. In this study, to explore whether miPEPs could contribute to low temperature (4 masculineC) tolerance of plants, the expression pattern of 23 different vvi-MIRs were analyzed by qRT-PCR in 'Thompson Seedless' (Vitis vinifera) plantlets under cold stress (4 masculineC) firstly, and vvi-MIR172b and vvi-MIR3635b which showed an elevated expression levels were selected to identify miPEPs. Through transient expression, one small open reading frame (sORF) in each of the two pri-miRNAs could increase the expression of corresponding vvi-MIR, and the amino acid sequences of sORFs were named vvi-miPEP172b and vvi-miPEP3635b, respectively. The synthetic vvi-miPEP172b and vvi-miPEP3635b were applied to the grape plantlets, and the tissue culture plantlets exhibited a higher cold tolerance compared with the control groups. These results revealed the effective roles of miPEPs in plant cold stress resistance for the first time, providing a theoretical basis for the future application of miPEPs to agricultural production.
PMID: 36075277
Front Genet , IF:4.599 , 2022 , V13 : P932731 doi: 10.3389/fgene.2022.932731
Genome-wide identification and expression analysis of the GRAS transcription in eggplant (Solanum melongena L.).
Fujian Key Laboratory of Crop Breeding By Design, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China.; Institute of Statistics and Applications, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China.; College of Life Sciences, Fujian Agriculture & Forestry University, Fuzhou, China.; College of Computer and Information Science, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou, China.
GRAS proteins are plant-specific transcription factors and play important roles in plant growth, development, and stress responses. In this study, a total of 48 GRAS genes in the eggplant (S. melongena) genome were identified. These genes were distributed on 11 chromosomes unevenly, with amino acid lengths ranging from 417 to 841 aa. A total of 48 GRAS proteins were divided into 13 subgroups based on the maximum likelihood (ML) model. The gene structure showed that 60.42% (29/48) of SmGRASs did not contain any introns. Nine pairs of SmGRAS appeared to have a collinear relationship, and all of them belonged to segmental duplication. Four types of cis-acting elements, namely, light response, growth and development, hormone response, and stress response, were identified by a cis-acting element predictive analysis. The expression pattern analysis based on the RNA-seq data of eggplant indicated that SmGRASs were expressed differently in various tissues and responded specifically to cold stress. In addition, five out of ten selected SmGRASs (SmGRAS2/28/32/41/44) were upregulated under cold stress. These results provided a theoretical basis for further functional study of GRAS genes in eggplant.
PMID: 36118872
Front Genet , IF:4.599 , 2022 , V13 : P909007 doi: 10.3389/fgene.2022.909007
Cold adaptation strategies in plants-An emerging role of epigenetics and antifreeze proteins to engineer cold resilient plants.
Biotechnology Division, CSIR-Institute of Himalayan Bioresource Technology, Palampur, Himachal Pradesh, India.; Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), Ghaziabad, India.
Cold stress adversely affects plant growth, development, and yield. Also, the spatial and geographical distribution of plant species is influenced by low temperatures. Cold stress includes chilling and/or freezing temperatures, which trigger entirely different plant responses. Freezing tolerance is acquired via the cold acclimation process, which involves prior exposure to non-lethal low temperatures followed by profound alterations in cell membrane rigidity, transcriptome, compatible solutes, pigments and cold-responsive proteins such as antifreeze proteins. Moreover, epigenetic mechanisms such as DNA methylation, histone modifications, chromatin dynamics and small non-coding RNAs play a crucial role in cold stress adaptation. Here, we provide a recent update on cold-induced signaling and regulatory mechanisms. Emphasis is given to the role of epigenetic mechanisms and antifreeze proteins in imparting cold stress tolerance in plants. Lastly, we discuss genetic manipulation strategies to improve cold tolerance and develop cold-resistant plants.
PMID: 36092945
Front Genet , IF:4.599 , 2022 , V13 : P968494 doi: 10.3389/fgene.2022.968494
DNA methylation affects freezing tolerance in winter rapeseed by mediating the expression of genes related to JA and CK pathways.
State Key Laboratory of Aridland Crop Science, Lanzhou, China.; State Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Germplasm Enhancement, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, China.; College of Agronomy, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, China.; Economic Crop Research Institute, Henan Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Zhengzhou, China.
Winter rapeseed is the largest source of edible oil in China and is especially sensitive to low temperature, which causes tremendous agricultural yield reduction and economic losses. It is still unclear how DNA methylation regulates the formation of freezing tolerance in winter rapeseed under freezing stress. Therefore, in this study, the whole-genome DNA methylation map and transcriptome expression profiles of freezing-resistant cultivar NTS57 (NS) under freezing stress were obtained. The genome-wide methylation assay exhibited lower levels of methylation in gene-rich regions. DNA methylation was identified in three genomic sequence contexts including CG, CHG and CHH, of which CG contexts exhibited the highest methylation levels (66.8%), followed by CHG (28.6%) and CHH (9.5%). Higher levels of the methylation were found in upstream 2 k and downstream 2 k of gene regions, whereas lowest levels were in the gene body regions. In addition, 331, 437, and 1720 unique differentially methylated genes (DMGs) were identified in three genomic sequence contexts in 17NS under freezing stress compared to the control. Function enrichment analysis suggested that most of enriched DMGs were involved in plant hormones signal transduction, phenylpropanoid biosynthesis and protein processing pathways. Changes of genes expression in signal transduction pathways for cytokinin (CK) and jasmonic acid (JA) implied their involvement in freezing stress responses. Collectively, these results suggested a critical role of DNA methylation in their transcriptional regulation in winter rapeseed under freezing stress.
PMID: 36061187
Plant Cell Rep , IF:4.57 , 2022 Oct , V41 (10) : P1955-1973 doi: 10.1007/s00299-022-02894-7
Abscisic acid induces the expression of AsKIN during the recovery period of garlic cryopreservation.
College of Horticulture, Nanjing Agricultural University, 1 Weigang, Nanjing, 210095, China.; Key Laboratory of Horticultural Plant Biology and Germplasm Innovation in East China, Ministry of Agriculture, Nanjing, China.; College of Horticulture, Nanjing Agricultural University, 1 Weigang, Nanjing, 210095, China. zpzxyy@163.com.; Key Laboratory of Horticultural Plant Biology and Germplasm Innovation in East China, Ministry of Agriculture, Nanjing, China. zpzxyy@163.com.
KEY MESSAGE: Abscisic acid induced the expression of AsKIN during the recovery period of garlic cryopreservation. AsKIN was identified as a gene involved in cold and osmotic stress resistance. Cryopreservation has been proven to be effective in removing viruses from garlic. However, oxidative damage in cryopreservation has a significant impact on the survival after preservation. Abscisic acid (ABA) has been shown to reduce oxidative stress and promote the survival after cryopreservation. However, it is not clear which genes play important roles in this process. In this study, we added ABA to the dehydration step and analyzed the transcriptomic divergences between the ABA-treated group and the control group in three cryogenic steps (dehydration, unloading and recovery). By short time-series expression miner (STEM) analysis and weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA), the recovery step was identified as the period of significant changes in gene expression levels in cryopreservation. The addition of ABA promoted the upregulated expression of microtubule-related genes in the recovery step. We further identified AsKIN as a hub gene in the recovery step and verified its function. The results showed that overexpression of AsKIN enhanced the tolerance of Arabidopsis to oxidative stress in cryopreservation, influenced the expression of genes in response to cold and osmotic stress and promoted plant growth after stress. The AsKIN gene is likely to be involved in the plant response to cold stress and osmotic stress. These results reveal the molecular mechanisms of ABA in cryopreservation and elucidate the potential biological functions of the kinesin-14 subfamily.
PMID: 36066602
Plant Cell Rep , IF:4.57 , 2022 Oct , V41 (10) : P2005-2022 doi: 10.1007/s00299-022-02905-7
Drought priming induces chilling tolerance and improves reproductive functioning in chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.).
Centre for Biosciences, School of Basic and Applied Sciences, Central University of Punjab, Bathinda, 151401, India.; Department of Botany, School of Biological Sciences, Central University of Punjab, Bathinda, 151401, India.; Department of Plant Breeding and Genetics, Punjab Agriculture University, Ludhiana, 141004, India.; Department of Botany, Panjab University, Chandigarh, 160014, India.; Centre for Biosciences, School of Basic and Applied Sciences, Central University of Punjab, Bathinda, 151401, India. sanjeevpuchd@gmail.com.; Department of Botany, School of Biological Sciences, Central University of Punjab, Bathinda, 151401, India. sanjeevpuchd@gmail.com.
KEY MESSAGE: Priming alleviates membrane damage, chlorophyll degradation along with cryoprotectants accumulation during chilling stress that leads to improved reproductive functioning and increased seed yield. Chilling temperatures below 15 degrees C have severe implications on the reproductive growth and development of chickpea. The abnormal reproductive development and subsequent reproductive failure lead to substantial yield loss. We exposed five chickpea cultivars (PBG1, GPF2, PDG3, PDG4, and PBG5) to drought stress (Priming) during the vegetative stage and analyzed for chilling tolerance during the reproductive stage. These varieties were raised in the fields in two sets: one set of plants were subjected to drought stress at the vegetative stage for 30 days (priming) and the second set of plants were irrigated regularly (non-primed). The leaf samples were harvested at the flowering, podding, and seed filling stage and analyzed for membrane damage, water status, chlorophyll content, cellular respiration, and certain cryoprotective solutes. The reproductive development was analyzed by accessing pollen viability, in vivo and in vitro germination, pollen load, and in vivo pollen tube growth. Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed that priming improved membrane damage, chlorophyll b degradation, and accumulation of cryoprotectants in GPF2, PDG3, and PBG5 at the flowering stage (< 15 degrees C). Pearson's correlation analysis showed a negative correlation with the accumulation of proline and carbohydrates with flower, pod, and seed abortion. Only, PBG5 responded best to priming while PBG1 was worst. In PBG5, priming resulted in reduced membrane damage and lipid peroxidation, improved water content, reduced chlorophyll degradation, and enhanced cryoprotective solutes accumulation, which led to increased reproductive functioning and finally improved seed yield and harvest index. Lastly, the priming response is variable and cultivar-specific but overall improve plant tolerance.
PMID: 35916939
Molecules , IF:4.411 , 2022 Aug , V27 (17) doi: 10.3390/molecules27175491
Genome-Wide Identification and Characterization of G2-Like Transcription Factor Genes in Moso Bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis).
College of Biological Sciences and Technology, Beijing Forestry University, Beijing 100083, China.; Guanghua Qidi School, Shanghai 201799, China.; Institute of Microbiology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100020, China.
G2-like (GLK) transcription factors contribute significantly and extensively in regulating chloroplast growth and development in plants. This study investigated the genome-wide identification, phylogenetic relationships, conserved motifs, promoter cis-elements, MCScanX, divergence times, and expression profile analysis of PeGLK genes in moso bamboo (Phyllostachys edulis). Overall, 78 putative PeGLKs (PeGLK1-PeGLK78) were identified and divided into 13 distinct subfamilies. Each subfamily contains members displaying similar gene structure and motif composition. By synteny analysis, 42 orthologous pairs and highly conserved microsynteny between regions of GLK genes across moso bamboo and maize were found. Furthermore, an analysis of the divergence times indicated that PeGLK genes had a duplication event around 15 million years ago (MYA) and a divergence happened around 38 MYA between PeGLK and ZmGLK. Tissue-specific expression analysis showed that PeGLK genes presented distinct expression profiles in various tissues, and many members were highly expressed in leaves. Additionally, several PeGLKs were significantly up-regulated under cold stress, osmotic stress, and MeJA and GA treatment, implying that they have a likelihood of affecting abiotic stress and phytohormone responses in plants. The results of this study provide a comprehensive understanding of the moso bamboo GLK gene family, as well as elucidating the potential functional characterization of PeGLK genes.
PMID: 36080259
Sci Rep , IF:4.379 , 2022 Sep , V12 (1) : P16059 doi: 10.1038/s41598-022-19788-z
Knockdown of heat shock transcription factor 1 decreases temperature stress tolerance in Bemisia tabaci MED.
College of Horticulture and Plant Protection and Institute of Applied Entomology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, 225009, China.; Plant Protection and Quarantine Station of Jiangsu Province, Nanjing, 21003, China.; College of Horticulture and Plant Protection and Institute of Applied Entomology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, 225009, China. yzdu@yzu.edu.cn.; Joint International Research Laboratory of Agriculture and Agri-Product Safety, the Ministry of Education, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China. yzdu@yzu.edu.cn.
The primary function of heat shock transcription factor (HSF) in the heat shock response is to activate the transcription of genes encoding heat shock proteins (HSPs). The phloem-feeding insect Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) is an important pest of cotton, vegetables and ornamentals that transmits several plant viruses and causes enormous agricultural losses. In this study, the gene encoding HSF (Bthsf1) was characterized in MED B. tabaci. The full-length cDNA encoded a protein of 652 amino acids with an isoelectric point of 5.55. The BtHSF1 deduced amino acid sequence showed strong similarity to HSF in other insects. Expression analyses using quantitative real-time PCR indicated that Bthsf1 was significantly up-regulated in B. tabaci adults and pupae during thermal stress. Although Bthsf1 was induced by both hot and cold stress, the amplitude of expression was greater in the former. Bthsf1 had distinct, significant differences in expression pattern during different duration of high but not low temperature stress. Oral ingestion of dsBthsf1 repressed the expression of Bthsf1 and four heat shock proteins (Bthsp90, Bthsp70-3, Bthsp20 and Bthsp19.5) in MED B. tabaci during hot and cold stress. In conclusion, our results show that Bthsf1 is differentially expressed during high and low temperature stress and regulates the transcription of multiple hsps in MED B. tabaci.
PMID: 36163391
Plant Physiol Biochem , IF:4.27 , 2022 Nov , V190 : P262-276 doi: 10.1016/j.plaphy.2022.09.011
Involvement of NO and Ca(2+) in the enhancement of cold tolerance induced by melatonin in winter turnip rape (Brassica rapa L.).
College of Life Sciences, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou, 730070, China.; College of Life Sciences, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou, 730070, China. Electronic address: zhangtengguo@163.com.; College of Life Sciences, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou, 730070, China. Electronic address: zhengsheng@nwnu.edu.cn.
As a multifunctional phytohormone, melatonin (Mel) plays pivotal roles in plant responses to multiple stresses. However, its mechanism of action remains elusive. In the present study, we evaluated the role of NO and Ca(2+) signaling in Mel enhanced cold tolerance in winter turnip rape. The results showed that the NO content and concentration of intracellular free Ca(2+) ([Ca(2+)]cyt) increased by 35.42% and 30.87%, respectively, in the leaves of rape seedlings exposed to cold stress. Compared with those of the seedlings in cold stress alone, the NO content and concentration of [Ca(2+)]cyt in rape seedlings pretreated with Mel increased further. In addition, the Mel-mediated improvement of cold tolerance was inhibited by L-NAME (a NO synthase inhibitor), tungstate (a nitrate reductase inhibitor), LaCl3 (a Ca(2+) channel blocker), and EGTA (a Ca(2+) chelator), and this finding was mainly reflected in the increase in ROS content and the decrease in osmoregulatory capacity, photosynthetic efficiency and antioxidant enzyme activities, and expression levels of antioxidant enzyme genes. These findings suggest that NO and Ca(2+) are necessary for Mel to improve cold tolerance and function synergistically downstream of Mel. Notably, the co-treatment of Mel with L-NAME, tungstate, LaCl3, or EGTA also inhibited the Mel-induced expression of MAPK3/6 under cold stress. In conclusion, NO and Ca(2+) are involved in the enhancement of cold tolerance induced by Mel through activating the MAPK cascades in rape seedlings, and a crosstalk may exist between NO and Ca(2+) signaling.
PMID: 36152511
Plant Physiol Biochem , IF:4.27 , 2022 Nov , V190 : P81-89 doi: 10.1016/j.plaphy.2022.08.019
A critical review on plant annexin: Structure, function, and mechanism.
Joint International Research Laboratory of Agriculture and Agri-Product Safety of Ministry of Education of China/College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, 225009, China.; College of Horticulture and Plant Protection, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, 225009, China. Electronic address: fczhou@yzu.edu.cn.; Joint International Research Laboratory of Agriculture and Agri-Product Safety of Ministry of Education of China/College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, 225009, China. Electronic address: hdding@yzu.edu.cn.
Plant annexins are evolutionary conserved protein family widely exist in almost all plant species, characterized by a shorter N-terminal region and four conservative annexin repeats. Plant annexins have Ca(2+) channel-regulating activity and peroxidase as well as ATPase/GTPase activities, which give annexins functional specificity. They are widely involved in regulating diverse aspects of biochemical and cellular processes, plant growth and development, and responses to biotic and abiotic environmental stresses. Though many studies have reviewed the function of annexins, great progress have been made in the study of plant annexins recently. In this review, we outline the current understanding of basic properties of plant annexins and summarize the emerging advances in understanding the functional roles of annexins in plants and highlight the regulation mechanisms of annexin protein in response to stress especially to salt and cold stress. The interesting questions related to plant annexin that remain to be further elucidated are also discussed.
PMID: 36108355
Plant Physiol Biochem , IF:4.27 , 2022 Nov , V190 : P47-61 doi: 10.1016/j.plaphy.2022.08.024
CROP PRODUCTION UNDER COLD STRESS: An understanding of plant responses, acclimation processes, and management strategies.
Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, 100081, China.; Institute of Crop Sciences, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, 100081, China. Electronic address: zhouwenbin@caas.cn.
In the context of climate change, the magnitude and frequency of temperature extremes (low and high temperatures) are increasing worldwide. Changes to the lower extremes of temperature, known as cold stress (CS), are one of the recurrent stressors in many parts of the world, severely limiting agricultural production. A series of plant reactions to CS could be generalized into morphological, physiological, and biochemical responses based on commonalities among crop plants. However, the differing originality of crops revealed varying degrees of sensitivity to cold and, therefore, exhibited large differences in these responses among the crops. This review discusses the vegetative and reproductive growth effects of CS and highlights the species-specific aspect of each growth stage whereby the reproductive growth CS appears more detrimental in rice and wheat, with marginal yield losses. To mitigate CS negative effects, crop plants have evolved cold-acclimation mechanisms (with differing capability), characterized by specific protein accumulation, membrane modification, regulation of signaling pathways, osmotic regulation, and induction of endogenous hormones. In addition, we reviewed a comprehensive account of management strategies for regulating tolerance mechanisms of crop plants under CS.
PMID: 36099808
Plant Physiol Biochem , IF:4.27 , 2022 Oct , V189 : P83-93 doi: 10.1016/j.plaphy.2022.08.013
Exogenous 5-aminolevulinic acid alleviates low-temperature damage by modulating the xanthophyll cycle and nutrient uptake in tomato seedlings.
College of Horticulture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, China; Key Laboratory of Protected Horticultural Engineering in Northwest, Ministry of Agriculture, Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, China; Shaanxi Protected Agriculture Research Centre, Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, China.; College of Horticulture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, China.; College of Horticulture, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang, 110866, China. Electronic address: tianlaili@126.com.; College of Horticulture, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, China; Key Laboratory of Protected Horticultural Engineering in Northwest, Ministry of Agriculture, Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, China; Shaanxi Protected Agriculture Research Centre, Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, China. Electronic address: hxh1977@163.com.
5-Aminolevulinic acid (ALA), an antioxidant existing in plants, has been widely reported to participate in the process of coping with cold stress of plants. In this study, exogenous ALA promoted the growth of tomato plants and alleviated the appearance of purple tomato leaves under low-temperature stress. At the same time, exogenous ALA improved antioxidant enzyme activities, SlSOD gene expression, Fv/Fm, and proline contents and reduced H2O2 contents, SlRBOH gene expression, relative electrical conductivity, and malondialdehyde contents to alleviate the damage caused by low temperature to tomato seedlings. Compared with low-temperature stress, spraying exogenous ALA before low-temperature stress could restore the indicators of photochemical quenching, actual photochemical efficiency, electron transport rate, and nonphotochemical quenching to normal. Exogenous ALA could increase the total contents of the xanthophyll cycle pool, the positive de-epoxidation rate of the xanthophyll cycle and improved the expression levels of key genes in the xanthophyll cycle under low-temperature stress. In addition, we found that exogenous ALA significantly enhanced the absorption of mineral nutrients, promoted the transfer and distribution of mineral nutrients to the leaves, and improved the expression levels of mineral nutrient absorption-related genes, which were all conducive to the improved adaptation of tomato seedlings under low-temperature stress. In summary, the application of exogenous ALA can increase tomato seedlings' tolerance to low-temperature stress by improving the xanthophyll cycle and the ability of the absorption of mineral nutrients in tomato seedlings.
PMID: 36058015
Plant Physiol Biochem , IF:4.27 , 2022 Aug , V185 : P13-24 doi: 10.1016/j.plaphy.2022.05.030
Genome-wide identification of YABBY transcription factors in Brachypodium distachyon and functional characterization of Bd DROOPING LEAF.
State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, 712000, Shaanxi, China. Electronic address: chenshoukun@nwsuaf.edu.cn.; State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, 712000, Shaanxi, China. Electronic address: Houjiayuan@nwafu.edu.cn.; State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, 712000, Shaanxi, China. Electronic address: fuyanan@nwafu.edu.cn.; State Key Laboratory of Crop Stress Biology for Arid Areas, College of Agronomy, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, 712000, Shaanxi, China. Electronic address: lhf@nwsuaf.edu.cn.
YABBY transcription factors (TFs) are plant-specific and are characterized by a C2-C2 zinc finger domain at the N-terminus and a YABBY domain at the C-terminus. In this study, eight YABBY genes were identified in the Brachypodium distachyon genome and were unevenly distributed across four chromosomes. Phylogenetic analysis classified BdYABBYs into FIL/YAB3, YAB2, CRC, and INO clades. Sixty-two putative cis-elements were identified in BdYABBY gene putative promoters, among them, CAAT-box, TATA-box, MYB, MYC, ARE, and Box_4 were shared by all. BdYABBY genes are highly expressed in inflorescences, and abiotic stresses regulate their expression. In addition, three transcripts of BdDL were identified. Over-expression in Arabidopsis has shown their different functions in reproductive development, as well as in response to cold stress. Our study lays the foundation for the functional elucidation of BdYABBY genes.
PMID: 35640497
Environ Sci Pollut Res Int , IF:4.223 , 2022 Aug doi: 10.1007/s11356-022-22013-z
Chicken feather protein hydrolysate improves cold resistance by upregulating physiologic and biochemical responses of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.).
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Ataturk University, 25240, Erzurum, Turkey.; Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Ataturk University, 25240, Erzurum, Turkey. otici@atauni.edu.tr.
Chicken feather (CF) is one of the largest by-products of the poultry industry and millions of tons of feathers from poultry processing plants have caused a serious waste issue in almost every country. We produced a chicken feather protein hydrolysate (CFPH) by an alkaline process and investigated its effect on the low-temperature response of two wheat cultivars (Triticum aestivum L., cvs. Altindane and Bezostaja). The CFPH contained 19 proteinogenic and 3 non-proteinogenic amino acids, as well as beneficial salts for plant growth. The aqueous solution of CFPH (0.1%, w/v) was applied to seedling leaves before cold stress and then the seedlings (treated and untreated) were transferred to cold conditions (5/2 degrees C, day/night) for 3 days. The CFPH application increased the expression of Rubisco protein and the contents of photosynthetic pigment, soluble sugar, and free proline while decreasing phenolic content in the leaves of both cultivars under cold stress. The cold application alone increased the levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and lipid peroxidation (as malondialdehyde), while CFPH decreased their levels. Compared to cold alone, CFPH stimulated antioxidant enzyme activities in both cultivars. This finding was supported by the changes in isoenzyme profiles of the same enzymes on native PAGE. In addition, CFPH application raised reduced ascorbate and glutathione levels, while decreasing the levels of their oxidized forms. The results showed that the application of waste CF-derived CFPH to leaves as a biostimulant alleviated physiological and antioxidative responses in the wheat seedlings under cold stress, thus having the potential to increase cold-stress tolerance in wheat.
PMID: 35947261
BMC Plant Biol , IF:4.215 , 2022 Aug , V22 (1) : P398 doi: 10.1186/s12870-022-03787-3
Full-length transcriptome analysis of maize root tips reveals the molecular mechanism of cold stress during the seedling stage.
Institute of Nanfan & Seed Industry, Guangdong Academy of Science, Guangzhou, 510316, Guangdong, China.; Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Guangzhou, 510642, Guangdong, China.; College of Agriculture and Biology, Zhongkai University of Agriculture and Engineering, Guangzhou, 510325, Guangdong, China.; College of Agriculture, Yangtze University, Jingzhou, 434025, Hubei, China.; Institute of Nanfan & Seed Industry, Guangdong Academy of Science, Guangzhou, 510316, Guangdong, China. yongwen2001@126.com.; Guangdong Laboratory for Lingnan Modern Agriculture, Guangzhou, 510642, Guangdong, China. yongwen2001@126.com.; College of Agriculture and Biology, Zhongkai University of Agriculture and Engineering, Guangzhou, 510325, Guangdong, China. yongwen2001@126.com.
BACKGROUND: As maize originated in tropical or subtropical zones, most maize germplasm is extremely sensitive to low temperatures during the seedling stage. Clarifying the molecular mechanism of cold acclimation would facilitate the breeding of cold tolerant maize varieties, which is one of the major sustainability factors for crop production. To meet this goal, we investigated two maize inbred lines with contrasting levels of cold tolerance at the seedling stage (IL85, a cold tolerant line; B73, a cold sensitive line), and performed full-length transcriptome sequencing on the root tips of seedlings before and after 24 h of cold treatment. RESULTS: We identified 152,263 transcripts, including 20,993 novel transcripts, and determined per-transcript expression levels. A total of 1,475 transcripts were specifically up-regulated in the cold tolerant line IL85 under cold stress. GO enrichment analysis revealed that 25 transcripts were involved in reactive oxygen species (ROS) metabolic processes and 15 transcripts were related to the response to heat. Eight genes showed specific differential alternative splicing (DAS) in IL85 under cold stress, and were mainly involved in amine metabolism. A total of 1,111 lncRNAs were further identified, 62 of which were up-regulated in IL85 or B73 under cold stress, and their corresponding target genes were enriched in protein phosphorylation. CONCLUSIONS: These results provide new insights into the molecular mechanism of cold acclimation during the seedling stage in maize, and will facilitate the development of cultivars with improved cold stress tolerance.
PMID: 35963989
BMC Plant Biol , IF:4.215 , 2022 Aug , V22 (1) : P414 doi: 10.1186/s12870-022-03797-1
Integrated methylome and transcriptome analysis unravel the cold tolerance mechanism in winter rapeseed(Brassica napus L.).
State Key Laboratory of Aridland Crop Sciences, Lanzhou, China.; College of Agronomy, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, China.; State Key Laboratory of Aridland Crop Sciences, Lanzhou, China. lzgworking@163.com.; College of Agronomy, Gansu Agricultural University, Lanzhou, China. lzgworking@163.com.; Affiliation Faculty of Agriculture and Veterinary Sciences, Superior University, Lahore, Pakistan.
BACKGROUND: Cytosine methylation, the main type of DNA methylation, regulates gene expression in plant response to environmental stress. The winter rapeseed has high economic and ecological value in China's Northwest, but the DNA methylation pattern of winter rapeseed during freezing stress remains unclear. RESULT: This study integrated the methylome and transcriptome to explore the genome-scale DNA methylation pattern and its regulated pathway of winter rapeseed, using freezing-sensitive (NF) and freezing-resistant (NS) cultivars.The average methylation level decreased under freezing stress, and the decline in NF was stronger than NS after freezing stress. The CG methylation level was the highest among the three contexts of CG, CHG, and CHH. At the same time, the CHH proportion was high, and the methylation levels were highest 2 kb up/downstream, followed by the intron region. The C sub-genomes methylation level was higher than the A sub-genomes. The methylation levels of chloroplast and mitochondrial DNA were much lower than the B. napus nuclear DNA, the SINE methylation level was highest among four types of transposable elements (TEs), and the preferred sequence of DNA methylation did not change after freezing stress. A total of 1732 differentially expressed genes associated with differentially methylated genes (DMEGs) were identified in two cultivars under 12 h and 24 h in three contexts by combining whole-genome bisulfite sequencing( and RNA-Seq data. Function enrichment analysis showed that most DMEGs participated in linoleic acid metabolism, alpha-linolenic acid metabolism, carbon fixation in photosynthetic organisms, flavonoid biosynthesis, and plant hormone signal transduction pathways. Meanwhile, some DMEGs encode core transcription factors in plant response to stress. CONCLUSION: Based on the findings of DNA methylation, the freezing tolerance of winter rapeseed is achieved by enhanced signal transduction, lower lipid peroxidation, stronger cell stability, increased osmolytes, and greater reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging. These results provide novel insights into better knowledge of the methylation regulation of tolerance mechanism in winter rapeseed under freezing stress.
PMID: 36008781
Tree Physiol , IF:4.196 , 2022 Sep , V42 (9) : P1858-1875 doi: 10.1093/treephys/tpac046
Transcriptome and metabolome changes in Chinese cedar during cold acclimation reveal the roles of flavonoids in needle discoloration and cold resistance.
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.
Cryptomeria fortunei growth and development are usually affected by low temperatures. Despite the evergreen nature of this species, most needles turn yellowish-brown in cold winters. The underlying discoloration mechanisms that cause this phenomenon in response to cold acclimation remain poorly understood. Here, we measured the pigment content and ultrastructure of normal wild-type (Wt) and evergreen mutant (GM) C. fortunei needles and performed integrated transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses to explore potential discoloration mechanisms. The results showed that the needle chlorophyll content of these two genotypes decreased in winter. Wt needles showed greater decrease in the chlorophyll content and local destruction of chloroplast ultrastructure and contained larger amounts of flavonoids than GM needles, as shown by metabolomics analysis. We subsequently identified key differentially expressed genes in the flavonoid biosynthesis pathway and observed significantly upregulated flavonol synthase expression in Wt needles compared with GM needles that significantly increased the anthoxanthin (flavones and flavonols) content, which is likely a key factor underlying the difference in needle color between these two genotypes. Therefore, flavonoid metabolism may play important roles in the cold resistance and needle discoloration of C. fortunei, and our results provide an excellent foundation for the molecular mechanism of C. fortunei in response to cold stress.
PMID: 35451493
Planta , IF:4.116 , 2022 Sep , V256 (4) : P82 doi: 10.1007/s00425-022-03995-z
Global identification of quantitative trait loci and candidate genes for cold stress and chilling acclimation in rice through GWAS and RNA-seq.
College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.; State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Subtropical Agro-Bioresources, College of Agriculture, Guangxi University, Nanning, China.; College of Life Science and Technology, Guangxi University, Nanning, 530004, China.; College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China. lqwang@gxu.edu.cn.; State Key Laboratory for Conservation and Utilization of Subtropical Agro-Bioresources, College of Agriculture, Guangxi University, Nanning, China. lqwang@gxu.edu.cn.; College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China. xiegsh@mail.hzau.edu.cn.
MAIN CONCLUSION: Associated analysis of GWAS with RNA-seq had detected candidate genes responsible for cold stress and chilling acclimation in rice. Haplotypes of two candidate genes and geographic distribution were analyzed. To explore new candidate genes and genetic resources for cold tolerance improvement in rice, genome-wide association study (GWAS) mapping experiments with 351 rice core germplasms was performed for three traits (survival rate, shoot length and chlorophyll content) under three temperature conditions (normal temperature, cold stress and chilling acclimation), yielding a total of 134 QTLs, of which 54, 59 and 21 QTLs were responsible for normal temperature, cold stress and chilling acclimation conditions, respectively. Integrated analysis of significant SNPs in 134 QTLs further identified 116 QTLs for three temperature treatments, 53, 43 and 18 QTLs responsible for normal temperature, cold stress and chilling acclimation, respectively, and 2 QTLs were responsible for both cold stress and chilling acclimation. Matching differentially expressed genes from RNA-seq to 43 and 18 QTLs for cold stress and chilling acclimation, we identified 69 and 44 trait-associated candidate genes, respectively, to be classified into six and five groups, particularly involved in metabolisms, reactive oxygen species scavenging and hormone signaling. Interestingly, two candidate genes LOC_Os01g04814, encoding a vacuolar protein sorting-associating protein 4B, and LOC_Os01g48440, encoding glycosyltransferase family 43 protein, showed the highest expression levels under chilling acclimation. Haplotype analysis revealed that both genes had a distinctive differentiation with subpopulation. Haplotypes of both genes with more japonica accessions have higher latitude distribution and higher chilling tolerance than the chilling sensitive indica accessions. These findings reveal the new insight into the molecular mechanism and candidate genes for cold stress and chilling acclimation in rice.
PMID: 36103054
Genes (Basel) , IF:4.096 , 2022 Aug , V13 (9) doi: 10.3390/genes13091565
Transcriptomic Analysis Reveals the Correlation between End-of-Day Far Red Light and Chilling Stress in Setaria viridis.
State Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, College of Agronomic Sciences, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai'an 271018, China.
Low temperature and end-of-day far-red (EOD-FR) light signaling are two key factors limiting plant production and geographical location worldwide. However, the transcriptional dynamics of EOD-FR light conditions during chilling stress remain poorly understood. Here, we performed a comparative RNA-Seq-based approach to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) related to EOD-FR and chilling stress in Setaria viridis. A total of 7911, 324, and 13431 DEGs that responded to low temperature, EOD-FR and these two stresses were detected, respectively. Further DEGs analysis revealed that EOD-FR may enhance cold tolerance in plants by regulating the expression of genes related to cold tolerance. The result of weighted gene coexpression network analysis (WGCNA) using 13431 nonredundant DEGs exhibited 15 different gene network modules. Interestingly, a CO-like transcription factor named BBX2 was highly expressed under EOD-FR or chilling conditions. Furthermore, we could detect more expression levels when EOD-FR and chilling stress co-existed. Our dataset provides a valuable resource for the regulatory network involved in EOD-FR signaling and chilling tolerance in C4 plants.
PMID: 36140734
Plant Genome , IF:4.089 , 2022 Sep , V15 (3) : Pe20229 doi: 10.1002/tpg2.20229
Identifying and expression analysis of WD40 transcription factors in walnut.
Laboratory of Walnut Research Center, College of Forestry, Northwest A & F Univ., Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, China.; Key Laboratory of Economic Plant Resources Development and Utilization in Shaanxi Province, College of Forestry, Northwest A & F Univ., Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, China.; College of Forestry, Northwest A & F Univ., Yangling, Shaanxi, 712100, China.
Walnut (Juglans regia L.) is an important woody oil plant and will be affected by abiotic and biological stress during its growth and development. The WD-repeat (WD40) protein is widely involved in plant growth, development, metabolism, and abiotic stress response. To explore the stress response mechanism of walnut, based on the complete sequencing results of the walnut genome, this study identified and analyzed the physiological, biochemical, genetic structure, and conservative protein motifs of 42 JrWD40 genes, whose expression to abnormal temperature were tested to predict the potential biological function. The results showed that the open reading frame (ORF) of theseWD40 genes were 807-2,460 bp, encoding peptides were 29,610.55-90,387.98 Da covering 268-819 amino acids, as well as 12-112 phosphorylation sites. JrWD40 proteins were highly conserved with four to five WD40 domains and shared certain similarity to WD40 proteins from Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. JrWD40 genes can be induced to varying degrees by low and high temperature treatments. JrWD40-32, JrWD40-27, JrWD40-35, and JrWD40-21 are affected by high temperature more seriously and their expression levels are higher; while JrWD40-37, JrWD40-26, JrWD40-20, JrWD40-24, and other genes are inhibited under low temperature stress. JrWD40-40, JrWD40-28, and JrWD40-18 were first suppressed with low expression, while as the treatment time prolonging, the expression level was increased under cold condition. JrWD40-14, JrWD40-18, JrWD40-34, and JrWD40-3 displayed strong transcriptions response to both heat and cold stress. These results indicated that JrWD40 genes can participate in walnut adaptation to adversity and can be used as important candidates for walnut resistance molecular breeding.
PMID: 35904050
BMC Genomics , IF:3.969 , 2022 Sep , V23 (1) : P670 doi: 10.1186/s12864-022-08889-8
The mechanism of abscisic acid regulation of wild Fragaria species in response to cold stress.
Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, Taizhou University, Taizhou, 318000, China.; College of Life Science and Medicine, Zhejiang Sci-Tech University, Hangzhou, 310018, China.; Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, 1871, Frederiksberg C, Denmark.; Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Plant Evolutionary Ecology and Conservation, Taizhou University, Taizhou, 318000, China. lijmtzc@126.com.
BACKGROUND: Abiotic stresses have increasingly serious effects on the growth and yield of crops. Cold stress, in particular, is an increasing problem. In this study, Fragaria daltoniana and F. vesca were determined to be cold-resistant and cold-sensitive species, respectively. Integrated transcriptomics and metabolomics methods were used to analyze the regulatory mechanism of abscisic acid (ABA) in F. daltoniana and F. vesca in their response to low temperature stress. RESULTS: F. daltoniana and F. vesca increased their ABA content under low temperature stress by upregulating the expression of the ABA biosynthetic pathway gene NCED and downregulating the expression of the ABA degradative gene CYP707A. Both types of regulation increased the accumulation of glucose and fructose, resulting in a reduction of damage under low temperature stress. Twelve transcription factors were found to be involved in the ABA regulatory pathway. The strong cold tolerance of F. daltoniana could be owing to its higher levels of ABA that accumulated compared with those in F. vesca under low temperature stress. In addition, the gene ABF2, which is related to the transduction of glucose signaling, was significantly upregulated in the leaves of F. daltoniana, while it was downregulated in the leaves of F. vesca under low temperature stress. This could contribute to the higher levels of glucose signal transduction in F. daltoniana. Thus, this could explain the higher peroxidase activity and lower damage to cell membranes in the leaves of F. daltoniana compared with F. vesca under low temperature stress, which endows the former with stronger cold tolerance. CONCLUSIONS: Under low temperature stress, the differences in the accumulation of ABA and the expression trends of ABF2 and ABF4 in different species of wild strawberries may be the primary reason for their differences in cold tolerance. Our results provide an important empirical reference and technical support for breeding resistant cultivated strawberry plants.
PMID: 36162976
BMC Genomics , IF:3.969 , 2022 Sep , V23 (1) : P652 doi: 10.1186/s12864-022-08863-4
Genome-wide characterization of the MBF1 gene family and its expression pattern in different tissues and stresses in Zanthoxylum armatum.
Key Laboratory of Ecological Forestry Engineering of Sichuan Province, College of Forestry, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China. wkxi@sicau.edu.cn.; Key Laboratory of Ecological Forestry Engineering of Sichuan Province, College of Forestry, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China.; Key Laboratory of Ecological Forestry Engineering of Sichuan Province, College of Forestry, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China. wangjingyan@sicau.edu.cn.; Key Laboratory of Ecological Forestry Engineering of Sichuan Province, College of Forestry, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, 611130, China. gongwei@sicau.edu.cn.
BACKGROUND: Multiprotein bridging factor 1 (MBF1) is a crucial transcriptional coactivator in animals, plants, and some microorganisms, that plays a necessary role in growth development and stress tolerance. Zanthoxylum armatum is an important perennial plant for the condiments and pharmaceutical industries, whereas the potential information in the genes related to stress resistance remains poorly understood in Z. armatum. RESULTS: Herein, six representative species were selected for use in a genome-wide investigation of the MBF1 family, including Arabidopsis thaliana, Oryza sativa, Populus trichocarpa, Citrus sinensis, Ginkgo biloba, and Z. armatum. The results showed that the MBF1 genes could be divided into two groups: Group I contained the MBF1a and MBF1b subfamilies, and group II was independent of the MBF1c subfamily.. Most species have at least two different MBF1 genes, and MBF1c is usually an essential member. The three ZaMBF1 genes were respectively located on ZaChr26, ZaChr32, and ZaChr4 of Zanthoxylum chromosomes. The collinearity were occurred between three ZaMBF1 genes, and ZaMBF1c showed the collinearity between Z. armatum and both P. trichocarpa and C. sinensis. Moreover, many cis-elements associated with abiotic stress and phytohormone pathways were detected in the promoter regions of MBF1 of six representative species. The ERF binding sites were the most abundant targets in the sequences of the ZaMBF1 family, and some transcription factor sites related to floral differentiation were also identified in ZaMBF1c, such as MADS, LFY, Dof, and AP2. ZaMBF1a was observed to be very highly expressed in 25 different samples except in the seeds, and ZaMBF1c may be associated with the male and female floral initiation processes. In addition, expression in all the ZaMBF1 genes could be significantly induced by water-logging, cold stress, ethephon, methyl jasmonate, and salicylic acid treatments, especially in ZaMBF1c. CONCLUSION: The present study carried out a comprehensive bioinformatic investigation related to the MBF1 family in six representative species, and the responsiveness of ZaMBF1 genes to various abiotic stresses and phytohormone inductions was also revealed. This work not only lays a solid foundation to uncover the biological roles of the ZaMBF1 family in Z. armatum, but also provides some broad references for conducting the MBF1 research in other plants.
PMID: 36104767
Plants (Basel) , IF:3.935 , 2022 Sep , V11 (18) doi: 10.3390/plants11182329
Combination of Genomics, Transcriptomics Identifies Candidate Loci Related to Cold Tolerance in Dongxiang Wild Rice.
Rice National Engineering Research Center (Nanchang), Rice Research Institute, Jiangxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanchang 330200, China.
Rice, a cold-sensitive crop, is a staple food for more than 50% of the world's population. Low temperature severely compromises the growth of rice and challenges China's food safety. Dongxiang wild rice (DXWR) is the most northerly common wild rice in China and has strong cold tolerance, but the genetic basis of its cold tolerance is still unclear. Here, we report quantitative trait loci (QTLs) analysis for seedling cold tolerance (SCT) using a high-density single nucleotide polymorphism linkage map in the backcross recombinant inbred lines that were derived from a cross of DXWR, and an indica cultivar, GZX49. A total of 10 putative QTLs were identified for SCT under 4 degrees C cold treatment, each explaining 2.0-6.8% of the phenotypic variation in this population. Furthermore, transcriptome sequencing of DXWR seedlings before and after cold treatment was performed, and 898 and 3413 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) relative to 0 h in cold-tolerant for 4 h and 12 h were identified, respectively. Gene ontology and Kyoto encyclopedia of genes and genomes (KEGG) analysis were performed on these DEGs. Using transcriptome data and genetic linkage analysis, combined with qRT-PCR, sequence comparison, and bioinformatics, LOC_Os08g04840 was putatively identified as a candidate gene for the major effect locus qSCT8. These findings provided insights into the genetic basis of SCT for the improvement of cold stress potential in rice breeding programs.
PMID: 36145730
Plants (Basel) , IF:3.935 , 2022 Sep , V11 (17) doi: 10.3390/plants11172324
Identification of QTL under Brassinosteroid-Combined Cold Treatment at Seedling Stage in Rice Using Genotyping-by-Sequencing (GBS).
Key Laboratory of Agricultural Biotechnology of Liaoning Province, College of Biosciences and Biotechnology, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 110866, China.; Rice Research Institute, College of Agronomy, Shenyang Agricultural University, Shenyang 110866, China.; Rice Research Institute, Jiangxi Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Nanchang 330200, China.; Department of Agronomy, College of Agriculture, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA.
Cold stress is a major threat to the sustainability of rice yield. Brassinosteroids (BR) application can enhance cold tolerance in rice. However, the regulatory mechanism related to cold tolerance and the BR signaling pathway in rice has not been clarified. In the current study, the seedling shoot length (SSL), seedling root length (SRL), seedling dry weight (SDW), and seedling wet weight (SWW) were used as the indices for identifying cold tolerance under cold stress and BR-combined cold treatment in a backcross recombinant inbred lines (BRIL) population. According to the phenotypic characterization for cold tolerance and a high-resolution SNP genetic map obtained from the GBS technique, a total of 114 QTLs were identified, of which 27 QTLs were detected under cold stress and 87 QTLs under BR-combined cold treatment. Among them, the intervals of many QTLs were coincident under different treatments, as well as different traits. A total of 13 candidate genes associated with cold tolerance or BR pathway, such as BRASSINAZOLE RESISTANT1 (OsBZR1), OsWRKY77, AP2 domain-containing protein, zinc finger proteins, basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) protein, and auxin-induced protein, were predicted. Among these, the expression levels of 10 candidate genes were identified under different treatments in the parents and representative BRIL individuals. These results were helpful in understanding the regulation relationship between cold tolerance and BR pathway in rice.
PMID: 36079705
Plants (Basel) , IF:3.935 , 2022 Sep , V11 (17) doi: 10.3390/plants11172307
Physiological and Proteomic Responses of Cassava to Short-Term Extreme Cool and Hot Temperature.
Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen 40002, Thailand.; Department Science and Mathematics, Faculty of Science and Health Technology, Kalasin University, Kalasin 46230, Thailand.; Department of Agronomy, Faculty of Agriculture, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen 40002, Thailand.; Functional Ingredients and Food Innovation Research Group, National Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, National Science and Technology Development Agency, Pathum Thani 12120, Thailand.
Temperature is one of the most critical factors affecting cassava metabolism and growth. This research was conducted to investigate the effects of short-term exposure to extreme cool (15 degrees C) and hot (45 degrees C) temperature on photosynthesis, biochemical and proteomics changes in potted plants of two cassava cultivars, namely Rayong 9 and Kasetsart 50. One-month-old plants were exposed to 15, 30, and 45 degrees C for 60 min in a temperature chamber under light intensity of 700 mumol m(-2) s(-1). Compared to the optimum temperature (30 degrees C), exposure to 15 degrees C resulted in 28% reduction in stomatal conductance (gs) and 62% reduction in net photosynthesis rate (Pn). In contrast, gs under 45 degrees C increased 2.61 folds, while Pn was reduced by 50%. The lower Pn but higher electron transport rate (ETR) of the cold-stressed plants indicated that a greater proportion of electrons was transported via alternative pathways to protect chloroplast from being damaged by reactive oxygen species (ROS). Moreover, malondialdehyde (MDA) contents, a marker related to the amount of ROS, were significantly higher at low temperature. Proteomics analysis revealed some interesting differentially expressed proteins (DEPs) including annexin, a multi-functional protein functioning in early events of heat stress signaling. In response to low-temperature stress, AP2/ERF domain-containing protein (a cold-related transcription factor) and glutaredoxin domain-containing protein (a component of redox signaling network under cold stress) were detected. Taken together, both cultivars were more sensitive to low than high temperature. Moreover, Rayong 9 displayed higher Pn under both temperature stresses, and was more efficient in controlling ROS under cold stress than Kasetsart 50.
PMID: 36079689
Plants (Basel) , IF:3.935 , 2022 Aug , V11 (17) doi: 10.3390/plants11172243
Genome-Wide Identification and Expression Analysis of Isopentenyl transferase Family Genes during Development and Resistance to Abiotic Stresses in Tea Plant (Camellia sinensis).
Key Laboratory of Tea Quality and Safety Control, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Tea Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Hangzhou 310008, China.; College of Horticulture Science and Engineering, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai'an 271018, China.; State Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Shandong Agricultural University, Tai'an 271018, China.
The tea plant is an important economic crop and is widely cultivated. Isopentenyl transferase (IPT) is the first and rate-limiting enzyme of cytokinin (CK) signaling, which plays key roles in plant development and abiotic stress. However, the IPT gene family in tea plants has not been systematically investigated until now. The phylogenetic analyses, gene structures, and conserved domains were predicted here. The results showed that a total of 13 CsIPT members were identified from a tea plant genome database and phylogenetically classified into four groups. Furthermore, 10 CsIPT members belonged to plant ADP/ATP-IPT genes, and 3 CsIPTs were tRNA-IPT genes. There is a conserved putative ATP/GTP-binding site (P-loop motif) in all the CsIPT sequences. Based on publicly available transcriptome data as well as through RNA-seq and qRT-PCR analysis, the CsIPT genes which play key roles in the development of different tissues were identified, respectively. Furthermore, CsIPT6.2 may be involved in the response to different light treatments. CsIPT6.4 may play a key role during the dormancy and flush of the lateral buds. CsIPT5.1 may play important regulatory roles during the development of the lateral bud, leaf, and flower. CsIPT5.2 and CsIPT6.2 may both play key roles for increased resistance to cold-stress, whereas CsIPT3.2 may play a key role in improving resistance to high-temperature stress as well as drought-stress and rewatering. This study could provide a reference for further studies of CsIPT family's functions and could contribute to tea molecular breeding.
PMID: 36079621
Plants (Basel) , IF:3.935 , 2022 Aug , V11 (17) doi: 10.3390/plants11172220
Pre- and Post-Harvest Conditions Affect Polyphenol Content in Strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa).
Department of Bioresource Science, Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Kobe University, 1-1 Rokkodai, Nada-ku, Kobe 657-8501, Japan.; Department of Agrobioscience, Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Kobe University, 1-1 Rokkodai, Nada-ku, Kobe 657-8501, Japan.; Research Center for Food Safety and Security, Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Kobe University, 1-1 Rokkodai, Nada-ku, Kobe 657-8501, Japan.; FIRST, Tokyo Institute of Technology, J2-32, 4259 Nagatsuta, Midori-ku, Yokohama 226-8502, Japan.
The strawberry fruit contains abundant polyphenols, such as anthocyanins, flavan-3-ol, and ellagitannin. Polyphenol enrichment improves the quality of strawberries and leads to a better understanding of the polyphenol induction process. We measured the total polyphenol content of strawberry fruits under different growth conditions, developmental stages, and treatment conditions during pre-harvest and post-harvest periods. High fruit polyphenol content was observed in cold treatment, which was selected for further analysis and optimization. A transcriptome analysis of cold-treated fruits suggested that the candidate components of polyphenols may exist in the phenylpropanoid pathway. Coverage with a porous film bag excluded the effects of drought stress and produced polyphenol-rich strawberry fruits without affecting quality or quantity. The degree of stress was assessed using known stress indicators. A rapid accumulation of abscisic acid was followed by an increase in superoxide dismutase and DPPH (2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl) activity, suggesting that the strawberry fruits responded to cold stress immediately, reaching the climax at around 6 days, a trend consistent with that of polyphenol content. These findings enhance our understanding of the mechanism of post-harvest polyphenol accumulation and the value of strawberries as a functional food.
PMID: 36079602
Life (Basel) , IF:3.817 , 2022 Sep , V12 (9) doi: 10.3390/life12091432
Outcomes of Low-Temperature Stress on Biological Alterations within Pothos (Epipremnum aureum) Leaves.
Joint International Research Laboratory of Agriculture and Agri-Product Safety, The Ministry of Education of China, Institutes of Agricultural Science and Technology Development, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China.; College of Horticulture and Landscape Architecture, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China.
Pothos (Epipremnum aureum) is a commonly used indoor ornamental foliage, particularly in the middle and lower regions of the Yangtze River in China. It typically grows in the tropical area, and it is yet unclear whether prolonged winter temperatures cause plant damage and impact its development. In this study, the E. aureum chilling injury response was explored by maintaining it at 1 degrees C. Based on the acquired results, low-temperature stress (LTS) induced wilting and yellowing of leaves and diminished chloroplast pigment concentrations, particularly the chlorophyll b content. LTS also induced overproduction of reactive oxygen species (ROS) within E. aureum and enhanced the relative electrical conductivity and superoxide dismutase activity. In addition, with prolonged LTS, the anatomical structure of E. aureum was severely damaged, resulting in a marked reduction in the photochemical activity of the photosystem reaction center and suppressed photosynthesis. Moreover, results of the transcriptomic analysis revealed that LTS induced the expression of genes involved in the alpha-linolenic acid metabolic pathway, plant hormone network, host plant-pathogen association, and MAPK axis, suggesting that LTS would activate its resistant response to cold stress. These results unraveled the physiological and transcriptomical response of E. aureum to chilling injury, which would lay a theoretical foundation for the cultivation of low-temperature-tolerant varieties of E. aureum.
PMID: 36143467
Gene , IF:3.688 , 2022 Aug , V837 : P146690 doi: 10.1016/j.gene.2022.146690
Genome-wide identification of cold-tolerance genes and functional analysis of IbbHLH116 gene in sweet potato.
Research Center of Crop Stresses Resistance Technologies/ Engineering Research Centre of Ecology and Agricultural Use of Wetland, Ministry of Education, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434025, China.; Agronomy Department, Faculty of Agriculture, Assiut University, 71526 Assiut, Egypt.; Research Center of Crop Stresses Resistance Technologies/ Engineering Research Centre of Ecology and Agricultural Use of Wetland, Ministry of Education, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434025, China; Hubei Sweet potato Engineering and Technology Research Centre, Hubei Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Wuhan 430064, China.; Hubei Sweet potato Engineering and Technology Research Centre, Hubei Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Wuhan 430064, China.; Research Center of Crop Stresses Resistance Technologies/ Engineering Research Centre of Ecology and Agricultural Use of Wetland, Ministry of Education, Yangtze University, Jingzhou 434025, China. Electronic address: wyzhang@yangtzeu.edu.cn.
Sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas L.) originated from South America; therefore, it is vulnerable to low temperature. Here, the evolutionary analysis of 22 cold-responsive genes in 35 plant species revealed that the identified MYC-type basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) transcription factors exhibit diverse structures. We found that the number of bHLH gene family members was significantly lower than that of cold-tolerant species. We further systematically evaluated the gene structure, promoter analysis, synteny analysis, and expression pattern of 28 bHLH gene family members in sweet potato. The basic helix-loop-helix protein 116 (IbbHLH116) has the closest phylogeny to the AtICE1 protein of A. thaliana. However, the IbbHLH116 protein from cold-tolerant variety FS18 showed a 37.90% of sequence homology with AtICE1 protein. Subcellular localization analysis showed that IbbHLH116 is localized in the nucleus. The transcripts of IbbHLH116 were highly accumulated in cold-tolerant genotype FS18, particularly in new leaves and stems, compared to the cold-sensitive genotype NC1 under cold stress. Overexpression of IbbHLH116 in the wild type (Col-0) A. thaliana significantly enhanced cold tolerance in transgenic plants by regulating activities of oxidative protective enzymes, such as peroxidase (POD), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and the contents of malondialdehyde (MDA), proline and soluble proteins. Moreover, overexpression of IbbHLH116 in ice1 mutant A. thaliana fully rescued the cold-sensitive phenotype by promoting the expression of C-repeat binding factors 3 (CBF3). Overexpression of IbbHLH116 in the sweet potato callus also induced the expression of CBF3 under low temperature. These results imply that IbbHLH116 can perform the function of the ICE1 gene in conferring cold tolerance in sweet potato.
PMID: 35738441
J Plant Physiol , IF:3.549 , 2022 Sep , V278 : P153806 doi: 10.1016/j.jplph.2022.153806
ScCBF1 plays a stronger role in cold, salt and drought tolerance than StCBF1 in potato (Solanum tuberosum).
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.; Department of Horticulture, ALS 4017, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, 97331, USA.; College of Life Science, State Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Shandong Key Laboratory of Crop Biology, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, 271018, China. Electronic address: xhyang@sdau.edu.cn.
Solanum tuberosum (St) and Solanum commersonii (Sc) are two potato varieties with different freezing tolerance. Among them, St is a freezing-sensitive variety and. Sc is a cold-resistant wild potato. CBF/DREB family members mainly function in response to freezing stress. In order to explore the different roles of St C-Repeat Binding Factor1 (StCBF1) and Sc C-Repeat Binding Factor1 (ScCBF1) in potato plants (Solanum tuberosum) under stress conditions, two kinds of potato lines were obtained with ScCBF1 and StCBF1 overexpressing respectively. Phenotypes analysis showed that both overexpressing ScCBF1 and StCBF1 caused smaller leaves, and reduced tuber yield. While the limited phenotypes of StCBF1 lines were more severe than that of ScCBF lines. After freezing treatment, StCBF1 over expression plants grown better than WT plants and worse than ScCBF1 over expression plants. Specifically, compared with wild-type lines, overexpressing ScCBF1 could up-regulate fatty acid desaturase genes, key enzyme of Calvin cycle genes, and antioxidant enzyme genes. Both ScCBF1 and StCBF1 lines showed higher PSII activity, thus maintaining a higher photosynthetic rate under cold stress. In addition, we also found that overexpression ScCBF1 and StCBF1 could also enhance the drought and salt tolerance in potato. In summary, ScCBF1 plays a stronger role in cold, salt, and drought tolerance than StCBF1 in potato (Solanum tuberosum).
PMID: 36115270
J Plant Physiol , IF:3.549 , 2022 Sep , V276 : P153772 doi: 10.1016/j.jplph.2022.153772
Exogenous uniconazole enhances tolerance to chilling stress in mung beans (Vigna radiata L.) through cross talk among photosynthesis, antioxidant system, sucrose metabolism, and hormones.
College of Coastal Agriculture Sciences, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang, Guangdong, 524088, China; College of Agriculture, Heilongjiang Bayi Agricultural University, Daqing, Heilongjiang, 163319, China.; College of Coastal Agriculture Sciences, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang, Guangdong, 524088, China; Shenzhen Reseach Institute of Guangdong Ocean University, Shenzhen, Guangdong, 518108, China.; College of Coastal Agriculture Sciences, Guangdong Ocean University, Zhanjiang, Guangdong, 524088, China; Shenzhen Reseach Institute of Guangdong Ocean University, Shenzhen, Guangdong, 518108, China. Electronic address: zhengdf@gdou.edu.cn.; College of Agriculture, Heilongjiang Bayi Agricultural University, Daqing, Heilongjiang, 163319, China.
To monitor the role of exogenous uniconazole in mitigating chilling stress, this study investigated the effect of foliar spraying of 50 mg L(-1) uniconazole on the chilling (15 degrees C) tolerance of mung beans at the flowering stage. The results showed that uniconazole significantly enhanced the reactive oxygen species (ROS) scavenging ability of mung beans by increasing the superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), glutathione reductase (GR) activities, the contents of ascorbic acid (AsA) and glutathione (GSH), and the transcription levels of SOD and POD under chilling stress. The uniconazole applications also drastically increased the net photosynthetic rate (Pn), maximum net photosynthetic rate (Pnmax), maximum quantum yield of PSII (Fv/Fm), and the expression levels of the corresponding photosynthetic genes PsbO, PsbP, PsbQ, PsbY, and Psb28. This, in turn, resulted in a higher sucrose content. Meanwhile, uniconazole increased the indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) content but reduced the gibberellin A3 (GA3) content under chilling stress. During the recovery period, the photosynthetic parameters and ROS of plants receiving uniconazole recovered faster, and the antioxidant activity and non-antioxidant contents were higher than in chilling-treated plants. Additionally, chilling stress markedly reduced the pod number per plant, grain number per plant, and 100-seed weight, whereas uniconazole significantly increased the grain weight per plant by 53.47% compared to the chilling treatment. These results strongly suggest that uniconazole can effectively protect mung beans from chilling stress damage by protecting the photosynthetic machinery and enhancing the antioxidant capacity to quench excessive ROS caused by chilling stress. These effects are closely relevant to chilling tolerance enhancement and yield improvement in mung beans.
PMID: 35872423
Protoplasma , IF:3.356 , 2022 Sep doi: 10.1007/s00709-022-01807-5
Transcriptome meta-analysis of abiotic stresses-responsive genes and identification of candidate transcription factors for broad stress tolerance in wheat.
Biotechnology and Plant Improvement Laboratory, Centre of Biotechnology of Sfax, Road Sidi Mansour 6 km, P.O. Box 1177, 3018, Sfax, Tunisia. saiidimn@gmail.com.; Biotechnology and Plant Improvement Laboratory, Centre of Biotechnology of Sfax, Road Sidi Mansour 6 km, P.O. Box 1177, 3018, Sfax, Tunisia.
Under field conditions, wheat is subjected to single or multiple stress conditions. The elucidation of the molecular mechanism of stress response is a key step to identify candidate genes for stress resistance in plants. In this study, RNA-seq data analysis identified 17.324, 10.562, 5.510, and 8.653 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) under salt, drought, heat, and cold stress, respectively. Moreover, the comparison of DEGs from each stress revealed 2374 shared genes from which 40% showed highly conserved expression patterns. Moreover, co-expression network analysis and GO enrichment revealed co-expression modules enriched with genes involved in transcription regulation, protein kinase pathway, and genes responding to phytohormones or modulating hormone levels. The expression of 15 selected transcription factor encoding genes was analyzed under abiotic stresses and ABA treatment in durum wheat. The identified transcription factor genes are excellent candidates for genetic engineering of stress tolerance in wheat.
PMID: 36063229
Oecologia , IF:3.225 , 2022 Aug , V199 (4) : P831-843 doi: 10.1007/s00442-022-05245-1
Acclimation to water stress improves tolerance to heat and freezing in a common alpine grass.
Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Burwood, 3125, Australia. eesumner@deakin.edu.au.; Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Burwood, 3125, Australia.; School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, 3800, Australia.
Alpine plants in Australia are increasingly exposed to more frequent drought and heatwaves, with significant consequences for physiological stress responses. Acclimation is a critical feature that allows plants to improve tolerance to environmental extremes by directly altering their physiology or morphology. Yet it is unclear how plant performance, tolerance, and recovery are affected when heat and water stress co-occur, and whether prior exposure affects responses to subsequent climate extremes. We grew a common alpine grass species under high or low watering treatments for three weeks before exposure to either none, one, or two heat stress events. We determined photosynthetic heat and freezing tolerance (LT50, mean temperature causing 50% irreversible damage to photosystem II) and growth. Physiological adjustments to low watering, including more negative water potentials and reduced growth, were also characterised by improved tolerance to high and low-temperature extremes. Shifts to higher heat tolerance were also evident with increasing exposure to heat stress events, though freezing tolerance was not affected. Acclimation effects were mostly short-term, however; prior exposure to heat and/or water stress had little to no effect on growth and thermal tolerance following the six-week recovery period. We conclude that rapid acclimation to water and heat stress that co-occur during summer enhances the capacity of alpine plants to tolerate increasingly frequent temperature extremes.
PMID: 35974110
Funct Plant Biol , IF:3.101 , 2022 Sep , V49 (10) : P861-873 doi: 10.1071/FP21290
Identifying conserved genes involved in crop tolerance to cold stress.
Department of Horticultural Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Bu-Ali Sina University, Hamedan, Iran.; Department of Agricultural, Food and Forest Sciences, University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze - Ed. 4, 90128 Palermo, Italy.; Department of Horticultural Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj 31587-77871, Iran.; Council for Agricultural Research and Economics (CREA), Research Centre for Plant Protection and Certification (CREA-DC), 90011 Bagheria, Italy.; Department of Biological, Chemical and Pharmaceutical Sciences and Technologies (STEBICEF), University of Palermo, Viale delle Scienze, Palermo 90128, Italy.; Department of Agriculture, Food, Environment and Forestry, University of Florence, Firenze, Italy.; Department of Biology, University of Florence, Firenze, Italy; and Istituto di Protezione Sostenibile delle Piante, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Rome, Italy.
Low temperature is a limiting factor for crop productivity in tropical and subtropical climates. Cold stress response in plants involves perceiving and relaying the signal through a transcriptional cascade composed of different transduction components, resulting in altered gene activity. We performed a meta-analysis of four previously published datasets of cold-tolerant and cold-sensitive crops to better understand the gene regulatory networks and identify key genes involved in cold stress tolerance conserved across phylogenetically distant species. Re-analysing the raw data with the same bioinformatics pipeline, we identified common cold tolerance-related genes. We found 236 and 242 commonly regulated genes in sensitive and tolerant genotypes, respectively. Gene enrichment analysis showed that protein modifications, hormone metabolism, cell wall, and secondary metabolism are the most conserved pathways involved in cold tolerance. Upregulation of the abiotic stress (heat and drought/salt) related genes [heat shock N -terminal domain-containing protein, 15.7kDa class I-related small heat shock protein-like, DNAJ heat shock N -terminal domain-containing protein, and HYP1 (HYPOTHETICAL PROTEIN 1)] in sensitive genotypes and downregulation of the abiotic stress (heat and drought/salt) related genes (zinc ion binding and pollen Ole e 1 allergen and extensin family protein) in tolerant genotypes was observed across the species. Almost all development-related genes were upregulated in tolerant and downregulated in sensitive genotypes. Moreover, protein-protein network analysis identified highly interacting proteins linked to cold tolerance. Mapping of abiotic stress-related genes on analysed species genomes provided information that could be essential to developing molecular markers for breeding and building up genetic improvement strategies using CRISPR/Cas9 technologies.
PMID: 35785800
PeerJ , IF:2.984 , 2022 , V10 : Pe14021 doi: 10.7717/peerj.14021
The cold-stress responsive gene DREB1A involved in low-temperature tolerance in Xinjiang wild walnut.
College of Horticulture, Xinjiang Agricultural University, Urumqi, China.; Institute of Horticultural Crops, Xinjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences/Key Laboratory of Genome Research and Genetic Improvement of Xinjiang Characteristic Fruits and Vegetables/Xinjiang Fruit Science Experiment Station, Ministry of Agriculture, Urumqi, China.; College of Plant Science and Technology, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing, China.
Background: Low-temperatures have the potential to be a serious problem for plants and can negatively affect the normal growth and development of walnuts. DREB1/CBF (Dehydration Responsive Element Binding Protein 1/C-repeat Binding Factor), one of the most direct transcription factors in response to low-temperature stress, may improve the resistance of plants to low-temperatures by regulating their functional genes. However, few studies have been conducted in walnut. The Xinjiang wild walnut is a rare wild plant found in China, with a large number of excellent trait genes, and is hardier than cultivated walnuts in Xinjiang. Methods: In this work, we identified all of the DREB1 members from the walnut genome and analyzed their expression levels in different tissues and during low-temperature stress on the Xinjiang wild walnut. The JfDREB1A gene of the Xinjiang wild walnut was cloned and transformed into Arabidopsis thaliana for functional verification. Results: There were five DREB1 transcription factors in the walnut genome. Among them, the relative expression level of the DREB1A gene was significantly higher than other members in the different tissues (root, stem, leaf) and was immediately un-regulated under low-temperature stress. The overexpression of the JfDREB1A gene increased the survival rates of transgenic Arabidopsis lines, mainly through maintaining the stability of cell membrane, decreasing the electrical conductivity and increasing the activities of antioxidant enzymes including superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), and catalase (CAT). Additionally, the expression levels of cold-inducible genes like AtKIN1, AtERD10, AtRD29A, AtCOR15A and AtCOR47, were significantly increased. These results showed that the JfDREB1A gene may play an important role in the response to cold stress of the Xinjiang wild walnut. This study contributes to our understanding of the molecular mechanism of the Xinjiang wild walnut's response to low-temperature stress and will be beneficial for developing walnut cultivars with improved cold resistance.
PMID: 36101878
J Plant Res , IF:2.629 , 2022 Sep , V135 (5) : P681-692 doi: 10.1007/s10265-022-01404-w
The ability of P700 oxidation in photosystem I reflects chilling stress tolerance in cucumber.
Graduate School of Biostudies, Kyoto University, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8502, Japan.; Graduate School of Agriculture, Kobe University, Kobe, Hyogo, Japan.; Graduate School of Agriculture, Kyoto University, Kitashirakawa oiwake-cho, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8502, Japan. ifuku.kentaro.2m@kyoto-u.ac.jp.
Low temperature inhibits photosynthesis and negatively affects plant growth. Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) is a chilling-sensitive plant, and its greenhouse production requires considerable energy during the winter. Therefore, a useful stress marker for selecting chilling-tolerant cucumber cultivars is desirable. In this study, we evaluated chilling-stress damage in different cucumber cultivars by measuring photosynthetic parameters. The majority of cultivars showed decreases in the quantum yield of photosystem (PS) II [Fv/Fm and Y(II)] and the quantity of active PS I (Pm) after chilling stress. In contrast, Y(ND)-the ratio of the oxidized state of PSI reaction center chlorophyll P700 (P700(+))-differed among cultivars and was perfectly inversely correlated with Y(NA)-the ratio of the non-photooxidizable P700. It has been known that P700(+) accumulates under stress conditions and protects plants to suppress the generation of reactive oxygen species. In fact, cultivars unable to induce Y(ND) after chilling stress showed growth retardation with reductions in chlorophyll content and leaf area. Therefore, Y(ND) can be a useful marker to evaluate chilling-stress tolerance in cucumber.
PMID: 35767130
Cryobiology , IF:2.487 , 2022 Sep doi: 10.1016/j.cryobiol.2022.08.004
Pre-stress salicylic-acid treatment as an intervention strategy for freeze-protection in spinach: Foliar versus sub-irrigation application and duration of efficacy.
Department of Horticulture, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, 50011, USA.; Department of Horticulture, Iowa State University, Ames, IA, 50011, USA. Electronic address: rarora@iastate.edu.
Exogenous application of salicylic acid (SA) to plant tissues has been shown to confer tolerance against various abiotic stresses. Recently, SA application through sub-irrigation was shown to improve plant freezing tolerance (FT). For SA treatment to be employable as an effective intervention strategy for frost protection under field conditions, it is important to study its effect on FT when applied as a foliar spray to whole plants. It is also important to determine for how long the FT-improvement by SA lasts. Present study was conducted to compare SA-induced FT of spinach (Spinacia oleracea L. 'Reflect') seedlings following SA-application by foliar spray vs. sub-irrigation. Durability of FT-promotive effect of SA was evaluated using three freeze-tests over a 4-d period, i.e., at 10-d, 12-d, and 14-d after the SA application. Freezing stress was applied using a temperature-controlled freeze-thaw protocol, and FT was assessed by visual observations (leaf flaccidness vs. turgidity) as well as ion-leakage assay. Data indicated that both foliar spray and sub-irrigation methods improved FT of the seedlings against a relatively moderate (-5.5 degrees C) as well as severe stress (-6.5 degrees C). Moreover, improved FT against moderate stress was sustained over a 4-d period, whereas such benefit waned somewhat against the severe stress. SA-treated leaves' growth performance was similar to the non-treated control based on dry weight, fresh weight, leaf area, and dry weight/leaf area parameters. Our results suggest that SA application as a foliar spray can potentially be used to protect field-grown transplants against episodic frosts.
PMID: 36122766
3 Biotech , IF:2.406 , 2022 Oct , V12 (10) : P274 doi: 10.1007/s13205-022-03328-7
Insights to the superoxide dismutase genes and its roles in Hevea brasiliensis under abiotic stress.
Yunnan Institute of Tropical Crops, Xishuangbanna, 666100 China.grid.495573.90000 0004 1766 3791
The superoxide dismutase (SOD) protein significantly influences the development and growth of plants and their reaction to abiotic stresses. However, little is known about the characteristics of rubber tree SOD genes and their expression changes under abiotic stresses. The present study recognized 11 SOD genes in the rubber tree genome, including 7 Cu/ZnSODs, 2 MnSODs, and 2 FeSODs. Except for HbFSD1, SODs were scattered on five chromosomes. The phylogenetic analysis of SOD proteins in rubber trees and a few other plants demonstrated that the SOD proteins contained three major subgroups. Moreover, the genes belonging to the same clade contained similar gene structures, which confirmed their classification further. The extension of the SOD gene family in the rubber tree was mainly induced by the segmental duplication events. The cis-acting components analysis showed that HbSODs were utilized in many biological procedures. The transcriptomics data indicated that the phosphorylation of the C-terminal domain of RNA polymerase II might control the cold response genes through the CBF pathway and activate the SOD system to respond to cold stress. The qRT-PCR results showed that the expression of HbCSD1 was significantly downregulated under drought and salt stresses, which might dominate the adaption capability to different stresses. Additionally, salt promoted the expression levels of HbMSD1 and HbMSD2, exhibiting their indispensable role in the salinity reaction. The study results will provide a theoretical basis for deep research on HbSODs in rubber trees. Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13205-022-03328-7.
PMID: 36110566
Biotechnol Rep (Amst) , 2022 Dec , V36 : Pe00762 doi: 10.1016/j.btre.2022.e00762
Callus induction and regeneration in high-altitude Himalayan rice genotype SR4 via seed explant.
Centre of Research for Development, University of Kashmir, Srinagar-190006, India.; Department of Botany, Central University of Kashmir, Ganderbal, Jammu and Kashmir, India.; Division of Plant Biotechnology, SKUAST-K Shalimar, Srinagar-190025, India.
SR4 genotype of rice is high altitude Himalayan rice prone to various abiotic stresses such as cold stress and therefore gives a poor yield. An efficient protocol for callusing and regeneration via direct and indirect means was established using mature seeds as an explant which can be utilized for molecular studies for genetic advancement of Himalayan rice genotype SR4 through transformation. Highest frequency (96.6%) of callus induction was obtained on MS media 3.0 mg/L 2, 4-D. While maximum regeneration frequency (100%), number of shoots with maximum length 9.14 +/- 0.204 (cm) from callus was recovered from MS media amended with 5.0 mg/L BAP in combination with 0.5 mg/L NAA with highest number of shoots having an average shoot length 9.14 +/- 0.204 (cm) after four weeks of culture. Direct multiple shoot regeneration from seed explants was obtained using various concentrations of TDZ and BAP with highest regeneration frequency was observed on MS media fortified with 6 mg/L of TDZ with maximum number of shoots. The shoots developed roots on MS media supplemented with 0.6 mg/L IBA.
PMID: 36110199