Acta Physiologiae Plantarum

Liu, Dongyan; Zhang, Jun; Dong, Yan; Zhang, Xu; Yang, Minsheng; Gao, Baojia

doi: 10.1007/s11738-016-2195-6pmid: N/A

To realize the genetic transformation of Cry1Ac, Cry3A, and NTHK1 genes in Populus × euramericana “Neva” and obtain transgenic plants, the plant transformation vector p09687199–Cry1Ac–Cry3A–NTHK1 was transformed in Populus × euramericana “Neva” through Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. The complete regeneration of the transformed plant was screened with kanamycin. Resistant roots of the transformed plants were detected through PCR, fluorescence quantitative PCR, and ELISA analysis of the toxic protein. The insect resistance and salt tolerance of transgenic plants were determined based on the findings of these methods. PCR detection showed that among six lines, five lines indicated the presence of three target genes, Cry1Ac and Cry3A genes were detected in one line. Fluorescence quantitative PCR detection showed that the transcript abundance of the Cry1Ac gene was within 1.13E+3 to 3.17E+4, that of Cry3A was within 4.40E+6 to 1.97E+7, and that of NTHK1 was within 2.48E+3 to 8.17E+3. Bt toxic protein detection showed that the content of the Cry1Ac gene was from 1.08 to 22.99 ng·g−1, and that of Cry3A gene was from 146.12 to 17027.96 ng·g−1. The expression of the Cry3A gene was significantly higher than that of the Cry1Ac gene. The insect resistance test demonstrated that the mortality of transgenic plants on Hyphantria cunea first instar larva reached 68.89 %. The mortality on Plagiodera versicolora first and second instar larvae reached 100 %, whereas that on the third instar larva was as high as 81.71 %. Four lines were selected to detect potting salt tolerance, and only the No. 2 line showed strong salt tolerance.

Pal, Probir; Mahajan, Mitali; Agnihotri, Vijai

doi: 10.1007/s11738-016-2187-6pmid: N/A

Rosa damascena Mill. is cultivated for its high-value essential oil in different parts of the world. The flower yield and the composition of essential oil of R. damascena are strongly affected by a number of factors. Nevertheless, the interactive effects of foliar application of plant nutrients and kinetin and its time of application on yield and secondary metabolites profile of R. damascena under acidic conditions are still unclear. Thus, a field experiment comprising two different times of spray and five foliar spray treatments was conducted to test the hypothesis that flowering behavior and secondary metabolites profile can be modified through proper nutrient supply at right time. The foliar spray at flower bud appearance stage (S2) significantly (P ≤ 0.05) increased flower yield by about 10.0 % compared with the foliar application at axillary bud development stage (S1) during both years, regardless of plant nutrients. Among the foliar spray treatments, kinetin at 0.20 g L−1 registered about 23–39 % higher flower yield compared with the water spray control; however, remained statistically at par (P ≤ 0.05) with Ca(NO3)2 at 4.06 g L−1. Moreover, the percentage of major fragrance-bearing compounds of essential oil (β-citronellol + nerol, linalool, E-geraniol, and Z-citral) was marginally increased with Ca(NO3)2 compared with kinetin treatment. However, the percentages of major hydrocarbons, nonadecane and heneicosane, were noticeably increased when kinetin was applied at S1. Foliar application of kinetin and Ca(NO3)2 might be done to improve flower yield and essential oil content in R. damascena flowers.

Khan, M.; Hemalatha, S.

doi: 10.1007/s11738-016-2185-8pmid: N/A

Salinity stress constrains the growth, development, and yield in crops. Rice is an important cereal crop highly affected by salinity. To ensure the agriculture production in salt-affected soils, it is enormously entail to understand the salt adaptation strategies of plants. Salinity directly affects the morphology, physiology, and metabolism of the plants. The current study was carried out to check the influence of different concentrations of sodium chloride on rice cultivar. Higher concentration of the NaCl showed significant reduction in the growth, pigment system, and metabolites in rice cultivars. Salinity also elicited the antioxidant enzymes (CAT, SOD, and POX) response and gene expression. Cell biological studies showed the H2O2 production and nuclear fragmentation due to alleviated salinity stress. To delineate the portrayal of antioxidant proteins and autophagy mechanism in salinity stress, the homologs of rice CAT1, Mn-SOD, GPX, ATG1, and ATG6 genes were retrieved from blast search. The real-time PCR analysis showed differential expression of genes and depicts new molecular insight of target genes to understand the salinity stress and autophagy-mediated stress signaling pathways.

Saja, Diana; Rys, Magdalena; Stawoska, Iwona; Skoczowski, Andrzej

doi: 10.1007/s11738-016-2183-xpmid: N/A

Tribenuron-methyl is the active substance of the herbicide used for weed control in crops. The aim of this study was to investigate differences in the metabolic response of seeds, seedlings and leaves of Centaurea cyanus L., depending on the degree of resistance to tribenuron-methyl. Changes in the values of selected biochemical and physiological parameters (germination index, chemical composition, photochemical efficiency of photosystem II and the emission spectra of blue-green fluorescence) presented herein make it possible to determine the differences between cornflower biotypes with various types of resistance to the tested herbicide. Moreover, differences in the chemical composition of dry seeds between biotypes susceptible and resistant to tribenuron-methyl were observed before using the herbicide. The degree of resistance to the herbicide—resistant or susceptible, but not the types of this resistance-mutational or metabolic, can be distinguished on the basis of the presented parameters. These findings allow for early diagnosis of the resistance of cornflower to tribenuron-methyl. Additionally, we suggest that the described parameters might be used as physiochemical markers for early estimation of weed resistance to various types of herbicide. The presented conclusions are especially important for agricultural practice.

Veloso, Victor; Ribeiro, Leonardo; Mercadante-Simões, Maria; Nunes, Yule

doi: 10.1007/s11738-016-2194-7pmid: N/A

We evaluated the physiological and cytological aspects of the embryos of the palm tree Mauritia flexuosa, whose seeds show a rare association of recalcitrance and dormancy. Seeds were subjected to dehydration, or stored with stabilized water contents for 420 days. Seed viability and germination, as well as the anatomy, cytochemistry and ultrastructure of the embryos were evaluated using standardized methodologies. Under initial conditions (seeds with water contents of 44.6 %), viability was as high as 94 %, although without germination. Seeds dehydrated to water contents of 20 % lost all viability, whereas 87 % of the seeds stored while hydrated remained viable and 25 % germinated. Embryonic cells showed characteristics associated with recalcitrance in other palms species, such as the presence of large vacuoles and the absence of lipidic reserves, but also had abundant protein bodies and terpenoids in their cytoplasm as well as carbohydrate and protein reserves in their vacuoles—conditions found in the embryo cells of palms having orthodox seeds. Dehydration caused invagination of the cell walls, retraction of the plasma membrane, proliferation of the endoplasmic reticulum and autophagic vacuoles, and increased the densities of vacuolar contents—culminating in the collapse of the protoplast. Stored seeds showed preserved cell structures. M. flexuosa seeds are sensitive to dehydration, but will retain viability if kept hydrated, allowing dormancy to be overcome in seed banks in the swampy soils where this species occurs. The accumulations of secondary metabolites, vacuolation and the storage of carbohydrates and proteins in the vacuole all have important roles in the modulation of recalcitrance.

Yuan, Xiu-Yun; Xu, Shen-Ping; Liang, Fang; Jiang, Su-Hua; Wang, Mo-Fei; Ma, Jie; Zhang, Xian-Yun; Cui, Bo

doi: 10.1007/s11738-016-2196-5pmid: N/A

Phalaenopsis, an epiphytic crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM) plant, requires moderate variations of day/night temperatures for flowering. In this study, changes in chlorophyll content, chlorophyll fluorescence, sugar components, titratable acidity and soluble protein content in Phalaenopsis leaves during flowering were observed. Comparative proteomic analysis of Phalaenopsis leaves in the vegetative and flowering phase was performed for the first time using iTRAQ (isobaric tags for relative and absolute quantification). A total of 126 proteins were differentially expressed in Phalaenopsis leaves. Analysis of potential functions revealed that the major categories of predicted function of the up-regulated proteins were protein destination (27 %), photosynthesis (15.9 %), primary metabolism (14.3 %) and defense (12.7 %) in the flowering phase, while the major categories of predicted function of the down-regulated proteins were protein destination (33.3 %), primary metabolism (20.6 %), transportation (14.3 %) and signal transduction (11.1 %). Proteome profile analysis indicated that the proteome changes were consistent with changes in sugar and protein metabolites. Some novel proteins were differentially expressed, most of which were identified as signaling proteins, including 14-3-3 proteins, fibrillin, rapid alkalinization factors (RALF), the Ras-related protein RABB1c, calreticulin and calmodulin. Histone, importin alpha, multidrug resistance proteins and the ABC transporters were also differentially expressed. These results provide insights into the mechanisms that regulate flowering in complex flowering plants.

Kumar, Vinay; Khare, Tushar

doi: 10.1007/s11738-016-2191-xpmid: N/A

Negative impacts exerted by sodium (Na+) and chloride (Cl−) ions individually as well their possible additive effects (under NaCl) were evaluated on growth and yield reductions in rice, besides investigating whether salt-tolerant genotypes respond differentially than their sensitive counterparts. Though both Na+ and Cl− ions get accumulated in plant tissues under NaCl stress, most research has historically been aimed to decipher harmful effects induced by Na+ ions. Accordingly, physiological and molecular mechanisms involved in Cl− toxicity are not clearly understood in crop plants. To address these issues, 65-day-old plants of two rice cultivars, Panvel-3 (tolerant) and Sahyadri-3 (sensitive) were subjected to Cl−, Na+ and NaCl (each with 100 mM concentration and electrical conductivity of ≈10 dS m−1) stress using soil-based systems. Stress conditions were maintained till harvesting of mature (128-day-old) plants. All three treatments induced substantial antagonistic effects on growth, dry mass, yield components (number of grains per panicle, length, width, thickness and weight of grain, along with the percentage of grains filled) and overall crop yield, with greater impacts under NaCl than its constituent ions. Salinity treatments caused an imbalance in reducing sugars, protein, starch and proline contents, with the greatest magnitude under NaCl. A negative correlation between Cl−/Na+ accumulation and crop yield was witnessed, with higher severity on the sensitive cultivar. The overall magnitude of toxicity was observed highest in NaCl followed by Na+ and Cl−, respectively, suggesting additive effects of constituent ions under NaCl. Both cultivars responded similarly; however, the tolerant cultivar, unlike the sensitive one, kept Na+:K+ ratio <1.0 and accumulated proline in response to salinity treatments used in this study.

Simek, Jiri; Tuma, Jiri; Dohnal, Vlastimil; Musil, Karel; Ducaiová, Zuzana

doi: 10.1007/s11738-016-2192-9pmid: N/A

In this pot experiment, cucumbers (Cucumis sativus L.) were grown in a model soil contaminated by three different concentrations of cadmium (40, 160, and 320 mg.kg−1) with different accompanied anions (Cl−, SO4 2−). In all variants, the most Cd (90 %) was accumulated in the roots, but higher content in the case of Cl−. The distribution of Cd in various cucumber organs was as follows: root > stem > leaf > fruits. However, in variants with higher doses of Cd with SO4 2−, the ratio was changed as follows: root > leaf > stem > fruits. In all variants, least of Cd (max. 1 %) was found in fruits. Variants with the highest Cd doses were significantly different by comparison with all other variants, but higher content was in the case of Cl− anion. Stimulation effect on the biomass production and growth of aerial parts and roots of plants in all variants with Cd was observed. Toxicity symptoms, mainly in the presence of leaf chlorosis and yellowing, were more visible in the variants with Cl−, in comparison with SO4 2−. The amounts of phenol compounds in leaves rose almost in all variants. Only the variants with higher Cd content with SO4 2− showed slight reduction. One possible explanation of reduced content may be their bounding on Cd. The content of salicylic acid was reduced in all variants with Cd treatment. However, it is difficult to conclude their role in plant defence responses to heavy metal, because their actual defence mechanism is still unclear. However, from these results, we can suggest that the accompanying anion and the form in which Cd exists may have an impact on the involvement of various antioxidant systems.

Wang, Wei-Feng; Zong, Yu-Zheng; Zhang, Sui-Qi

doi: 10.1007/s11738-016-2199-2pmid: N/A

The conservation of water in agriculture requires an understanding of the mechanisms of plant–water relations. This study aimed to reveal hydraulic regulation strategies of maize (Zea mays L.) for maintaining the plant water balance during drought. The water relations of two maize inbred lines (Tian4 and 478) that differ in their resistance to drought in the field were investigated under well-watered conditions and osmotic stress induced with 10 % PEG 6000. The leaf transpiration rate and leaf water potential of 478 varied diurnally, but remained constant in Tian4, which is more drought resistant. Tian4 plants showed morphological, anatomical and physiological advantages that protected them from foliar water loss. The strategies of leaf hydraulics to regulate leaf water balance during the day and during short-term osmotic stress also differed between Tian4 and 478. The leaf hydraulic conductivity of Tian4 and 478 increased temporarily, but their root hydraulic conductivities were reduced under osmotic stress. However, the root hydraulic conductivity of Tian4 subsequently recovered. Lower and rapidly reduced leaf transpiration and the ability of root hydraulics to recover from short-term osmotic stress can help explain the strategies for plant water balance of drought-tolerant maize.

Mareri, Lavinia; Faleri, Claudia; Romi, Marco; Mariani, Celestina; Cresti, Mauro; Cai, Giampiero

doi: 10.1007/s11738-016-2203-xpmid: N/A

Arabinogalactan-proteins are a family of highly glycosylated hydroxyproline-rich glycoproteins widely distributed in the plant kingdom and mainly located at the cell surface. Because of their great heterogeneity, abundance and ubiquitous localization, arabinogalactan-proteins are thought to play important and different roles in plant growth and development. Many evidences also indicate a role of arabinogalactan-proteins during reproduction as well as in response to stress conditions. In the present work, we investigated the distribution of arabinogalactan-proteins recognised by JIM8 antibody in pistils of Solanum lycopersicum cv Micro-Tom heat-stressed for 3 h at 42 °C at different developmental stages (5 and 10 days before anthesis). Our results indicate that high temperature strongly affects the distribution and content of arabinogalactan-proteins in stigma and ovule, particularly in samples heat-stressed 5 days before anthesis. In stigmas, cells exhibited an altered pattern of JIM8-labelled AGPs, dispersed and less abundant. In ovules, the embryo sac-surrounding cells showed a clear reduction in the content of JIM8-labelled arabinogalactan proteins. These evidences suggest that heat stress affects both content and distribution of AGPs. Considering the role of AGPs in plant reproduction, from the acquisition of stigmatic receptivity to pollen guidance into the ovule, we can suppose that high temperature affects all these processes through the alteration of AGPs.