scholarly journals Signal Integration in Plant Abiotic Stress Responses via Multistep Phosphorelay Signaling

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan Skalak ◽  
Katrina Leslie Nicolas ◽  
Radomira Vankova ◽  
Jan Hejatko
Keyword(s):  
Abiotic Stress ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Geographical Location ◽  
Survival Strategies ◽  
Balance Growth ◽  
Adaptive Responses ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Sensor Kinases

Plants growing in any particular geographical location are exposed to variable and diverse environmental conditions throughout their lifespan. The multifactorial environmental pressure resulted into evolution of plant adaptation and survival strategies requiring ability to integrate multiple signals that combine to yield specific responses. These adaptive responses enable plants to maintain their growth and development while acquiring tolerance to a variety of environmental conditions. An essential signaling cascade that incorporates a wide range of exogenous as well as endogenous stimuli is multistep phosphorelay (MSP). MSP mediates the signaling of essential plant hormones that balance growth, development, and environmental adaptation. Nevertheless, the mechanisms by which specific signals are recognized by a commonly-occurring pathway are not yet clearly understood. Here we summarize our knowledge on the latest model of multistep phosphorelay signaling in plants and the molecular mechanisms underlying the integration of multiple inputs including both hormonal (cytokinins, ethylene and abscisic acid) and environmental (light and temperature) signals into a common pathway. We provide an overview of abiotic stress responses mediated via MSP signaling that are both hormone-dependent and independent. We highlight the mutual interactions of key players such as sensor kinases of various substrate specificities including their downstream targets. These constitute a tightly interconnected signaling network, enabling timely adaptation by the plant to an ever-changing environment. Finally, we propose possible future directions in stress-oriented research on MSP signaling and highlight its potential importance for targeted crop breeding.

scholarly journals Genome-wide promoter analysis, homology modeling and protein interaction network of Dehydration Responsive Element Binding (DREB) gene family in Solanum tuberosum

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (12) ◽  
pp. e0261215
Author(s):  
Qurat-ul ain-Ali ◽  
Nida Mushtaq ◽  
Rabia Amir ◽  
Alvina Gul ◽  
Muhammad Tahir ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Abiotic Stress ◽  
Gene Family ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Promoter Analysis ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Regulatory Elements ◽  
Start Codon ◽  
Gene Promoters ◽  
Responsive Element ◽  
Dreb Gene

Dehydration Responsive Element Binding (DREB) regulates the expression of numerous stress-responsive genes, and hence plays a pivotal role in abiotic stress responses and tolerance in plants. The study aimed to develop a complete overview of the cis-acting regulatory elements (CAREs) present in S. tuberosum DREB gene promoters. A total of one hundred and four (104) cis-regulatory elements (CREs) were identified from 2.5kbp upstream of the start codon (ATG). The in-silico promoter analysis revealed variable sets of cis-elements and functional diversity with the predominance of light-responsive (30%), development-related (20%), abiotic stress-responsive (14%), and hormone-responsive (12%) elements in StDREBs. Among them, two light-responsive elements (Box-4 and G-box) were predicted in 64 and 61 StDREB genes, respectively. Two development-related motifs (AAGAA-motif and as-1) were abundant in StDREB gene promoters. Most of the DREB genes contained one or more Myeloblastosis (MYB) and Myelocytometosis (MYC) elements associated with abiotic stress responses. Hormone-responsive element i.e. ABRE was found in 59 out of 66 StDREB genes, which implied their role in dehydration and salinity stress. Moreover, six proteins were chosen corresponding to A1-A6 StDREB subgroups for secondary structure analysis and three-dimensional protein modeling followed by model validation through PROCHECK server by Ramachandran Plot. The predicted models demonstrated >90% of the residues in the favorable region, which further ensured their reliability. The present study also anticipated pocket binding sites and disordered regions (DRs) to gain insights into the structural flexibility and functional annotation of StDREB proteins. The protein association network determined the interaction of six selected StDREB proteins with potato proteins encoded by other gene families such as MYB and NAC, suggesting their similar functional roles in biological and molecular pathways. Overall, our results provide fundamental information for future functional analysis to understand the precise molecular mechanisms of the DREB gene family in S. tuberosum.

scholarly journals Combating stress: the interplay between hormone signaling and autophagy in plants

2019 ◽  
Vol 71 (5) ◽  
pp. 1723-1733 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ching-Yi Liao ◽  
Diane C Bassham
Keyword(s):  
Stress Responses ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Plant Stress ◽  
Stress Conditions ◽  
Hormone Signaling ◽  
Hormone Synthesis ◽  
Energy Sensor ◽  
Sensor Kinases ◽  
Plant Stress Responses ◽  
Cellular Components

Abstract Autophagy is a conserved recycling process in which cellular components are delivered to and degraded in the vacuole/lysosome for reuse. In plants, it assists in responding to dynamic environmental conditions and maintaining metabolite homeostasis under normal or stress conditions. Under stress, autophagy is activated to remove damaged components and to recycle nutrients for survival, and the energy sensor kinases target of rapamycin (TOR) and SNF-related kinase 1 (SnRK1) are key to this activation. Here, we discuss accumulating evidence that hormone signaling plays critical roles in regulating autophagy and plant stress responses, although the molecular mechanisms by which this occurs are often not clear. Several hormones have been shown to regulate TOR activity during stress, in turn controlling autophagy. Hormone signaling can also regulate autophagy gene expression, while, reciprocally, autophagy can regulate hormone synthesis and signaling pathways. We highlight how the interplay between major energy sensors, plant hormones, and autophagy under abiotic and biotic stress conditions can assist in plant stress tolerance.

scholarly journals Long non-coding RNAs in plants: emerging modulators of gene activity in development and stress responses

Planta ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 252 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Li Chen ◽  
Qian-Hao Zhu ◽  
Kerstin Kaufmann
Keyword(s):  
Stress Responses ◽  
Translational Regulation ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Functional Characterization ◽  
Reproductive Organs ◽  
Gene Activity ◽  
Protein Coding ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Non Coding Rnas ◽  
Coding Potential

Abstract Main conclusion Long non-coding RNAs modulate gene activity in plant development and stress responses by various molecular mechanisms. Abstract Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) are transcripts larger than 200 nucleotides without protein coding potential. Computational approaches have identified numerous lncRNAs in different plant species. Research in the past decade has unveiled that plant lncRNAs participate in a wide range of biological processes, including regulation of flowering time and morphogenesis of reproductive organs, as well as abiotic and biotic stress responses. LncRNAs execute their functions by interacting with DNA, RNA and protein molecules, and by modulating the expression level of their targets through epigenetic, transcriptional, post-transcriptional or translational regulation. In this review, we summarize characteristics of plant lncRNAs, discuss recent progress on understanding of lncRNA functions, and propose an experimental framework for functional characterization.

scholarly journals Toward Understanding Molecular Mechanisms of Abiotic Stress Responses in Rice

Rice ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-51 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ji-Ping Gao ◽  
Dai-Yin Chao ◽  
Hong-Xuan Lin
Keyword(s):  
Abiotic Stress ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms

scholarly journals Conserved miR396b-GRF Regulation Is Involved in Abiotic Stress Responses in Pitaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus)

2019 ◽  
Vol 20 (10) ◽  
pp. 2501 ◽  
Author(s):  
A-Li Li ◽  
Zhuang Wen ◽  
Kun Yang ◽  
Xiao-Peng Wen
Keyword(s):  
Abiotic Stress ◽  
Drought Stress ◽  
Binding Site ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Abiotic Stresses ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Evolutionary Relationship ◽  
Pcr Analysis ◽  
Sequencing Analysis ◽  
Hylocereus Polyrhizus

MicroRNA396 (miR396) is a conserved microRNA family that targets growth-regulating factors (GRFs), which play significant roles in plant growth and stress responses. Available evidence justifies the idea that miR396-targeted GRFs have important functions in many plant species; however, no genome-wide analysis of the pitaya (Hylocereus polyrhizus) miR396 gene has yet been reported. Further, its biological functions remain elusive. To uncover the regulatory roles of miR396 and its targets, the hairpin sequence of pitaya miR396b and the open reading frame (ORF) of its target, HpGRF6, were isolated from pitaya. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the precursor miR396b (MIR396b) gene of plants might be clustered into three major groups, and, generally, a more recent evolutionary relationship in the intra-family has been demonstrated. The sequence analysis indicated that the binding site of hpo-miR396b in HpGRF6 is located at the conserved motif which codes the conserved “RSRKPVE” amino acid in the Trp–Arg–Cys (WRC) region. In addition, degradome sequencing analysis confirmed that four GRFs (GRF1, c56908.graph_c0; GRF4, c52862.graph_c0; GRF6, c39378.graph_c0 and GRF9, c54658.graph_c0) are hpo-miR396b targets that are regulated by specific cleavage at the binding site between the 10th and 11th nucleotides from the 5′ terminus of hpo-miR396b. Furthermore, quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) analysis showed that hpo-miR396b is down-regulated when confronted with drought stress (15% polyethylene glycol, PEG), and its expression fluctuates under other abiotic stresses, i.e., low temperature (4 ± 1 °C), high temperature (42 ± 1 °C), NaCl (100 mM), and abscisic acid (ABA; 0.38 mM). Conversely, the expression of HpGRF6 showed the opposite trend to exposure to these abiotic stresses. Taken together, hpo-miR396b plays a regulatory role in the control of HpGRF6, which might influence the abiotic stress response of pitaya. This is the first documentation of this role in pitaya and improves the understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying the tolerance to drought stress in this fruit.

scholarly journals A Systematic View Exploring the Role of Chloroplasts in Plant Abiotic Stress Responses

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yo-Han Yoo ◽  
Woo-Jong Hong ◽  
Ki-Hong Jung
Keyword(s):  
Abiotic Stress ◽  
High Temperature ◽  
Stress Response ◽  
Temperature Stress ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Cellular Response ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Close Association ◽  
High Temperature Stress ◽  
Growth And Yield

Chloroplasts are intracellular semiautonomous organelles central to photosynthesis and are essential for plant growth and yield. The significance of the function of chloroplast-related genes in response to climate change has not been well studied in crops. In the present study, the initial focus was on genes that were predicted to be located in the chloroplast genome in rice, a model crop plant, with genes either preferentially expressed in the leaf or ubiquitously expressed in all organs. The characteristics were analyzed by Gene Ontology (GO) enrichment and MapMan functional classification tools. It was then identified that 110 GO terms (45 for leaf expression and 65 for ubiquitous expression) and 1,695 genes mapped to MapMan overviews were strongly associated with chloroplasts. In particular, the MapMan cellular response overview revealed a close association between heat stress response and chloroplast-related genes in rice. Moreover, features of these genes in response to abiotic stress were analyzed using a large-scale publicly available transcript dataset. Consequently, the expression of 215 genes was found to be upregulated in response to high temperature stress. Conversely, genes that responded to other stresses were extremely limited. In other words, chloroplast-related genes were found to affect abiotic stress response mainly through high temperature response, with little effect on response to drought and salinity stress. These results suggest that genes involved in diurnal rhythm in the leaves participate in the reaction to recognize temperature changes in the environment. Furthermore, the predicted protein–protein interaction network analysis associated with high temperature stress is expected to provide a very important basis for the study of molecular mechanisms by which chloroplasts will respond to future climate changes.

Functional analysis of drought and salt tolerance mechanisms of mulberry RACK1 gene

2019 ◽  
Vol 39 (12) ◽  
pp. 2055-2069 ◽  
Author(s):  
Changying Liu ◽  
Panpan Zhu ◽  
Wei Fan ◽  
Yang Feng ◽  
Min Kou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Abiotic Stress ◽  
G Proteins ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Guanine Nucleotide Binding Protein ◽  
Expression Levels ◽  
Drought And Salt Tolerance ◽  
Drought And Salt Stresses ◽  
Guanine Nucleotide Binding ◽  
Eukaryotic Organisms

Abstract The receptor for activated C kinase 1 (RACK1) protein acts as a central hub for the integration of many physiological processes in eukaryotic organisms. Plant RACK1 is implicated in abiotic stress responses, but the underlying molecular mechanisms of stress adaptation remain largely unknown. Here, the overexpression of the mulberry (Morus alba L.) RACK1 gene in Arabidopsis decreased tolerance to drought and salt stresses and MaRACK1 overexpression changed expression levels of genes in response to stress and stimuli. We developed a simple and efficient transient transformation system in mulberry, and the mulberry seedlings transiently expressing MaRACK1 were hypersensitive to drought and salt stresses. The expression levels of guanine nucleotide-binding protein (G-protein) encoding genes in mulberry and Arabidopsis were not affected by MaRACK1 overexpression. The interactions between RACK1 and G-proteins were confirmed, and the RACK1 proteins from mulberry and Arabidopsis could not interact with their respective G-proteins, which indicated that RACK1 may regulate stress responses independently of G-proteins. Additionally, MaRACK1 may regulate drought and salt stress tolerances by interacting with a fructose 1, 6-bisphosphate aldolase. Our findings provide new insights into the mechanisms underlying RACK1 functions in abiotic stress responses and important information for their further characterization.

scholarly journals Long non-coding RNAs: emerging players regulating plant abiotic stress response and adaptation

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Uday Chand Jha ◽  
Harsh Nayyar ◽  
Rintu Jha ◽  
Muhammad Khurshid ◽  
Meiliang Zhou ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metal ◽  
Abiotic Stress ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Abiotic Stresses ◽  
Metal Toxicity ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Abiotic Stress Response ◽  
Non Coding Rnas ◽  
Plant Abiotic Stress

Abstract Background The immobile nature of plants means that they can be frequently confronted by various biotic and abiotic stresses during their lifecycle. Among the various abiotic stresses, water stress, temperature extremities, salinity, and heavy metal toxicity are the major abiotic stresses challenging overall plant growth. Plants have evolved complex molecular mechanisms to adapt under the given abiotic stresses. Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs)—a diverse class of RNAs that contain > 200 nucleotides(nt)—play an essential role in plant adaptation to various abiotic stresses. Results LncRNAs play a significant role as ‘biological regulators’ for various developmental processes and biotic and abiotic stress responses in animals and plants at the transcription, post-transcription, and epigenetic level, targeting various stress-responsive mRNAs, regulatory gene(s) encoding transcription factors, and numerous microRNAs (miRNAs) that regulate the expression of different genes. However, the mechanistic role of lncRNAs at the molecular level, and possible target gene(s) contributing to plant abiotic stress response and adaptation, remain largely unknown. Here, we review various types of lncRNAs found in different plant species, with a focus on understanding the complex molecular mechanisms that contribute to abiotic stress tolerance in plants. We start by discussing the biogenesis, type and function, phylogenetic relationships, and sequence conservation of lncRNAs. Next, we review the role of lncRNAs controlling various abiotic stresses, including drought, heat, cold, heavy metal toxicity, and nutrient deficiency, with relevant examples from various plant species. Lastly, we briefly discuss the various lncRNA databases and the role of bioinformatics for predicting the structural and functional annotation of novel lncRNAs. Conclusions Understanding the intricate molecular mechanisms of stress-responsive lncRNAs is in its infancy. The availability of a comprehensive atlas of lncRNAs across whole genomes in crop plants, coupled with a comprehensive understanding of the complex molecular mechanisms that regulate various abiotic stress responses, will enable us to use lncRNAs as potential biomarkers for tailoring abiotic stress-tolerant plants in the future.

CDF transcription factors: plant regulators to deal with extreme environmental conditions

2020 ◽  
Vol 71 (13) ◽  
pp. 3803-3815 ◽  
Author(s):  
Begoña Renau-Morata ◽  
Laura Carrillo ◽  
Jose Dominguez-Figueroa ◽  
Jesús Vicente-Carbajosa ◽  
Rosa V Molina ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Transcription Factors ◽  
Plant Species ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Functional Characterization ◽  
Plant Responses ◽  
Large Set ◽  
Cell Integrity ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Adverse Environmental Conditions

Abstract In terrestrial environments, water and nutrient availabilities and temperature conditions are highly variable, and especially in extreme environments limit survival, growth, and reproduction of plants. To sustain growth and maintain cell integrity under unfavourable environmental conditions, plants have developed a variety of biochemical and physiological mechanisms, orchestrated by a large set of stress-responsive genes and a complex network of transcription factors. Recently, cycling DOF factors (CDFs), a group of plant-specific transcription factors (TFs), were identified as components of the transcriptional regulatory networks involved in the control of abiotic stress responses. The majority of the members of this TF family are activated in response to a wide range of adverse environmental conditions in different plant species. CDFs regulate different aspects of plant growth and development such as photoperiodic flowering-time control and root and shoot growth. While most of the functional characterization of CDFs has been reported in Arabidopsis, recent data suggest that their diverse roles extend to other plant species. In this review, we integrate information related to structure and functions of CDFs in plants, with special emphasis on their role in plant responses to adverse environmental conditions.

scholarly journals Low Mannitol Concentrations in Arabidopsis thaliana Expressing Ectocarpus Genes Improve Salt Tolerance

Plants ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (11) ◽  
pp. 1508
Author(s):  
Pramod Rathor ◽  
Tudor Borza ◽  
Yanhui Liu ◽  
Yuan Qin ◽  
Sophia Stone ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Arabidopsis Thaliana ◽  
Salt Tolerance ◽  
Transgenic Plants ◽  
Salinity Stress ◽  
Stress Responses ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Ion Homeostasis ◽  
Biotic And Abiotic Stress ◽  
Expression Of Genes ◽  
Wide Range

Mannitol is abundant in a wide range of organisms, playing important roles in biotic and abiotic stress responses. Nonetheless, mannitol is not produced by a vast majority of plants, including many important crop plants. Mannitol-producing transgenic plants displayed improved tolerance to salt stresses though mannitol production was rather low, in the µM range, compared to mM range found in plants that innately produce mannitol. Little is known about the molecular mechanisms underlying salt tolerance triggered by low concentrations of mannitol. Reported here is the production of mannitol in Arabidopsis thaliana, by expressing two mannitol biosynthesis genes from the brown alga Ectocarpus sp. strain Ec32. To date, no brown algal genes have been successfully expressed in land plants. Expression of mannitol-1-phosphate dehydrogenase and mannitol-1-phosphatase genes was associated with the production of 42.3–52.7 nmol g−1 fresh weight of mannitol, which was sufficient to impart salinity and temperature stress tolerance. Transcriptomics revealed significant differences in the expression of numerous genes, in standard and salinity stress conditions, including genes involved in K+ homeostasis, ROS signaling, plant development, photosynthesis, ABA signaling and secondary metabolism. These results suggest that the improved tolerance to salinity stress observed in transgenic plants producing mannitol in µM range is achieved by the activation of a significant number of genes, many of which are involved in priming and modulating the expression of genes involved in a variety of functions including hormone signaling, osmotic and oxidative stress, and ion homeostasis.

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