Biologia plantarum, 2019 (vol. 63), issue 1

Editorial

Editorial

J. Pospisilova

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:i


Dear members of editorial board, referees, authors, and readers,
 
First, I greet you at the beginning of the year 2019 and wish you a steady health, a lot of happiness, and a great success in your professional life. Simultaneously, I would like to express many thanks for all the work done and attention paid to our journal in previous years.

Original Papers

Expression of genes encoding PIP aquaporins in tomato seeds exposed to blue radiation and mercury

J. Balarynová, M. Fellner

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:1-10 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.001

Aquaporins control the specific transport of water and some other small molecules across membranes and are involved in various physiological processes. Plasma membrane aquaporins (PIPs) were shown to play an important role during tomato seed development. Therefore, we were interested in the participation of PIPs in seed germination and early seedling growth of wild type (WT) and the 7B-1 mutant, affected by blue light responses. We characterised the expression patterns of PIP-type aquaporin genes in these lines during different phases of seed germination and seedling growth after HgCl2 (an aquaporin blocker) treatment. Further,...

Mitochondrial respiration after combined action of dehydration and low temperature in pea seedlings

I.P. Generozova, P.A. Butsanets, A.G. Shugaev

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:11-19 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.002


The impact of the individual and combined action of dehydration and low temperature on the respiratory activity of mitochondria isolated from epicotyls of pea (Pisum sativum L.) seedlings was investigated. These organelles were isolated immediately after the treatments and after two and three days of recovery. After the treatments, the capacity of the energy-producing cytochrome pathway (CP) of mitochondrial oxidation decreased, while the capacity of the non-phosphorylating alternative respiratory pathway (AP) catalyzed by a CN-resistant oxidase was elevated. After returning the seedlings to normal growing conditions, a gradual...

Effects of short-term arsenic exposure in Arabidopsis thaliana: tolerance versus toxicity responses

A. Pita-Barbosa, T.C.R. Williams, M.E. Loureiro

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:43-53 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.006

The metalloid arsenic (As) is highly phytotoxic, in part due to the similarity of the arsenates to phosphates, but also due to its ability to induce reactive oxygen species (ROS) formation, and in the form of arsenite directly interact with certain enzymes. Here we aimed to determine the effects of a short period of As exposure on Arabidopsis thaliana. Particular focus was given to shoot responses, which have received less attention in previous studies. A. thaliana (ecotype Col-0) plants (28-d-old) were cultivated hydroponically in the presence of 0, 27, 108, and 216 µM arsenic in the form of sodium arsenate for five days. Translocation...

The homoeologous genes encoding C24-sterol methyltransferase 1 in Triticum aestivum: structural characteristics and effects of cold stress

A. Renkova, J. Valitova, H. Schaller, F. Minibayeva

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:59-69 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.008

A unique structural feature of plant sterols is the presence of a 24-alkyl group in the sterol side chain, which is synthesized by C24-sterol methyltransferase (SMT). Here we report for the first time that the bread wheat genome (AABBDD) contains at least three homoeologous genes encoding C24-sterol methyltransferase 1. While these copies have similar coding regions, they differ markedly in the nucleotide sequences of their non-coding regions. Sequencing de novo of the promoter regions of the TaSMT1 homoeologs demonstrated the occurrence of common and specific stress-sensitive cis-elements such as LTR, the cis-element involved...

Involvement of proline and non-protein thiols in response to low temperature and cadmium stresses in wheat

N. Repkina, V. Talanova, A. Ignatenko, A. Titov

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:70-77 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.009

The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of low temperature (4 °C), cadmium sulphate (100 μM), or their combination on content of free proline (Pro), glutathione (GSH), and phytochelatins (PCs) in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) leaves. Results revealed an increase in proline and phytochelatins accumulation in leaves of wheat seedlings along with enhanced cold tolerance at the low temperature, CdSO4, and their combination. Moreover, there were increases in mRNA content of TaP5CS and TaPCS1 genes, encoding ∆1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate synthase (P5CS) and phytochelatin synthases (PCS), respectively. A rapid increase...

Identification and validation of organ-preferential genes and analysis of corresponding upstream tissue-specific promoters in wheat

P.P. Su, X. Jin, T. Sun, L. Chen, F. Shi, K.X. Li, J.L. Chang, G.X. Yang, G.Y. He

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:78-88 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.010

Tissue/organ-specific promoters are important tools in genetic engineering and crop molecular breeding. They are well characterized in dicots, such as Arabidopsis, tobacco, and tomato, but not sufficiently in monocots, especially in wheat. In this study, the genes specifically expressed in seven different tissues, including coleoptile, root, leaf, pistil, anther, embryo, and endosperm were identified through analyzing the public transcriptome data from a wheat microarray using the ROKU method. The expression patterns of selected genes were validated by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction. The results showed that these selected genes...

Effects of methyl jasmonate on growth, antioxidants, and carbon and nitrogen metabolism of Glycyrrhiza uralensis under salt stress

X. Yu, P. Fei, Z. Xie, W. Zhang, Q. Zhao, X. Zhang

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:89-96 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.011

We investigated the effects of 0.025 or 0.05 mM methyl jasmonate (MeJA) on the growth characteristics, antioxidant enzyme activities, non-enzymatic antioxidant content, and carbon and nitrogen metabolizing enzyme activities in Glycyrrhiza uralensis exposed to 100 mM NaCl. Results showed that salt stress decreased the stem length and lateral root number and the treatment with 0.025 or 0.05 mM MeJA increased the root length of salt-stressed G. uralensis seedlings but decreased root diameter, stem length, and stem diameter. MeJA application modulated oxidative stress in salt-stressed G. uralensis seedlings. It decreased the catalase...

Genome-wide identification of circular RNAs in tomato seeds in response to high temperature

R. Zhou, X.Q. Yu, L.P. Xu, Y.L. Wang, L.P. Zhao, T.M. Zhao, W.G. Yu

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:97-103 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.012

Circular RNAs (circRNAs), an emerging class of non-coding RNAs, are abundant in eukaryotic transcriptomes. Seed germination is one of the most important stages in the entire life cycle of plants that can be slowed down or totally restrained by high temperature. Our aim is to identify heat-responsive circRNAs and explore the potential function of circRNAs in tomato seeds at high temperature. Following high-throughput sequencing, 4 164 circRNAs were identified, and 980 circRNAs were shared in the control and high-temperature libraries. Among the 748 circRNAs with high expressions, 73 circRNAs were significantly up-/down- regulated in tomato seeds germinated...

Implication of peroxisomes and mitochondria in the halophyte Cakile maritima tolerance to salinity stress

N. Ben Amor, A. Jimenez, M. Boudabbous, F. Sevilla, C. Abdelly

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:113-121 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.014

The role of mitochondria and peroxisomes in the tolerance of the halophyte Cakile martima to salt stress was studied. The plants were subjected to 0, 100, and 200 mM NaCl for 5 weeks. The evaluation of oxidative stress according to the content of malondialdehyde (MDA), carbonyl (CO-) proteins, O2-, and H2O2, and the activities of several antioxidant enzymes, such as superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, and enzymes of the ascorbate-glutathione cycle were determined in two purified organelles, mitochondria and peroxisomes. The intact organelles were purified by centrifugation in Percoll density gradients. Results show that the content of MDA...

Overexpression of a gene AhFBA from Arachis hypogaea confers salinity stress tolerance in Escherichia coli and tobacco

Z.K. Du, Y.F. Hu, J.M. Li

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:122-133 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.015

Fructose-1,6-bisphosphate aldolase (FBA), an essential enzyme involved in the glycolytic pathway, gluconeogenesis, and the Calvin cycle, plays significant roles in the regulation of plant growth, development, and stress responses. In this study, a novel gene, AhFBA (GenBank accession number KF470788), containing a 1077-bp open reading frame and encoding a protein of 358 amino acids, was isolated from Arachis hypogaea L. Bioinformatic analysis revealed that AhFBA belonged to class-I aldolases and preferentially localized in the cytoplasm. Real-time quantitative PCR analysis indicated that AhFBA had a higher expression in...

Deficiency in phytochromobilin biosynthesis enhances heat-stress-induced impairments to the photosynthetic apparatus in tomato

A.J. Crispim Filho, A.C. Costa, F.R.R. Alves, P.F. Batista, A.A. Rodrigues, S.C. Vasconcelos Filho, K.J.T. Nascimento

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:134-144 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.016

Plants are continuously exposed to unfavorable environmental conditions, such as heat stress, which negatively affect plant growth and productivity. There is evidence that phytochromes are involved in plant response to different abiotic stresses. We investigated the possible phytochrome-dependent responses to heat stress in photomorphogenic tomato mutants aurea (au, phytochromobilin-deficient, PΦB) and high-pigment 1 (hp1, hyperresponsive to phytochrome-mediated responses), as well as the wild-type Micro-Tom (MT). In comparison with MT, reductions in photosynthetic rate promoted by a high temperature were more pronounced in...

Characterisation of Arabidopsis flotillins in response to stresses

K. Kroumanová, D. Kocourková, M. Daněk, L. Lamparová, R. Pospíchalová, K. Malínská, Z. Krčková, L. Burketová, O. Valentová, J. Martinec, M. Janda

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:144-152 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.017

Plant flotillins, a subgroup of the SPFH domain protein superfamily, consist of three proteins, AtFLOT1, AtFLOT2, and AtFLOT3 in Arabidopsis thaliana. The exact functions of flotillins in plant cell has not been established yet. In this study we focused on the role of flotillins in response to both abiotic and biotic stresses and on the response to phytohormones abscisic acid and 1-naphthalene acetic acid (NAA) in A. thaliana. We observed transcriptomic changes of AtFLOT genes in response to high salinity and cold, treatment with 22-amino acid peptide from N-terminal part of flagellin (flg22), and after infection...

Virus-induced gene silencing in Nicotiana benthamiana triggered by heterologous gene sequences from Viola philippica

Q.X. Li, J. Wang, S. Zheng, N. Yang, K. Sun, C.Y. He

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:153-163 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.018

Virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) is a particularly useful tool for functional genomics. In the present study, we attempted to utilize this technology to infer the function of genes from Viola philippica using a tobacco rattle virus (TRV) construct. Firstly, the phytoene desaturase gene from V. philippica (VpPDS) was silenced, and local leaf bleaching was observed but did not exhibit systemic effects, thereby limiting utilization of TRV-mediated gene silencing in the recipient plant. However, we observed systemic gene silencing in Nicotiana benthamiana when the VpPDS sequence was used as a trigger, thereby suggesting...

Proteomic analysis provides integrated insight into mechanisms of Turnip mosaic virus long distance movement in Brassica rapa

C. Liu, G.-S. Sun, R.-J. Zhang, S.-W. Lv, L. Gao, L.-W. Gao, T.-K. Liu, D. Xiao, X.-L. Hou, C.-W. Zhang

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:164-173 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.019

In non-heading Chinese cabbage, the yield relies mostly on the health of leaves, which can be heavily impacted by turnip mosaic virus (TuMV). The virions or viral ribonucleoprotein complexes are transported through the phloem and xylem. Plasmodesmata are indispensable because they traverse cell walls and connect companion cells, allowing virus particles long distance movement. However, which complexes and genes participate in this process is still unknown. Plants can activate defense mechanisms and apply disease resistance genes to respond to pathogen attacks. In this study, we collected the stems and petioles infected by TuMV for 7 d (TuMV-7),...

Meta-topolin improved micropropagation in Syzygium cumini and acclimatization to ex vitro conditions

A. Naaz, S.A. Hussain, M. Anis, A.A. Alatar

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:174-182 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.020

An efficient micropropagation system was developed for a recalcitrant woody tree Syzygium cumini (L.) Skeels using nodal explants excised from 15-d-old aseptic seedlings. The explants were employed on an Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with different concentrations (1.0 - 10.0 μM) of cytokinins, such as benzyladenine (BA), kinetin (Kin), meta-topolin (mT), or 2-isopentyl adenine (2ip), either alone or in combination with different concentrations (1.0 - 3.0 μM) of auxins, such as indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), indole-3-butyric acid (IBA), or α-naphthalene acetic acid (NAA). Of the cytokinins tested, mT proved to be best...

Overexpression of CBL interacting protein kinase 2 improves plant tolerance to salinity and mercury

W.H. Pan, Z.Z. Zheng, X. Yan, J.Q. Shen, J.X. Shou, L.X. Jiang, J.W. Pan

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:183-192 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.021

In plants, calcineurin B-like proteins (CBLs) and CBL-interacting protein kinases (CIPKs) regulate Ca2+ signalling and so responses to biotic and abiotic stresses. However, the details of specific CIPKs functions in various stress responses are poorly understood. Here, we report roles of dicot and monocot CIPK2 genes in response to salinity and heavy metals. Arabidopsis thaliana AtCIPK2 was found to be universally expressed in different tissues and organs and furthermore induced by salinity. Overexpression of AtCIPK2 or Tibetan Plateau wild barley (Hordeum spontaneum) HsCIPK2 in Arabidopsis alleviated toxic...

MicroRNA319 family members play an important role in Solanum habrochaites and S. lycopersicum responses to chilling and heat stresses

X.P. Shi, F.L. Jiang, J.Q. Wen, S.Y. Cui, Y.Z. Zhou, Z. Wu

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:200-209 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.023

The microRNA319 (miR319) family is involved in plant development and responses to abiotic stresses. Previous work showed that miR319 responded to chilling stress in the chilling-tolerant wild tomato (Solanum habrochaites L.) genotype LA1777. Here, the precursors of sha-miR319a, b, c, and d were cloned from LA1777 and the putative target genes tosinte branched/cycloidea/proliferating cell factors (TCP3 and TCP29) were validated using 5′-RLM-RACE. Expression patterns revealed a negative correlation of sha-miR319 with TCP3 and TCP29 in LA1777. Four tomato (S. lycopersicum) genotypes with varying sensitivities...

The gene OsIAA9 encoding auxin/indole-3-acetic acid proteins is a negative regulator of auxin-regulated root growth in rice

Y.L. Song

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:210-218 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.024

Auxin signal transduction in plants depends on regulation by short-lived nuclear plant proteins called auxin/indole-3-acetic acid (Aux/IAA) proteins. The OsIAA9, which is highly and rapidly induced by auxin, encodes the entire Aux/IAA domain characteristic of the Aux/IAA family in rice. The promoter region of OsIAA9 contains several cis-elements. Analysis of POsIAA9:GUS transgenic plants indicates a specific expression of OsIAA9 in roots and seedling shoots, especially lateral roots and root tips. Based on real-time PCR, the expression of OsIAA9 was induced by multiple hormones and abiotic stresses. Furthermore,...

Genome-wide analysis of heptahelical protein (HHP) gene family and expression of BcHHP1 in response to stresses in Brassica rapa

J. Wang, F.Y. Huang, X.L. Hou, X. You

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:219-227 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.025

Heptahelical protein (HHP) signalling pathway is involved in cold acclimation responses to low temperature and other stresses. The HHP transcription factor family is the key component regulating this signalling pathway. In this study, five HHP-like genes, BcHHP1, BcHHP2, BcHHP3, BcHHP4, and BcHHP5, were isolated from non-heading Chinese cabbage (Brassica rapa ssp. chinensis cv. Suzhouqing). Multiple sequence alignment and phylogenetic analysis showed that BcHHP proteins are highly homologous to HHP proteins from Arabidopsis thaliana, Glycine max, Oryza sativa, and Zea mays. Some...

Effects hydrogen sulfide on the antioxidant system and membrane stability in mitochondria of Malus hupehensis under NaCl stress

G.-Q. Wei, W.-W. Zhang, H. Cao, S.-S. Yue, P. Li, H.-Q. Yang

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:228-236 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.026

Salt stress is one of the most critical environmental factors limiting plant growth, and hydrogen sulfide (H2S) can play a role in plant responses to this stress. To investigate the effects of H2S on mitochondrial functions under salt stress, we treated Malus hupehensis Rehd. var. pingyiensis germinating seeds with an 85 mM NaCl solution with or without an H2S donor sodium hydrosulfide (NaHS) and H2S scavenger hypotaurine (HT). Then, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) content and antioxidant enzyme activities were measured in mitochondria of seedling roots. Our results show that the application of 0.05 mM NaHS rescued an NaCl-induced inhibition...

Identification and validation of reference genes for real-time qPCR normalization during Al-induced programmed cell death in peanut

S.C. Yao, J. Zhan, C.L. Pan, W.J. Xiong, D. Xiao, Y.L. Wang, H. Shen, A.Q. Wang, L.F. He

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:237-246 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.027

The reverse transcription quantitative real-time PCR (RT-qPCR) is becoming increasingly important for gene expression studies. However, the accuracy and reliability of RT-qPCR depend on normalizing expression to reference genes. In this study, ten candidate reference genes, including cyclophilin (CYP), elongation factor 1b (EF1b), α-tubulin (TUA5), β-tubulin (TUB4), ubiquitin10R (UBQ10R), 60S ribosomal RNA (60S), alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH3), metalloprotease (MTP), glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH), and actin (ACT2) were evaluated for the stability of expression...

Identification of candidate reference genes in tropical bamboos stable across species, tissues, and developmental stages

S. Chakraborty, S. Dutta, P. Biswas, M. Das

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:253-261 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.029

Bamboo possesses many unique physiological characteristics, but the molecular understanding of many of these processes remains poorly understood till to date. One major reason is unavailability of sufficient sequence and expression data. Selection of suitable reference genes is pivotal to initiate any gene expression analyses. Although, suitable reference genes have been identified in the temperate bamboo Phyllostachys edulis, it has not been done for tropical bamboo. In this study, expression stability of 10 candidate reference genes were investigated in 4 widely grown tropical bamboo species (Bambusa tulda, B. balcooa, B....

Cloning, characterization, and expression of 1-deoxy-D-xylulose-5-phosphate reductoisomerase gene from Dioscorea zingiberensis

Z. Cheng, R. Wang, J. Shen, Z. Yang, Y. Chen

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:262-267 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.030

Diosgenin, mainly extracted from some Dioscorea species, is the most important starting material for the production of steroidal drugs. It is believed that diosgenin in Dioscorea is synthesized from isopentenyl diphosphate (IPP) and dimethylallyl diphosphate (DMAPP, the isomer of IPP) produced by the cytosolic mevalonate pathway. So far, the possibility of the plastidic 2-C-methyl-D-erythritol 4-phosphate (MEP) pathway for biosynthesis of diosgenin remains unclear. The key enzyme in the MEP pathway is 1-deoxy-D-xylulose 5-phosphate-reductoisomerase (DXR, EC: 1.1.1.267). In this study, a DXR gene, named DzDXR (GenBank accession...

Heterologous expression of the AtDREB1A gene in tomato confers tolerance to chilling stress

S.G. Karkute, R. Krishna, W.A. Ansari, B. Singh, P.M. Singh, M. Singh, A.K. Singh

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:268-277 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.031

Tomato is highly sensitive to chilling stress (0 - 12 °C) which severely affects plant growth and development. Transgenic tomato plants expressing the AtDREB1A gene under the control of the rd29A promoter were evaluated for its tolerance to chilling stress by exposing them to 4 °C for 5 d. The cold stress caused an increase in production of reactive oxygen species, however, transgenic plants had an effective antioxidant system due to an enhanced synthesis of catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and ascorbate and so the reduced content of hydrogen peroxide and superoxide anions. Transgenic plants showed a slightly less reduction of chlorophyll...

Shoot proliferation and organogenesis on Arbutus unedo: physiological analysis under water stress

J.F. Martins, S. Correia, B. Correia, G. Pinto, J.M. Canhoto

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:278-286 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.032

Strawberry tree (Arbutus unedo) is a small perennial tree that grows spontaneously in the Mediterranean basin, Ireland, and Portugal. In this work, strawberry tree clones were established in vitro from epicormic shoots obtained from a young tree, an adult tree, and from a seedling. They were propagated by axillary shoot buds proliferation on solid and in liquid media, and also in a modified De Fossard medium with 9 µM benzylaminopurine. The organogenesis from calli obtained from apical leaves of the in vitro grown shoots from the three genotypes was carried out in the same basal liquid medium supplemented with 9 µM...

Chl a fluorescence and proteomics reveal protection of the photosynthetic apparatus to dehydration in tolerant but not in susceptible wheat cultivars

M. Nykiel, P. Lisik, J. Dębski, B. Florea, K. Rybka

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:287-297 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.033

Seedlings of spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars, Ethos and Zebra, differing in drought tolerance were dehydrated to reach a water saturation deficit (WSD) in leaves ~15, 30, and 50 %. Ethos, the drought tolerant cultivar, dried slower in comparison with Zebra and regrew in 70 % upon rehydration. The effect of dehydration on photosystem II was evaluated by Chl a fluorescence (OJIP transients). The inflection point of double normalized curves (ΔWOJ) calculated for Ethos was negative for seedlings with 15 % WSD, nearly zero for those with 30 % WSD, and about +0.05 for those with 50 % WSD. In case of Zebra, the...

Effect of aluminum and fluoride on R2R3-MYB transcription factor characterization and expression in Camellia sinensis

Y. Wang, P. Chang, J. Pan, J. Zhu, C. Cui, X. Ye, Y. Ma, X. Zhu, W. Fang, C. Jiang

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:298-307 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.034


Tea plant (Camellia sinensis) is a typical plant that accumulates abundant aluminum (Al) and fluoride (F). Al and F play vital roles in the growth and development in tea plant. MYB (myeloblastosis) is one of the largest transcription factor families in plant, which plays an important role in the stress responses. As the largest and multifunctional subfamily of MYB, R2R3-MYB subfamily participates in multiple abiotic stresses in plant. However, there are few studies about R2R3-MYB in tea plant, especially in the accumulation of Al and F during its growth. Here, we identified 43 CsMYB genes from the transcriptome database of tea plant...

The RNA-seq transcriptome analysis identified genes related to rice seed dormancy

K. Xie, J. Bai, Y.Y. Yang, N.B. Duan, Y.M. Ma, T. Guo, F.Y. Yao, H.F. Ding

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:308-313 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.035


Plant hormones play important roles in seed dormancy and dormancy breaking. We measured the hormone content in rice (Oryza sativa L. cv. Nona Bokra) seeds at different stages and with or without imbibition treatment. We identified 1 265 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between dormant and dormancy-broken seeds using RNA-seq analysis: 1 015 genes were significantly up-regulated, while 250 genes were significantly down-regulated. Sixteen DEGs were selected as related to seed dormancy, and their expressions were validated using quantitative PCR. Three DEGs were in the same position as two reported dormancy QTLs, suggesting that they...

Biochemical examination of non-transgenic and transgenic soybean plants under drought stress conditions

C.G. Gonçalves, A.C. Silva Jr., L.R. Alves, M.R.R. Pereira, P.L. Gratão, D. Martins

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:314-322 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.036

Drought is one of the major environmental stresses limiting crop production worldwide because both the duration and the severity of the stress are critical. Plants display a variety of physiological and biochemical stress responses towards prevailing drought stress thus making it a complex phenomenon. To address the modulation of stress responses, we used Glycine max cv. MG/BR 46 Conquista (non-transgenic) and cv. BRS Valiosa (transgenic) to analyze the effects of  progressive drought stress during two stages of soybean development (V2 and V4) on physiological and biochemical parameters. Three minimum soil water potentials (Ψs) were established:...

Overexpression of the UGT76E12 gene modulates seed germination, growth, and response to NaCl, mannitol, and abscisic acid

L. Chen, W.-S. Wang, Q. Liu, R.-R. Dong, Y.-J. Li, T.-T Chen, B.-K. Hou

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:328-334 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.038

Seed germination and following seedling growth are largely affected by environmental conditions. However, the genes involved in adaptations to these conditions are largely unknown. In this study, we cloned and characterized an Arabidopsis uridine diphosphate glycosyltransferase gene UGT76E12 and investigated its function in seed germination and plant growth under adverse environments. We found that UGT76E12 gene expression was induced by NaCl, mannitol, and abscisic acid (ABA) treatments. Under these treatments, the UGT76E12 overexpression lines exhibited a delayed seed germination and cotyledon growth compared with...

OsCaM1-1 overexpression in the transgenic rice mitigated salt-induced oxidative damage

T. Kaewneramit, T. Buaboocha, P. Sangchai, N. Wutipraditkul

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:335-342 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.039

Various physiological and biochemical parameters associated with improved salinity tolerance in the transgenic rice lines overexpressing OsCaM1-1 gene and wild-type KDML105 were compared 3 d after exposure to 150 mM NaCl. The results showed higher relative water content, relative growth rate, content of photosynthetic pigments (chlorophylls a, b, and carotenoids), DPPH scavenging activity, and activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, and glutathione reductase in the transgenic plants when compared with the wild-type and control, KDML105 transformed with blank vector, whereas H2O2...

Gibberellin A3 mediated decreased transcriptional rate, mRNA stability and non-competitive inhibition of DNA methyltransferases in tobacco

R. Manoharlal, G.V.S. Saiprasad, V. Kaikala

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:343-353 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.040

The present work aims to examine the underlying molecular mechanism(s) for the reduced transcriptions and activities of DNA methyltransferases (NtDNMTs) by gibberellin A3 (GA3) in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L). Nuclear run-on and cordycepin chase assays demonstrated a significant reduction in the transcriptional rate and transcript half-lives of NtMET1 and NtCMT3 by GA3. Lineweaver-Burk plot analysis revealed a non-competitive mode of inhibition of NtDNMTs activity by GA3. Taken together, both in vivo and in vitro studies clearly demonstrated the altered transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulation...

Differential expressions of citrus CAMTAs during fruit development and responses to abiotic stresses

Z.G. Ouyang, L.F. Mi, H.H. Duan, W. Hu, J.M. Chen, T. Peng, B.L. Zhong

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:354-364 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.041


Calmodulin-binding transcription activators (CAMTAs) play important roles in plant growth, developmental processes, and responses to abiotic and biotic factors. Recently, five CAMTA members were identified in Citrus sinensis, however, very little is known about the molecular regulation of these CAMTAs in citrus during fruit development and under abiotic stresses. In this study, the different expression profiles of CsCAMTA genes were found in different tissues and different fruit developmental stages. The CsCAMTA genes also displayed distinct expression patterns after heat, cold, salt, and drought stresses. Furthermore, the...

The effects of gibberellic acid on Allium cepa root tip meristematic cells

B. Tütünoğlu, Ö. Aksoy, R. Özbek, F. Uçkan

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:365-370 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.042

Gibberellic acid (GA) is a natural plant growth regulator (PGR) which stimulates germination, vegetative growth, flowering, and fruit formation. However, when high concentrations of GA are used, it inhibits plant growth and development and causes abnormalities in the plant tissue. In our study, we determined the effects of different concentrations of GA on Allium cepa L. var. cepa roots. Increasing concentrations of GA (50 - 5 000 mg dm-3) were used in A. cepa root growth inhibition tests. Further, random amplified polymorphic DNA technique was used for determination of possible genotoxic effects of 600 - 1200...

Overexpression of BdRHP1 improves drought tolerance and reduces yield loss in rice

D.-E. Zeng, Z.-M. Cai, Y.-S. Liu

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:371-379 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.043

Drought is a major factor decreasing the growth, development, and productivity of rice in about one-third of the world area. The characterization of genes imparting tolerance to drought in rice, is an attractive strategy for genetic engineering to improve drought tolerance. It is demonstrated that ectopic overexpression of Brachypodium distachyon RING-H2 finger gene (designated as BdRHP1) enhances drought tolerance in rice at both the vegetative and reproductive stages. When subjected to drought, positive transgenic lines showed delayed wilting, and improved recovery after rewatering. However, the transgenic plants exhibited...

Suitable reference genes for real-time quantitative PCR in Salsola laricifilia under five abiotic stresses

Y.-F. Zhang, Z.-B. Wen, Y. Wang, Y.-L. Wang, Y. Feng

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:380-387 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.044

Salsola laricifolia, a typical C3-C4 intermediate desert plant, is an important for understanding gene evolution and mechanisms for drought resistance. The reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) is a preferred choice for gene expression studies, but it requires stable reference genes for normalization. Therefore, we tested the expression stability of five candidate reference genes in S. laricifolia: EF1α (elongation factor 1-α), ACT (actin), GAPDH (glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase), TUB (tubulin), and 18S (18S ribosomal RNA). The...

N-terminal domains of AhAREB1 protein are necessary for transcriptional characteristics and negative regulation of the AhNCED1 gene

L. Hong, C.Y. He, H. Shen, S. Liu, X. Liu, X.L. Li, L. Li

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:388-397 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.050

A transcription factor gene Arachis hypogaea abscisic acid (ABA) responsive element binding protein 1 (AhAREB1) has been isolated from peanut previously. Here, the function of different domains from AhAREB1 was investigated using construct series containing AhAREB1 full-length and truncated fragments to transform peanut hairy roots and pAhNCED1 (promoter of Arachis hypogaea 9-cis-epoxycarotenoid dioxygenase 1) GUS/Col Arabidopsis thaliana, respectively. The results of real-time quantitative PCR, transient expression, and chromosome immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assay all showed that AhAREB1 negatively regulated...

Somatic mutations, DNA methylation, and expression of DNA repair genes in Arabidopsis thaliana treated with 5-azacytidine

K.V. Kiselev, Z.V. Ogneva, A.S. Dubrovina, N.N. Nityagovsky, A.R. Suprun

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:398-404 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.051

An inhibitor of DNA methylation 5-azacytidine (5A) is a chemical analog of the nucleoside cytidine. This study investigated the influence of 5A-induced DNA hypomethylation on the accumulation of somatic DNA mutations (nucleotide substitutions, indels) in the Actin2 3′ untranslated region, nuclear internal transcribed spacer ITS1-5.8rRNA-ITS2, and the ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase gene of Arabidopsis thaliana and analyzed concurrent changes in the expression of DNA methyltransferase and DNA repair genes. The 5A treatment (20 mg per 100 g of soil) decreased DNA methylation, and the detected 5A-induced demethylation...

Growth, secondary metabolism, and related gene expression in response to interactions of nitrogen and sulfur in Isatis indigotica

Y.J. Miao, R.J. Qu, J.T. Sha, Y.W. Cao, J.L. Guan, J. Xu, X.Q. Tang, F.Q Wang, J. Yang

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:411-417 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.053

Nitrogen and sulfur are major elements influencing plant growth and production of secondary metabolites. They interact to each other, but little is known about it in Isatis indigotica Fort. plants. In this study, 15 different treatments representing all possible combinations of 3 N treatments (N1, N2, and N3, corresponding to 5, 15, and 25 mM N, respectively) and five S treatments (S0, S1, S2, S3, and S4, corresponding to 0.00, 1.25, 2.50, 5.00 and 7.50 mM S, respectively) were used, and plant growth, indigo and indirubin yields, and expressions of genes encoding enzymes involved in N and S metabolisms were measured. The results show that the...

Rosmarinic acid accumulation in Melissa officinalis shoot cultures is mediated by ABA

S.-M. Mousavi, L. Shabani

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:418-424 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.057

Plant responses to elicitors are the result of a series of highly modulated consecutive changes in hormones or reactive oxygen species (ROS). Abscisic acid (ABA) is a stress hormone that coordinates the complex networks of stress responses and its content is rapidly changed in response to stresses. This study evaluated the effects of application of ABA (0, 5, 25, 50, and 100 µM) to shoot cultures of lemon balm (Melissa officinalis L.) in Murashige and Skoog (MS) liquid medium on growth, H2O2 production, rosmarinic acid (RA) content, total phenolic compound accumulation, phenylalanine-ammonia lyase (PAL)...

Transcriptome profiling in Salix matsudana during refilling xylem vessels after embolism

Y.C. Yu, J.X. Liu, Z.Y. Sun

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:425-431 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.061

The objective of this study is to understand the role of bark water uptake in refilling of xylem vessels after embolism in Salix matsudana. Further, we determined expression of genes closely related to xylem embolism repair. The isolated branch segments of S. matsudana were soaked in deionized water and after 2 h, the micro-computed tomography (CT) images, volume of xylem sap, osmotic potential of xylem sap, and the content of starch and soluble sugar were measured. At the same time, Illumina high-throughput sequencing (Hi Seq TM) was applied to obtain the xylem transcriptome profiling. The results showed that the soaked branches...

Influence of girdling on flower sex ratio, biochemical constituents, and fruit set intensity in mango (Mangifera indica L.)

K. S. Shivashankara, G. A. Geetha, and T. K. Roy

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:432-439 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.064


Abstract
The study was conducted in mango to understand the relationship of various metabolites with flower sex ratio (hermaphrodite/male) and fruit set using stem girdling technique. Girdling one year old branches was carried out in two cultivars, Mangifera indica 'Alphonso' and 'Totapuri' to retain 50, 100 and 150 leaves to vary the content of hormones, sugars, total carbohydrates, and amino acids. The increased leaf number was found to increase the total carbohydrates, glucose, fructose, and other sugars. Girdling also significantly increased the concentration of abscisic acid (ABA), salicylic acid (SA), jasmonic...

Reviews

Rare earth elements in plants

M. Kovaříková, I. Tomášková, P. Soudek

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:20-32 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.003


Since 1960, the positive effects of rare earth elements (REE) on crop physiology have been observed, and support for photosynthesis, biomass accumulation, secondary metabolites, or enzymes has been reported in 40% of studies. A higher content of chlorophylls a and b as well as carotenoids have been found along with an increased efficiency of photosystem II photochemistry and electron transfer rates. An increased activity of a key photosynthetic enzyme was also found in several plants growing in soil with a higher content of REE. An appropriate amount of REE also activates the antioxidant activity of peroxidase, superoxide dismutase,...

Apyrases in Arabidopsis thaliana

R. Meng, L.Q. Zhu, Y.F. Yang, L.C. Zhu, Z.K. Hou, L. Jin, B.C. Wang

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:38-42 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.005

Apyrases belong to the ATPase family of enzymes that hydrolyze phosphoanhydride bonds of nucleoside tri- and di-phosphates. These enzymes differ markedly from other phosphohydrolases due to their high specific activity, broad divalent cation requirement, broad nucleotide substrate specificity, and insensitivity to various inhibitors. In the past 30 years, apyrases have been frequently studied in mammals. In comparison, research of apyrases in plants has received little attention, despite the growth of plants being closely related to the apyrases. In this review, we summarize the research of the apyrases in Arabidopsis thaliana and point to the...

Fluorine: a biohazardous agent for plants and phytoremediation strategies for its removal from the environment

A. Banerjee, A. Roychoudhury

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:104-112 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.013

Fluorine, one of the most abundant elements found on earth, acts as an environmental xenobiotics even at sparingly low concentrations. Uncontrolled anthropogenic activities have steeply increased the F content in the air, water, and soil. Irrigation of crops and vegetables with F contaminated groundwater or agricultural practices in contaminated soils adversely affect their physiological and biochemical parameters, leading to inhibited growth and productivity. Some plants can translocate the toxic ions from roots to shoots and accumulate them in the edible parts. Bioaccumulations of F have hazardous outcomes, as their concentrations in edible parts...

Brief Communications

Effect of NaCl on the photosynthetic pathways of halophytic leaf succulent Sedum uniflorum

C.E. Martin, J.-M. Chiang, T.-C. Lin

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:33-37 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.004

The effect of NaCl on the photosynthetic pathways of the only halophytic subtropical species Sedum uniflorum was examined in the field in northern Taiwan and in the laboratory. Plants growing in the field exhibited CAM-cycling regardless of salt content in their tissues. In contrast, NaCl treatment in the laboratory induced CAM photosynthesis, while control plants exhibited a C3-CAM intermediacy. This high level of photosynthetic pathway variablility matches that of other Sedum species.

Arabidopsis KIN gamma subunit 1 has a potential to regulate activity of sucrose nonfermenting 1-related protein kinase 2s (SnRK2s) in vitro

M. Punkkinen, K. Denessiouk, H. Fujii

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:54-58 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.007

Plants must precisely regulate their signalling pathways to respond to environmental changes promptly. Sucrose non fermenting1 (SNF1)-related protein kinases (SnRK) 2 are essential kinases in abiotic stress responses, including responses to abscisic acid. Although homologs of SnRKs in yeast require a γ-subunit for full activation, it has been unclear whether SnRK2s in higher plants are affected by γ-subunits. In this report, we aimed to show the effect of Arabidopsis KIN γ-subunit 1 (KING1), which is a potential γ-subunit, on the activity of SnRK2. A recombinant KING1 bound to SnRK2.6 and functionally inhibited its activity...

Cassava microRNAs and storage root development

O. Patanun, U. Viboonjun, N. Punyasuk, S. Thitamadee, M. Seki, J. Narangajavana

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:193-199 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.022

Cassava storage roots serve as an outstanding source of starch that is commonly utilized for nourishment and industrial applications. Despite the extensive studies, which indicated diverse important roles of miRNAs as post-transcriptional regulators of gene expression, the potential contribution of microRNAs to storage root development in cassava are sparse. Here, we characterized the key miRNAs and auxin content in two main types of cassava roots, fibrous roots and storage roots. The differential expression pattern of miRNAs and their mRNA targets, miR164/NAC and miR167/ARF6, ARF8, revealed the correlation in storage root development....

Application of sucrose modulates the expressions of genes involved in proline and polyamine metabolism in maize seedlings exposed to drought

C. Altuntaş, A. Sezgin, M. Demiralay, R. Terzi, A. Sağlam, A. Kadioğlu

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:247-252 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.028

Sucrose, proline, and polyamines are compatible solutes accumulating in plant tissues and increasing cellular osmolarity under environmental stresses. These compatible solutes and hydrogen peroxide can function as signaling molecules in plants. There has been very little evidence how the supply of sucrose changes the biosynthesis of compatible solutes. This study aimed to assess the cross-talk among sucrose, H2O2, and compatible solutes on the expression of genes encoding key enzymes in the pathways of proline and polyamine metabolism in drought stressed maize seedlings. Drought stress (induced by polyethylene glycol solution)...

Cerium nitrate improves salt tolerance of wheat seedlings by regulating the antioxidant capacity of chloroplasts

X.D. Chen, C.J. Shan

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:323-327 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.037

The effects of Ce(NO3)3 on the antioxidant capacity in the chloroplasts of salt-stressed wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) seedlings were investigated. The results showed that salt stress (40, 80, 120, or 160 mM NaCl) significantly increased the activities of ascorbate peroxidase, glutathione reductase, superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase, the content of malondialdehyde (MDA) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), but significantly reduced the ratios of reduced ascorbate (AsA) to dehydroascorbate (DHA) and reduced glutathione to oxidizided glutathione (GSH/GSSG), the content of chlorophylls...

Application of abscisic acid prevents leaf senescence at decreased irradiance

W. Kupis, E. Tomal, E. Niewiadomska

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:405-410 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2019.052

Several lines of evidence suggest that plant hormone abscisic acid (ABA) and the activity of alternative respiratory pathway are somehow interrelated. In this paper, we tested how an application of ABA affects the alternative oxidase (AOX) pathway and leaf senescence in Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. Different effects of ABA application on the AOX activity were observed under high irradiance (HI) and low irradiance (LI). The expression of AOX1D gene was stimulated, whereas the expression of senescence marker gene WRKY53 was decreased due to ABA treatment. We also noticed that changes of AOX genes AOX1A and AOX1D,...

Obituary

RNDr. Bohdan Slavík, DrSc.

J. Krekule

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:iii


A leading figure in the field of plant physiology
RNDr. Bohdan Slavík, DrSc.
passed away on 1st August 2018 at the age of 93.

RNDr. Tomáš Gichner, DrSc.

Diana Stavreva

Biologia plantarum 2019, 63:iv-v


A leading figure in the field of plant genetics
RNDr. Tomáš Gichner, DrSc.
 passed away on 6th January 2019 at the age of 83.