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Comparative studies of thermotolerance: different modes of heat acclimation between tolerant and intolerant aquatic plants of the genus Potamogeton.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND AND AIMS:Molecular-based studies of thermotolerance have rarely been performed on wild plants, although this trait is critical for summer survival. Here, we focused on thermotolerance and expression of heat shock transcription factor A2 (HSFA2) and its putative target gene (chloroplast-localized small heat shock protein, CP-sHSP) in two allied aquatic species of the genus Potamogeton (pondweeds) that differ in survival on land. METHODS:The degree of thermotolerance was examined using a chlorophyll bioassay to assess heat injury in plants cultivated under non- and heat-acclimation conditions. Potamogeton HSFA2 and CP-sHSP genes were identified and their heat-induction was quantified by real-time PCR. KEY RESULTS:The inhibition of chlorophyll accumulation after heat stress showed that Potamogeton malaianus had a higher basal thermotolerance and developed acquired thermotolerance, whereas Potamogeton perfoliatus was heat sensitive and unable to acquire thermotolerance. We found two duplicated HSFA2 and CP-sHSP genes in each species. These genes were induced by heat shock in P. malaianus, while one HSFA2a gene was not induced in P. perfoliatus. In non-heat-acclimated plants, transcript levels of HSFA2 and CP-sHSP were transiently elevated after heat shock. In heat-acclimated plants, transcripts were continuously induced during sublethal heat shock in P. malaianus, but not in P. perfoliatus. Instead, the minimum threshold temperature for heat induction of the CP-sHSP genes was elevated in P. perfoliatus. CONCLUSIONS:Our comparative study of thermotolerance showed that heat acclimation leads to species-specific changes in heat response. The development of acquired thermotolerance is beneficial for survival at extreme temperatures. However, the loss of acquired thermotolerance and plasticity in the minimum threshold temperature of heat response may be favourable for plants growing in moderate habitats with limited daily and seasonal temperature fluctuations.

SUBMITTER: Amano M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3268545 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Comparative studies of thermotolerance: different modes of heat acclimation between tolerant and intolerant aquatic plants of the genus Potamogeton.

Amano Momoe M Iida Satoko S Kosuge Keiko K

Annals of botany 20111205 2

<h4>Background and aims</h4>Molecular-based studies of thermotolerance have rarely been performed on wild plants, although this trait is critical for summer survival. Here, we focused on thermotolerance and expression of heat shock transcription factor A2 (HSFA2) and its putative target gene (chloroplast-localized small heat shock protein, CP-sHSP) in two allied aquatic species of the genus Potamogeton (pondweeds) that differ in survival on land.<h4>Methods</h4>The degree of thermotolerance was ...[more]

PMID: 22147547

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Project description:BackgroundHeterophyllous aquatic plants show marked phenotypic plasticity. They adapt to environmental changes by producing different leaf types: submerged, floating and terrestrial leaves. By contrast, homophyllous plants produce only submerged leaves and grow entirely underwater. Heterophylly and submerged homophylly evolved under selective pressure modifying the species-specific optima for photosynthesis, but little is known about the evolutionary outcome of habit. Recent evolutionary analyses suggested that rbcL, a chloroplast gene that encodes a catalytic subunit of RuBisCO, evolves under positive selection in most land plant lineages. To examine the adaptive evolutionary process linked to heterophylly or homophylly, we analyzed positive selection in the rbcL sequences of ecologically diverse aquatic plants, Japanese Potamogeton.Principal findingsPhylogenetic and maximum likelihood analyses of codon substitution models indicated that Potamogeton rbcL has evolved under positive Darwinian selection. The positive selection has operated specifically in heterophyllous lineages but not in homophyllous ones in the branch-site models. This suggests that the selective pressure on this chloroplast gene was higher for heterophyllous lineages than for homophyllous lineages. The replacement of 12 amino acids occurred at structurally important sites in the quaternary structure of RbcL, two of which (residue 225 and 281) were identified as potentially under positive selection.Conclusions/significanceOur analysis did not show an exact relationship between the amino acid replacements and heterophylly or homophylly but revealed that lineage-specific positive selection acted on the Potamogeton rbcL. The contrasting ecological conditions between heterophyllous and homophyllous plants have imposed different selective pressures on the photosynthetic system. The increased amino acid replacement in RbcL may reflect the continuous fine-tuning of RuBisCO under varying ecological conditions.

Project description:BackgroundFluctuations in temperature occur naturally during plant growth and reproduction. However, in the hot summers this variation may become stressful and damaging for the molecular mechanisms involved in proper cell growth, impairing thus plant development and particularly fruit-set in many crop plants. Tolerance to such a stress can be achieved by constitutive gene expression or by rapid changes in gene expression, which ultimately leads to protection against thermal damage. We have used cDNA-AFLP and microarray analyses to compare the early response of the tomato meiotic anther transcriptome to moderate heat stress conditions (32°C) in a heat-tolerant and a heat-sensitive tomato genotype. In the light of the expected global temperature increases, elucidating such protective mechanisms and identifying candidate tolerance genes can be used to improve breeding strategies for crop tolerance to heat stress.ResultsThe cDNA-AFLP analysis shows that 30 h of moderate heat stress (MHS) alter the expression of approximately 1% of the studied transcript-derived fragments in a heat-sensitive genotype. The major effect is gene down-regulation after the first 2 h of stress. The microarray analysis subsequently applied to elucidate early responses of a heat-tolerant and a heat-sensitive tomato genotype, also shows about 1% of the genes having significant changes in expression after the 2 h of stress. The tolerant genotype not only reacts with moderate transcriptomic changes but also exhibits constitutively higher expression levels of genes involved in protection and thermotolerance.ConclusionIn contrast to the heat-sensitive genotype, the heat-tolerant genotype exhibits moderate transcriptional changes under moderate heat stress. Moreover, the heat-tolerant genotype also shows a different constitutive gene expression profile compared to the heat-sensitive genotype, indicating genetic differences in adaptation to increased temperatures. In the heat-tolerant genotype, the majority of changes in gene expression is represented by up-regulation, while in the heat-sensitive genotype there is a general trend to down-regulate gene expression upon MHS. The putative functions associated with the genes identified by cDNA-AFLP or microarray indicate the involvement of heat shock, metabolism, antioxidant and development pathways. Based on the observed differences in response to MHS and on literature sources, we identified a number of candidate transcripts involved in heat-tolerance.

Project description:One of the major challenges for the bioremediation application of microbial nitrous oxide (N2O) reduction is its oxygen sensitivity. While a few strains were reported capable of reducing N2O under aerobic conditions, the N2O reduction kinetics of phylogenetically diverse N2O reducers are not well understood. Here, we analyzed and compared the kinetics of clade I and clade II N2O-reducing bacteria in the presence or absence of oxygen (O2) by using a whole-cell assay with N2O and O2 microsensors. Among the seven strains tested, N2O reduction of Stutzerimonas stutzeri TR2 and ZoBell was not inhibited by oxygen (i.e., oxygen tolerant). Paracoccus denitrificans, Azospirillum brasilense, and Gemmatimonas aurantiaca reduced N2O in the presence of O2 but slower than in the absence of O2 (i.e., oxygen sensitive). N2O reduction of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Dechloromonas aromatica did not occur when O2 was present (i.e., oxygen intolerant). Amino acid sequences and predicted structures of NosZ were highly similar among these strains, whereas oxygen-tolerant N2O reducers had higher oxygen consumption rates. The results suggest that the mechanism of O2 tolerance is not directly related to NosZ structure but is rather related to the scavenging of O2 in the cells and/or accessory proteins encoded by the nos cluster. IMPORTANCE Some bacteria can reduce N2O in the presence of O2, whereas others cannot. It is unclear whether this trait of aerobic N2O reduction is related to the phylogeny and structure of N2O reductase. The understanding of aerobic N2O reduction is critical for guiding emission control, due to the common concurrence of N2O and O2 in natural and engineered systems. This study provided the N2O reduction kinetics of various bacteria under aerobic and anaerobic conditions and classified the bacteria into oxygen-tolerant, -sensitive, and -intolerant N2O reducers. Oxygen-tolerant N2O reducers rapidly consumed O2, which could help maintain the low O2 concentration in the cells and keep their N2O reductase active. These findings are important and useful when selecting N2O reducers for bioremediation applications.

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Comparative studies of thermotolerance: different modes of heat acclimation between tolerant and intolerant aquatic plants of the genus Potamogeton.

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Comparative studies of thermotolerance: different modes of heat acclimation between tolerant and intolerant aquatic plants of the genus Potamogeton.

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