Project description:This was a comparative transcriptome analysis by using high throughput sequencing. To assess the effects of drought stress and NF-Y transcription factors ZmNF-YA1 and ZmNF-YB16 on maize, leaves from wild-type (W22), zmnf-ya1 (m67) mutant, wild-type (B104) and ZmNF-YB16 overexpression (OE) plants grow under well-watered and drought stress conditions were collected and RNAseq was performed. We tracked the gene expression events of inbred maize lines W22 or B104 seedlings in response to drought stress to evaluate how drought stress affects the gene expression program in maize. At the same time, we analyzed the effects of drought stress on gene expression in zmnf-ya1 and ZmNF-YB16 OE plants to investigate whether and how ZmNF-YA1 and ZmNF-YB16 confer drought stress tolerance in maize. Maize plants were grown under well-watered conditions until the V4 stage (zmnf-ya1 and W22) or V9 stage (ZmNF-YB16 OE and B104), and then half of them were exposed to drought stress treatment. Water loss in the soil and the electrolyte leakage from leaf cells were used to assess drought stress in plants. Leaves from 3-4 plants were pooled for each sample, and two replicates were used. RNA was extracted from small strips of leaf lamina excised from the first fully expanded leaf of the plants.
Project description:Plant drought stress response and resistance are complex biological processes that merit systems-level analyses to dissect drought stress encountered by crops in the field. We have used gene expression profiling of Arabidopsis plants subjected to a controlled, sublethal, moderate drought (mDr) treatment to characterize early and late response to drought. We have also compared these profiles to those from plants treated with soil water deficit (progressive) drought (pDr) to reveal acclimation responses in plants.
Project description:Expression profiles were analyzed between drought stress and normal watered control at the tillering and inflorescence stages. 1. We applied microarray analysis to detect drought-stress-regulated miRNAs from tillering to inflorescence-forming stages in rice. 2. Three time courses at the tillering stage and two time courses at the inflorescence-forming stage. Two replicates were carried out in each time course.
Project description:To dissect the molecular mechanisms underlying drought tolerance (DT) in rice, transcriptome differences of a DT introgression line H471, the DT donor P28 and the drought sensitive recurrent parent HHZ under drought stress were investigated using deep transcriptome sequencing. Results revealed a differential constitutive gene expression prior to stress and distinct global transcriptome reprogramming among three genotypes under time-series drought stress, consistent with their differential genotypes and DT phenotypes.
Project description:As a major plant abiotic stress, drought stress suppresses crop yield performance severely. However, the trade-off between crop drought tolerance and yield performance becomes a great challenge in drought-resistant crop breeding. Several phytohormones have been reported to participate in plant drought response, including gibberellin (GA), which also plays an important role in plant growth and development. Using CRISPR technology, we constructed the null mutant of ZmGA20ox3, a key enzyme in GA biosynthesis. The null mutant plants show lower plant height and ear height with no yield loss under the normal condition than wild-type plants. Transcriptome analysis revealed that genes affected by ZmGA20ox3 were enriched in signal transduction and stress response processes. In addition to the decrease of GA, a significant increase of ABA and JA level were also detected in mutant plants. Compared with wild-type plants, the growth and ASI of mutant plants were less affected, and the yield loss was also reduced under drought conditions. These results suggest a potential role of ZmGA20ox3 in maize drought response. Our result shows that regulating GA biosynthesis is applicable for maize drought-resistant breeding.
Project description:Whole transcriptome sequencing of B. phytofirmans PsJN colonizing potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) plants was used to analyze in planta gene activity and in the response of strain PsJN to plant stress in three different time points. The transcriptome of PsJN colonizing in vitro potato plants showed a broad array of functionalities encoded on the genome of strain PsJN. Our study indicates that endophytic B. phytofirmans PsJN cells are active inside plants. Moreover, the activity of strain PsJN is affected by plant drought stress, it senses plant stress signals and adjusts its gene expression accordingly.
Project description:Plants balance their conflicting requirements for growth and stress tolerance via sophisticated pathways and unique genes that control responses to the external environment. We have identified a novel plant-specific gene, COST1(Constitutively Stressed 1), that affects plant growth and negatively regulates drought resistance by manipulating the autophagy pathway. An Arabidopsis cost1 mutant has decreased growth and increased drought tolerance, together with constitutive autophagy and increased expression of drought-response genes. The COST1 protein is degraded upon plant dehydration, and this degradation is blocked by treatment with inhibitors of the 26S proteasome or autophagy pathways. The cost1 mutant drought resistance is dependent on an active autophagy pathway, indicating that COST1 acts through manipulation of autophagy. COST1 co-localizes to autophagosomes with the autophagosome marker ATG8e and the autophagy adaptor NBR1, and physically interacts with ATG8e, indicating a pivotal role in direct regulation of autophagy. We propose a model in which COST1 represses autophagy under optimal conditions, thus allowing plant growth. During drought, COST1 is degraded, enabling activation of autophagy and suppressing growth to enhance drought tolerance.
Project description:The functions of AP2/ERF family transcription factors in stress responses are well documented, but their roles in the brassinosteroid (BR)-regulated growth and stress responses have not been established. Here we show that stress-inducible AP2/ERF family transcription factor TINY inhibits BR-regulated growth while promoting drought response. TINY overexpression plants have stunted growth, increased sensitivity to BR biosynthesis inhibitors and compromised BR-responsive gene expression. In contrast, a tiny tiny2 tiny3 triple mutant has increased BR-regulated growth and BR-responsive gene expression. TINY positively regulates drought response by activating drought responsive genes and promoting abscisic acid-mediated stomatal closure. Global gene expression studies revealed that TINY and BRs oppositely regulate genes involved in plant growth and stress response. TINY interacts with and antagonizes BES1 in the regulation of these genes. The GSK3-like protein kinase BIN2, a negative regulator in the BR pathway, phosphorylates and stabilizes TINY, providing a mechanism for BR-mediated down-regulation of TINY to prevent activation of stress response under optimal growth conditions. Taken together, our results demonstrate that TINY is negatively regulated by BR signaling through BIN2 phosphorylation and positively regulates drought response, as well as inhibits BR-mediated plant growth through TINY-BES1 antagonistic interactions. Our results thus provide insight into the coordination of BR-regulated growth and drought responses.
Project description:Drought represents a significant stress to microorganisms and is known to reduce microbial activity and organic matter decomposition in Mediterranean ecosystems. However, we lack a detailed understanding of the drought stress response of microbial decomposers. Here we present metatranscriptomic data on the physiological response of in situ microbial communities on plant litter to long-term drought in Californian grass and shrub ecosystems.