Project description:Thellungiella, an Arabidopsis-related halophyte, is an emerging model species for studies designed to elucidate molecular mechanisms of abiotic stress tolerance. Using a cDNA microarray containing 3628 unique sequences derived from previously reported libraries of stress-induced cDNAs of the Yukon ecotype of Thellungiella, we obtained transcript profiles of its response to drought, cold, high salinity and re-watering after drought. A total of 153 transcripts were found to be significantly differentially regulated under the conditions studied. Only six of these genes responded to all three stresses of drought, cold and salinity. Unlike in Arabidopsis, there were relatively few transcript changes in response to high salinity in this halophyte. Furthermore, drought responsive-transcripts in Thellungiella provided a link between the down-regulation of defense-related transcripts and the increase of endogenous abscisic acid during drought. This antagonistic interaction between drought and biotic stress response may potentially be beneficial for survival under drought stress. Intriguingly, changes of transcript abundance in response to cold implicate the involvement of jasmonic acid in the cold acclimation of Thellungiella. Taken together, our results provide useful starting points for more in depth analysis of Thellungiella’s extreme stress tolerance. Keywords: Abiotic stress response
Project description:Cassava is a drought–resistant food crop in tropical and subtropical regions. Although cassava is a relatively drought-tolerant species, the development and yields are greatly affected by the adverse drought conditions. Information about molecular breeding will obtain by studying genetic regulatory mechanism. In this study, we demonstrate the drought-tolerant mechanisms in leaves of both cassava varieties(Xinxuan048 and KU50) by using RNA-Seq technique. 1,880 and 2,066 differentially expressed genes(DEGs) were induced by drought stress in leaves of KU50 and Xinxuan048, respectively. DEGs in the response to drought stress involve in many regulated pathways. ROS- and ABA-associated signaling pathways and photosynthesis-associated regulation are mainly elucidated. In addition, alternative splicing and ingle nucleotide polymorphism also involve in drought-stress responses in both cassava varieties, showing their important roles in response to drought stress in leaves. This study not only increases the understanding of physiological and molecular mechanisms to the drought response in cassava, but also lays a solid foundation on the breeding of drought-resistant varieties using molecular methods.
Project description:Pomegranate (Punica granatum L.) is sensitive to drought stress, which largely affects its transplantation survival rate, fruit yield and quality. Abscisic acid (ABA) treatment can reduce the drought-induced adverse impacts on plants. However, no studies have ever applied ABA as an exogenous supply to alleviate the drought stress on pomegranates. In this study, we performed comparative transcriptome analysis between the ABA-treated and untreated pomegranates to reveal the ABA-induced mechanisms in response to drought-stress. Our results showed that exogenous ABA application substantially enhanced pomegranate drought resistance by strengthening metabolic pathways, such as BRs synthesis, peroxisome biogenesis, photosynthesis and hemicelluloses synthesis. Furthermore, treatments with different ABA concentrations may provoke different transcriptional responses and, once the concentration exceeds the optimal (60 μM), it might induce some potential adverse impacts on plant growth and stress resistance.
Project description:Brachypodium distachyon as an annual species that colonises broken ground is a highly appropriate model to define drought tolerance mechanisms. We have previously identified accessions exhibiting drought tolerance, high susceptibility and intermediate tolerance to drought; respectively, ABR8, KOZ1 and ABR4, from a screen of 138 genotypes. To define the mechanisms of tolerance, the responses to drought were assessed using transcriptomic and metabolomic approaches. Analysis of RNA-seq before and following drought suggested relatively few differentially expressed genes in ABR8. Linking these to gene ontology (GO) terms revealed an enrichment for biological processes related to “regulated stress response”, “plant cell wall” and “oxidative stress”. Interestingly, drought tolerance also appeared to correlate with pre-existing differences in gene expression linked to GO terms associated with the cell wall. These included glycoside hydrolases involved in cell wall remodelling, pectin methylesterases, expansins and a pectin acetylesterase. Metabolomic assessments of the same samples also indicated few statistically significant changes in ABR8 with drought. Instead, pre-existing differences in the cell-wall associated metabolites appeared to correlate with drought tolerance. Our data suggests two different modes/levels at which cell wall characteristics can play a role in conferring drought tolerance: (i) an active response mode/level which involves stress induced changes in cell wall features to help the plant cope with drought and (ii) an intrinsic mode in which innate differences in cell wall composition and architecture between genotypes are important in determining tolerance to drought stress. Both modes seem to contribute to the drought tolerance of ABR8. Identification of the exact mechanisms through which the cell wall confers drought tolerance will be important to fully exploit the contribution of the cell wall in the development of drought tolerant cereals and other grasses.
Project description:In order to increase our understanding on the epigenetic regulation in response to abiotic stresses in plants, sRNA regulation in sugarcane plants submitted to drought stress was analyzed. Deep sequencing analysis was carried out to identify the sRNA regulated in leaves and roots of sugarcane cultivars with different drought sensitivities. An enrichment of 22-nt sRNA species was observed in leaf libraries. The pool of sRNA selected allowed the analysis of different sRNA classes (miRNA and siRNA). Twenty eight and 36 families of conserved miRNA were identified in leaf and root libraries, respectively. Dynamic regulation of miRNA was observed and the expression profile of eight miRNA was verified in leaf samples by stem-loop qRT-PCR assay. Altered miRNA regulation was correlated with changes in mRNA levels of specific targets. 22-nt miRNA triggered siRNA-candidates production by cleavage of their targets in response to drought stress. Some genes of sRNA biogenesis were down-regulated in tolerant genotypes and up-regulated in sensitive in response to drought stress. Our analysis contributes to increase the knowledge on the roles of sRNA in epigenetic-regulatory pathways in sugarcane submitted to drought stress.
Project description:Episodic drought stress negatively impacts the health of long-lived trees. Understanding the genetic and molecular mechanisms that underpin response to drought stress is requisite for selecting or enhancing climate change resilience. Here we aim to establish standardized drought stress protocols for transcriptome studies in poplar trees, to determine how hybrid poplars respond to prolonged and uniform exposure to drought; to determine if the responses to moderate and more severe growth-limiting drought stresses were qualitatively or quantitatively different; and, to determine how response to drought changes throughout the day. We established hybrid poplar trees (Populus x ’Okanese’) from unrooted stem cutting with abundant soil moisture for six weeks. We then withheld water to establish three soil water contents reflecting well-watered, moderate, and severe growth-limiting drought conditions. Plants were rewatered as needed for three weeks to maintain the soil water conditions. The mild and severe drought treatments elicited distinct changes in growth and development, photosynthetic rates and global transcriptomic changes. Notably, the time of day of sampling was strongest signal in the transcriptome data and it quantitatively and qualitatively affected drought responsive changes in gene expression. These analyses emphasize the complex nature of drought regulation in long-lived trees.
Project description:Sorghum is an important crop often subjected to simultaneous high temperatures and drought in the field. We examined the gene expression response to heat and drought stress both individually, and in combination, with the aim of identifying important stress tolerance mechanisms. Plants were subjected to 4 different conditions (control, heat shock, drought stress and combined heat and drought stress). 3 replicates were carried out for each treatment type giving a total of 12 samples
Project description:We sequenced three small-RNA (sRNA) libraries constructed from leaves of sorghum subjected to three different treatments, well-watered (CK), mild drought (DR1) and severe drought (DR2). These findings will be useful for research on drought resistance and provide insights into the mechanisms of drought adaptation and resistance in sorghum.
Project description:Drought stress response is a complex trait regulated at multiple levels. In the past few years, molecular and genomic studies have shown that several drought responsive genes (DRGs) with various functions are induced by drought stresses, and that various transcription factors (TFs) are involved in the regulation of stress-inducible genes. In addition to those DRGs mentioned above, microRNAs (miRNAs) are important regulators of gene expression at the posttranscriptional level by repressing mRNA expression. There is a complex interplay between transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulation of drought response that has not been extensively characterized in tobacco. In order to fully understand DRGs (including TFs) and different roles of miRNAs involved in the stress response, we sequenced and analysed three Digital Gene Expression (DGE) libraries in roots from drought treated tobacco plants, and four small RNA populations in roots, stems and leaves from control or drought treated tobacco plants. We identified 276 candidate DRGs in tobacco with sequence similarities to 64 known DRGs from model plants and crops and about 40% were TFs including WRKY, NAC, ERF and bZIP families. Furthermore, Out of these tobacco DRGs, 54differentially expressed DRGs included 21 TFs, which belonged to 24 TFs families such as NAC (6), MYB (4), ERF (10) and bZIP (1). Additionally, we confirmed expression of 39 known miRNA families (122 members) and five conserved miRNA families, which showed differential regulation under drought stress. Targets of miRNAs were further surveyed based on a recently published study, in which ten targets were DRGs. Finally, an integrated gene regulatory network has been proposed for the molecular mechanisms of the response of tobacco roots to drought stress using differentially expressed DRGs, the changed expression profiles of miRNAs and their target transcripts as a basis base on previous studies. In general, our data provide valuable information for future studies of the molecular mechanisms underlying tobacco roots in response to drought resistance in tobacco and other plants.
2013-12-20 | GSE43058 | GEO
Project description:Mechanisms of grapevine response to drought stress