scholarly journals Ectopic Expression of a Heterologous Glutaredoxin Enhances Drought Tolerance and Grain Yield in Field Grown Maize

2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (10) ◽  
pp. 5331
Author(s):  
Tej Man Tamang ◽  
Stuart A. Sprague ◽  
Tayebeh Kakeshpour ◽  
Sanzhen Liu ◽  
Frank F. White ◽  
...  

Drought stress is a major constraint in global maize production, causing almost 30–90% of the yield loss depending upon growth stage and the degree and duration of the stress. Here, we report that ectopic expression of Arabidopsis glutaredoxin S17 (AtGRXS17) in field grown maize conferred tolerance to drought stress during the reproductive stage, which is the most drought sensitive stage for seed set and, consequently, grain yield. AtGRXS17-expressing maize lines displayed higher seed set in the field, resulting in 2-fold and 1.5-fold increase in yield in comparison to the non-transgenic plants when challenged with drought stress at the tasseling and silking/pollination stages, respectively. AtGRXS17-expressing lines showed higher relative water content, higher chlorophyll content, and less hydrogen peroxide accumulation than wild-type (WT) control plants under drought conditions. AtGRXS17-expressing lines also exhibited at least 2-fold more pollen germination than WT plants under drought stress. Compared to the transgenic maize, WT controls accumulated higher amount of proline, indicating that WT plants were more stressed over the same period. The results present a robust and simple strategy for meeting rising yield demands in maize under water limiting conditions.

2013 ◽  
Vol 46 (3) ◽  
pp. 29-38
Author(s):  
S.H. Mosavifeyzabadi ◽  
F. Vazin ◽  
M. Hassanzadehdelouei

Abstract In hot and arid regions, drought stress is considered as one of the main reasons for yield reduction. To study the effect of drought stress, nitrogen and zinc spray on the yield and yield components of corn, an experiment was carried out during the crop seasons of 2010 and 2011 on Emam Khomeyni research Farm in Mahvellat as a split factorial within randomized complete block design with three replicates. The main plots with irrigation factor and three levels were considered: full irrigation, stopping irrigation at anthesis step and stopping irrigation at the seed filling stage. Subplots were considered with and without nitrogen and zinc spray. The drought stress reduced the grain yield in anthesis stage more than other stages. Drought stress effects significantly on stem and ear diameter, ear length, chlorophyll value, leaf area index, leaf relative water content, stem, ear and leaves dry weight, number grain in ear and row, number row in ear, unfilled seed percentage and thousand grains weight. Nitrogen increased the seed yield and yield component except thousand grains weight and the number of row in ear. Using Zn, as compared with control treatment, causes the increase of grain yield, thousand grains weight and number grain in ear 16.5, 9 and 5.5%, respectively. The results obtained from the present research showed that anthesis stage was most sensitive stage to drought stress. Also nitrogen and Zn could somewhat reduce the impact drought stress on corn.


2014 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 39-47 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. Zare ◽  
F. Vazin ◽  
M. Hassanzadehdelouei

ABSTRACT In hot and arid regions, drought stress is considered as one of the main reasons for yield reduction. To study the effect of drought stress, Iron and potassium spray on the yield and yield components of corn, an experiment was carried out during the crop seasons of 2010 and 2011 on Abosaeid research field of Mahvellat as a split factorial within randomized complete block design with three replicates. The main plots with irrigation factor and three levels were considered: irrigation per 6, 9 and 12 days. Subplots were considered with and without Iron and potassium spray. The irrigation reduced the grain yield in irrigation per 12 more than other stages. Irrigation effects significantly on chlorophyll value, leaf relative water content, stem, ear and leaves dry weight, number grain in ear and row, number row in ear, unfilled seed percentage and thousand grains weight. Iron increased the seed yield and yield component, except unfilled seed percentage and SPAD. Using K, as compared with control treatment, causes the increase of grain yield, 1000 grains weight and number grain in ear 16.5, 9 and 5.5% respectively. Potassium could somewhat reduce the impact drought stress on corn.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Wilton Mbinda ◽  
Christina Dixelius ◽  
Richard Oduor

AbstractKey message Drought stress in sweetpotato could be overcome by introducing XvSap1 gene from Xerophyta viscosa.Drought stress often leads to reduced yields and is perilous delimiter for expanded cultivation and increased productivity of sweetpotato. Cell wall stabilization proteins have been identified to play a pivotal role in mechanical stabilization during desiccation stress mitigation. They are involved in myriad cellular processes that modify the cell wall properties to tolerate the mechanical stress during dehydration in plants. This provides a possible approach to engineer crops for enhanced stable yields under adverse climatic conditions. In this study, we introduced the XvSap1 gene isolated from Xerophyta viscosa, a resurrection plant into sweetpotato by Agrobacterium-mediated transformation. Detection of the transgene by PCR coupled with Southern blot revealed the integration of XvSap1 in the three independent events. Sweetpotato plants expressing the XvSap1 gene exhibited superior growth performance such as shoot length, number of leaves and yield than the wild type plants under drought stress. Quantitative real time-PCR results confirmed higher expression of the XvSap1 gene in XSP1 transgenic plants imposed with drought stress. In addition, the transgenic plants had increased levels of chlorophyll, free proline and relative water content but malonaldehyde content was decreased under drought stress compared to wild type plants. Conjointly, our findings show that XvSap1 can enhance drought resilience without causing deleterious phenotypic and yield changes, thus providing a promising candidate target for improving the drought tolerance of sweetpotato cultivars through genetic engineering. The transgenic drought tolerant sweetpotato line provides a valuable resource as drought tolerant crop on arid lands of the world.


2018 ◽  
Vol 69 (7) ◽  
pp. 691 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julius Pyton Sserumaga ◽  
Yoseph Beyene ◽  
Kiru Pillay ◽  
Alois Kullaya ◽  
Sylvester O. Oikeh ◽  
...  

Drought is a devastating environmental stress in agriculture and hence a common target of plant breeding. A review of breeding progress on drought tolerance shows that, to a certain extent, selection for high yield in stress-free conditions indirectly improves yield in water-limiting conditions. The objectives of this study were to (i) assess the genotype × environment (GE) interaction for grain yield (GY) and other agronomic traits for maize (Zea mays L.) across East African agro-ecologies; and (ii) evaluate agronomic performance and stability in Uganda and Tanzania under optimum and random drought conditions. Data were recorded for major agronomic traits. Genotype main effect plus GE (GGE) biplot analysis was used to assess the stability of varieties within various environments and across environments. Combined analysis of variance across optimum moisture and random drought environments indicated that locations, mean-squares for genotypes and GE were significant for most measured traits. The best hybrids, CKDHH1097 and CKDHH1090, gave GY advantages of 23% and 43%, respectively, over the commercial hybrid varieties under both optimum-moisture and random-drought conditions. Across environments, genotypic variance was less than the GE variance for GY. The hybrids derived from doubled-haploid inbred lines produced higher GY and possessed acceptable agronomic traits compared with the commercial hybrids. Hybrid CKDHH1098 ranked second-best under optimum-moisture and drought-stress environments and was the most stable with broad adaptation to both environments. Use of the best doubled-haploids lines in testcross hybrids make-up, well targeted to the production environments, could boost maize production among farmers in East Africa.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (5) ◽  
pp. 1736 ◽  
Author(s):  
Khaled A. A. Abdelaal ◽  
Kotb A. Attia ◽  
Salman F. Alamery ◽  
Mohamed M. El-Afry ◽  
Abdelhalim I. Ghazy ◽  
...  

Barley is a very important crop worldwide and has good impact in preserving food security. The impacts of 10 mM proline and 0.5 mM salicylic acid were evaluated on water stressed barley plants (Hordeum vulgare L. Giza126). Salicylic acid and proline treatments led to increased stem length, plant dry weights, chlorophyll concentration, relative water content, activity of antioxidant enzymes, and grain yield under drought stress. Nevertheless, lipid peroxidation, electrolyte leakage (EL), superoxide (O2·−), and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) significantly decreased in treated barley plants with proline and salicylic acid in both growing seasons as compared with drought treatment only, which caused significant decrease in stem length, plant dry weights, chlorophyll concentration, activity of antioxidant enzymes, as well as biological and grain yield. These results demonstrated the importance of salicylic acid and proline as tolerance inducers of drought stress in barley plants.


2002 ◽  
Vol 139 (3) ◽  
pp. 319-326 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. S. DHANDA ◽  
G. S. SETHI

Experiments were designed to examine differences in some morpho-physiological characters among wheat genotypes in response to drought stress at anthesis and maturity and to determine the relationships between these characters. In three sets of experiments, one set was evaluated under well-irrigated conditions and two sets under drought stress conditions by developing terminal drought stress at anthesis in one set and at maturity in the other, for 2 years. Genotypes differed in their response at both stages of plant growth for grain yield, days to heading, excised-leaf water loss, leaf membrane stability and relative water content under drought stress. Under irrigated conditions differences in the genotypes for water retention traits were not clear. There were significant genotype×environment interactions. Terminal drought stress resulted in reduced mean values and variability for all characters. The varieties WH 147 and WH 147(U) showed a combination of drought resistance, water retention and high grain yield, whereas C 306, Kharchia 65 and Hindi 62 showed a lower percentage injury in plasma membrane and better water retention in the leaves. Drought resistance index was associated with other characters.


Blood ◽  
1995 ◽  
Vol 86 (8) ◽  
pp. 3060-3071 ◽  
Author(s):  
GA Neale ◽  
JE Rehg ◽  
RM Goorha

Although the proto-oncogene rhombotin-2 (RBTN-2) is widely expressed in most tissues, it is not expressed in T cells. We investigated the potential for overexpression of RBTN-2 to cause tumors in T cells and other tissues by constructing transgenic mice that expressed RBTN-2 under control of the metallothionein-1 promoter. Despite overexpression of RBTN-2 in all tissues, transgenic mice developed T-cell tumors only, thus indicating that tumorigenesis caused by RBTN-2 is T-cell-specific. Thymic tumors were found between 37 and 71 weeks and were invariably associated with metastasis to nonlymphoid organs. Thymuses from apparently healthy transgenic mice were also examined. In some mice there was an 10-fold increase in the CD4-CD8- thymocyte subset, yet the total number of thymocytes was the same as that in wild-type mice. Thymic homeostasis was maintained by a compensatory reduction in the CD4+CD8+ subset. The expansion of CD4-CD8- thymocytes was associated with increased expression of RBTN-2 and with increased cell proliferation. No differences were found in the proportion of thymocytes undergoing apoptosis in transgenic mice. Furthermore, RBTN-2-induced expansion of CD4-CD8- cells did not block differentiation of these cells. Thymuses with 30% CD4-CD8- cells were essentially monoclonal, indicating that all thymic immunophenotypes were derived from a single clone. Overall, our data are consistent with the following scenario: (1) RBTN-2 expression in T cells causes selective and polyclonal proliferation of CD4-CD8-thymocytes accompanied by a compensatory decrease in other thymocyte subsets; (2) a clone with growth advantage and differentiation potential is selected and populates the thymus; and (3) this clone eventually breaches homeostasis of the thymus, accompanied or followed by metastasis to other organs.


Metabolites ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 735
Author(s):  
Nayana D. G. de de Silva ◽  
Jhadeswar Murmu ◽  
Denise Chabot ◽  
Keith Hubbard ◽  
Peter Ryser ◽  
...  

Suberin is a cell-wall-associated hetero-polymer deposited in specific plant tissues. The precise role of its composition and lamellae structure in protecting plants against abiotic stresses is unclear. In Arabidopsis thaliana, we tested the biochemical and physiological responses to water deficiency and NaCl treatment in mutants that are differentially affected in suberin composition and lamellae structure. Chronic drought stress increased suberin and suberin-associated waxes in wild-type plants. Suberin-deficient mutants were not more susceptible than the wild-type to the chronic drought stress imposed in this study. Nonetheless, the cyp86a1-1 cyp86b1-1 mutant, which had a severely altered suberin composition and lamellae structure, exhibited increased water loss through the root periderm. Cyp86a1-1 cyp86b1-1 also recorded lower relative water content in leaves. The abcg2-1 abcg6-1 abcg20-1 mutant, which has altered suberin composition and lamellae, was very sensitive to NaCl treatment. Furthermore, cyp86a1-1 cyp86b1-1 recorded a significant drop in the leaf K/Na ratio, indicating salt sensitivity. The far1-2 far4-1 far5-1 mutant, which did not show structural defects in the suberin lamellae, had similar responses to drought and NaCl treatments as the wild-type. Our results provide evidence that the suberin amount and lamellae structure are key features in the barrier function of suberin in reducing water loss and reducing sodium uptake through roots for better performance under drought and salt stresses.


Agriculture ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 369
Author(s):  
Muhammad Irfan Ahmad ◽  
Adnan Noor Shah ◽  
Jianqiang Sun ◽  
Youhong Song

Drought stress has been a great challenge for the sustainability of maize (Zea mays L.) production in arid and semi-arid regions. The utilization of drought-tolerant hybrids and proper irrigation regimes represent a management strategy to stabilize maize production under water-limited conditions. A two-year field experiment was conducted to assess the leaf gas exchange, growth, grain yield, and water use efficiency in two cultivars of maize, i.e., Zhengdan 958 (H1) and Zhongdan 909 (H2), under different water regimes, i.e., full irrigation (FI), reproductive irrigation (RI), and rainfed (RF). Plant samples were collected at different growth stages to measure the maize growth and development under the three irrigation regimes. The grain yield in RF was significantly reduced by 30.4% (H1) and 31.1% (H2); and the water use efficiency (WUE) by 8.5% (H1) and 9.3% (H2) compared with FI. On the other hand, irrigation application at the flowering stage was shown to significantly boost the grain yield by 40.3% (H1) and 25.5% (H2); and the WUE by 27.6% (H1) and 14.1% (H2) compared to RF. This indicated that H1 benefited more from irrigation use compared to H2. The improved grain yield through reproductive irrigation was due to the greater soil plant analysis development (SPAD), net photosynthesis, and biomass production when compared to zero irrigation. Zhengdan 958 was shown to be relatively more resistant to drought stress during flowering compared to Zhongdan 909. Thus, to achieve reliable maize production in Huaibei Plain, reproductive irrigation is recommended, combined with Zhengdan 958.


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document