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1.
The SnRK2 family in pepper (Capsicum annuum L.): genome-wide identification and expression analyses during fruit development and under abiotic stress.
Wu, Z, Cheng, J, Hu, F, Qin, C, Xu, X, Hu, K
Genes & genomics. 2020;(10):1117-1130
Abstract
Plant-specific SnRK2 (sucrose nonfermenting-1-related protein kinase 2) genes play crucial roles in the coordination of plant growth and development and responses to stress. However, comprehensive studies have not been performed for this gene family in pepper (Capsicum annuum), a very important Solanaceous vegetable worldwide. To fully understand the status of SnRK2s in chili pepper, a total of 9 putative SnRK2 genes (named CaSnRK2.1-2.9) were identified in pepper in the present study. These genes were located on 7 different chromosomes and classified into three subfamilies based on the phylogenetic tree. Their conserved motif compositions and exon-intron structures were systematically analyzed, and the results strongly supported the classification. Furthermore, a total of 81 putative cis-elements were found in the promoter regions, and the cis-elements related to hormone and stress signaling were abundant. Finally, the CaSnRK2 gene expression profiles among different tissues, especially developing fruit tissue, and under various abiotic stresses were investigated to identify tissue-specific or stress-responsive candidates. This study was the first to comprehensively investigate the SnRK2 family in pepper, and the results provide important clues for further functional analyses of fruit development and abiotic stress responses.
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2.
Brassinosteroids: Multidimensional Regulators of Plant Growth, Development, and Stress Responses.
Nolan, TM, Vukašinović, N, Liu, D, Russinova, E, Yin, Y
The Plant cell. 2020;(2):295-318
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Abstract
Brassinosteroids (BRs) are a group of polyhydroxylated plant steroid hormones that are crucial for many aspects of a plant's life. BRs were originally characterized for their function in cell elongation, but it is becoming clear that they play major roles in plant growth, development, and responses to several stresses such as extreme temperatures and drought. A BR signaling pathway from cell surface receptors to central transcription factors has been well characterized. Here, we summarize recent progress toward understanding the BR pathway, including BR perception and the molecular mechanisms of BR signaling. Next, we discuss the roles of BRs in development and stress responses. Finally, we show how knowledge of the BR pathway is being applied to manipulate the growth and stress responses of crops. These studies highlight the complex regulation of BR signaling, multiple points of crosstalk between BRs and other hormones or stress responses, and the finely tuned spatiotemporal regulation of BR signaling.
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Yeast a potential bio-agent: future for plant growth and postharvest disease management for sustainable agriculture.
Mukherjee, A, Verma, JP, Gaurav, AK, Chouhan, GK, Patel, JS, Hesham, AE
Applied microbiology and biotechnology. 2020;(4):1497-1510
Abstract
The native microbial flora and fauna are replaced by commercial chemical fertilizers and pesticides, in the current agricultural system. Imbalance of beneficial microbial diversity and natural competitors increases the severity of plant diseases. Hence, sustainable agricultural practices like bio-inoculant, stress tolerant consortium, crop rotation and mix cropping sequences is only the solution of recharging the microbial population in soils to make healthier for crop productivity and suppression of soil borne phytopathogen. Microorganisms use several direct mechanism activities, e.g. production of plant hormones (indole-3-acetic acid), ammonium, siderophore and nutrient solubilization, and indirect mechanism activities, e.g. hydrogen cyanide, chitinase, protease and antibiotic for plant growth promotion. The plant growth-promoting effect of bacteria, fungi, mycorrhizal fungi and algae is widely explored. Yeast is a single-celled microbe classified as members of the kingdom fungi. Yeast and their product use in the food industry, medical science and biotechnological research purpose but very few literatures reported that yeasts have the ability to produce a group of plant growth-promoting activities and biocontrolling activity. Therefore, the main aim of this mini review is to highlight the application of yeasts as biological agents in different sectors of sustainable farming practices.
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Balancing growth and adaptation to stress: Crosstalk between brassinosteroid and abscisic acid signaling.
Wang, Q, Yu, F, Xie, Q
Plant, cell & environment. 2020;(10):2325-2335
Abstract
Plant growth and development are plastic and canadapt to environmental changes. In this process different plant hormones coordinate to modulate plant growth and environmental interactions. In this article, we describe the individual brassinosteroid (BR) and abscisic acid (ABA) signaling pathways, emphasize the specific regulatory mechanisms between ABA and BR responses and discuss how both phytohormones coordinate growth, development and stress responses in plants. BR signaling is essential for plant development, while ABA signaling is activated to ensure plants survive stress. The crosstalk between BR and ABA, especially protein phosphorylation, protein stability control and downstream transcription control of key components of both pathways are discussed in terms of modulating plant development and stress adaptation.
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NADPH Oxidases: The Vital Performers and Center Hubs during Plant Growth and Signaling.
Hu, CH, Wang, PQ, Zhang, PP, Nie, XM, Li, BB, Tai, L, Liu, WT, Li, WQ, Chen, KM
Cells. 2020;(2)
Abstract
NADPH oxidases (NOXs), mostly known as respiratory burst oxidase homologs (RBOHs), are the key producers of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in plants. A lot of literature has addressed ROS signaling in plant development regulation and stress responses as well as on the enzyme's structure, evolution, function, regulation and associated mechanisms, manifesting the role of NOXs/RBOHs as the vital performers and center hubs during plant growth and signaling. This review focuses on recent advances of NOXs/RBOHs on cell growth, hormone interaction, calcium signaling, abiotic stress responses, and immunity. Several primary particles, including Ca2+, CDPKs, BIK1, ROPs/RACs, CERK, FER, ANX, SnRK and SIK1-mediated regulatory mechanisms, are fully summarized to illustrate the signaling behavior of NOXs/RBOHs and their sophisticated and dexterous crosstalks. Diverse expression and activation regulation models endow NOXs/RBOHs powerful and versatile functions in plants to maintain innate immune homeostasis and development integrity. NOXs/RBOHs and their related regulatory items are the ideal targets for crop improvement in both yield and quality during agricultural practices.
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Bacterial endophyte mediated plant tolerance to salinity: growth responses and mechanisms of action.
Kushwaha, P, Kashyap, PL, Bhardwaj, AK, Kuppusamy, P, Srivastava, AK, Tiwari, RK
World journal of microbiology & biotechnology. 2020;(2):26
Abstract
Salinity stress is one of the key constraints for sustainable crop production. It has gained immense importance in the backdrop of climate change induced imbalanced terrestrial water budgets. The traditional agronomic approaches and breeding salt-tolerant genotypes have often proved insufficient to alleviate salinity stress. Newer approaches like the use of bacterial endophytes associated with agricultural crops have occupied center place recently, owing to their advantageous role in improving crop growth, health and yield. Research evidences have revealed that bacterial endophytes can promote plant growth by accelerating availability of mineral nutrients, helping in production of phytohormones, siderophores, and enzymes, and also by activating systemic resistance against insect pest and pathogens in plants. These research developments have opened an innovative boulevard in agriculture for capitalizing bacterial endophytes, single species or consortium, to enhance plant salt tolerance capabilities, and ultimately lead to translational refinement of crop-production business under salty environments. This article reviews the latest research progress on the identification and functional characterization of salt tolerant endophytic bacteria and illustrates various mechanisms triggered by them for plant growth promotion under saline environment.
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7.
Multifloret spikelet improves rice yield.
Ren, D, Li, Y, He, G, Qian, Q
The New phytologist. 2020;(6):2301-2306
Abstract
The typical rice (Oryza sativa) spikelet contains a single fertile floret and produces only one grain; by contrast, Brachypodium distachyon spikelets contain multiple fertile florets and produce several grains. To increase yield, rice breeders have traditionally focused on panicle morphology (branch number and length, spikelet density), but have not considered the number of florets in each spikelet. Production of rice spikelets with more florets could further increase the number of grains per panicle. Here, we describe two novel approaches - altering meristem determinacy and restoring lateral floret formation - for breeding rice cultivars with a multifloret spikelet, thereby increasing the number of grains per panicle and potentially improving yield.
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8.
Molecular and environmental factors regulating seed longevity.
Zinsmeister, J, Leprince, O, Buitink, J
The Biochemical journal. 2020;(2):305-323
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Abstract
Seed longevity is a central pivot of the preservation of biodiversity, being of main importance to face the challenges linked to global climate change and population growth. This complex, quantitative seed quality trait is acquired on the mother plant during the second part of seed development. Understanding what factors contribute to lifespan is one of the oldest and most challenging questions in plant biology. One of these challenges is to recognize that longevity depends on the storage conditions that are experimentally used because they determine the type and rate of deleterious conditions that lead to cell death and loss of viability. In this review, we will briefly review the different storage methods that accelerate the deteriorative reactions during storage and argue that a minimum amount of information is necessary to interpret the longevity data. Next, we will give an update on recent discoveries on the hormonal factors regulating longevity, both from the ABA signaling pathway but also other hormonal pathways. In addition, we will review the effect of both maternal and abiotic factors that influence longevity. In the last section of this review, we discuss the problems in unraveling cause-effect relationship between the time of death during storage and deteriorative reactions leading to seed ageing. We focus on the three major types of cellular damage, namely membrane permeability, lipid peroxidation and RNA integrity for which germination data on seed stored in dedicated seed banks for long period times are now available.
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Plant-Derived Smoke Affects Biochemical Mechanism on Plant Growth and Seed Germination.
Khatoon, A, Rehman, SU, Aslam, MM, Jamil, M, Komatsu, S
International journal of molecular sciences. 2020;(20)
Abstract
The role of plant-derived smoke, which is changed in mineral-nutrient status, in enhancing germination and post-germination was effectively established. The majority of plant species positively respond to plant-derived smoke in the enhancement of seed germination and plant growth. The stimulatory effect of plant-derived smoke on normally growing and stressed plants may help to reduce economic and human resources, which validates its candidature as a biostimulant. Plant-derived smoke potentially facilitates the early harvest and increases crop productivity. Karrikins and cyanohydrin are the active compound in plant-derived smoke. In this review, data from the latest research explaining the effect of plant-derived smoke on morphological, physiological, biochemical, and molecular responses of plants are presented. The pathway for reception and interaction of compounds of plant-derived smoke at the cellular and molecular level of plant is described and discussed.
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10.
The dynamic nature and regulation of the root clock.
Xuan, W, De Gernier, H, Beeckman, T
Development (Cambridge, England). 2020;(3)
Abstract
Plants explore the soil by continuously expanding their root system, a process that depends on the production of lateral roots (LRs). Sites where LRs can be produced are specified in the primary root axis through a pre-patterning mechanism, determined by a biological clock that is coordinated by temporal signals and positional cues. This 'root clock' generates an oscillatory signal that is translated into a developmental cue to specify a set of founder cells for LR formation. In this Review, we summarize recent findings that shed light on the mechanisms underlying the oscillatory signal and discuss how a periodic signal contributes to the conversion of founder cells into LR primordia. We also provide an overview of the phases of the root clock that may be influenced by endogenous factors, such as the plant hormone auxin, and by exogenous environmental cues. Finally, we discuss additional aspects of the root-branching process that act independently of the root clock.