Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Anuradha Gautam, Fatima Nazish Khan, Surabhi Priya, Krishan Kumar, Shivani Sharda, Tanushri Kaul, Ishwar Singh, Sapna Langyan, Pranjal Yadava
Summary: Maize, an important crop, exhibits high drought tolerance, which may be attributed to the stress-tolerant properties of its SOD2 protein. We cloned and analyzed the Sod2 gene from the drought-tolerant HKI 335 maize inbred line. Comparative modeling revealed the similarity between HKI 335 SOD2 and a thermostable SOD from Potentilla atrosanguinea.
Article
Plant Sciences
Hana Markova, Danuse Tarkowska, Petr Cecetka, Marie Kocova, Olga Rothova, Dana Hola
Summary: Exogenously applied brassinosteroids (BRs) can improve plant response to drought. However, there are still many important aspects of this process that remain unexplored, such as the potential differences caused by different developmental stages of analyzed organs or by BR application timing. This study examines the physiological response of maize plants to drought and BR treatment, as well as the contents of different endogenous BRs. The results show significant differences in BR contents between younger and older leaves, and drought and BR treatment have varying effects on different BR groups.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Fuai Sun, Lei Ding, Wenqi Feng, Yang Cao, Fengzhong Lu, Qingqing Yang, Wanchen Li, Yanli Lu, Nitzan Shabek, Fengling Fu, Haoqiang Yu
Summary: The study reveals that ZmBES1/BZR1-5 positively regulates kernel size in maize by interacting with specific genes and binding to their promoters. Multiple experiments provide insights into the molecular mechanisms of kernel development in maize.
JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY
(2021)
Article
Agronomy
Uchechukwu Paschal Chukwudi, Funso Raphael Kutu, Sydney Mavengahama
Summary: Heat stress has a significant negative impact on maize growth and yield attributes, reducing key factors such as leaf chlorophyll content, leaf area, plant height, stem diameter, dry biomass yield, and harvest index. Sandy clay loam soil is more conducive for maize growth compared to loamy sand soil. Organic manure soil amendment can improve maize growth attributes and mitigate the effects of heat stress, making it an important consideration for food security in sub-Saharan Africa.
Article
Plant Sciences
Wen-Juan Liu, Hao Liu, Yang-Er Chen, Yan Yin, Zhong-Wei Zhang, Jun Song, Li-Juan Chang, Fu-Li Zhang, Dong Wang, Xiao-Hang Dai, Chao Wei, Mei Xiong, Shu Yuan, Jun Zhao
Summary: Bundle sheath cells in C4 plants have a superior capacity for dissipation of excitation energy, which may be an environmental adaptation unique to C4 plants. This study found that bundle sheath chloroplasts have a much higher non-photochemical quenching (NPQ) and a more rapid dephosphorylation of light-harvesting complex II (LHCII) subunits under drought stress compared to mesophyll chloroplasts. This may be one of the reasons for the lower accumulation of reactive oxygen species in bundle sheath chloroplasts.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Syed Faheem Anjum Gillani, Zelong Zhuang, Adnan Rasheed, Inzamam Ul Haq, Asim Abbasi, Shakil Ahmed, Yinxia Wang, Muhammad Tajammal Khan, Rehana Sardar, Yunling Peng
Summary: This study investigated the effects of brassinosteroids on drought resistance in different maize genotypes at physiological and transcriptomic levels. The results showed that plant hormonal signal transduction and starch and sucrose metabolism were enhanced in all genotypes, while phenylpropanoid biosynthesis was enhanced in the more drought-tolerant genotypes. This study provides valuable information on drought-responsive mechanisms and candidate gene resources for maize improvement.
FRONTIERS IN PLANT SCIENCE
(2022)
Article
Entomology
Raul Omar Real-Santillan, Ek del-Val, Trevor Williams, Ana Mabel Martinez-Castillo, Mayra E. Gavito, Hexon Angel Cornejo-Contreras, Tsiri Diaz, Griselda Garcia-Gomez, John Larsen
Summary: Drought events have significant effects on crop productivity and biological control in the context of current climate change.
JOURNAL OF PEST SCIENCE
(2023)
Article
Plant Sciences
Yeqing Zhu, Yue Liu, Kaiming Zhou, Congyan Tian, Muhammad Aslam, Binglin Zhang, Weijuan Liu, Huawen Zou
Summary: In this study, a member of the AP2/ERF transcription factor family, ZmEREBP60, was characterized in maize. ZmEREBP60 was found to be a positive regulator of plant drought response and regulates the expression of genes involved in H2O2 catabolism, water deprivation response, and abscisic acid signaling pathway.
JOURNAL OF PLANT PHYSIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Ying Liu, Tao Li, Chunxia Zhang, Wenli Zhang, Nan Deng, Lynnette M. A. Dirk, A. Bruce Downie, Tianyong Zhao
Summary: Overexpression of the ZmRAFS gene in maize increases raffinose content in leaves, reduces water loss, and enhances plant drought stress tolerance.
Article
Agronomy
Qing Dong, Qianqian Xu, Jiandong Wu, Beijiu Cheng, Haiyang Jiang
Summary: By analyzing 1069 single maize seeds from 120 varieties using chemical methods, the study established a prediction model for amylose content based on partial least squares regression, achieving an RMSEC of 2.899 and R-2 of 0.902 for calibration, and RMSEV of 2.948 for validation. The model also showed good performance in external validations with r(2) of 0.892, RMSEP of 2.975, and RPD of 3.086 in the range of 20-30%.
Article
Agronomy
Kelsey R. Carter, Abigael C. Nachtsheim, L. Turin Dickman, Eric R. Moore, Sangeeta Negi, John P. Heneghan, Anthony J. Sabella, Christina R. Steadman, Michaeline B. N. Albright, Christine M. Anderson-Cook, Louise H. Comas, Rose J. Harris, Jeffrey M. Heikoop, Nicholas Lubbers, Oana C. Marina, Dea Musa, Brent D. Newman, George B. Perkins, Scott Twary, Chris M. Yeager, Sanna Sevanto
Summary: This study found that shifts in soil microbial communities can impact plant traits, especially under drought conditions, highlighting the importance of understanding plant-microbe interactions in drought resilience.
Article
Biotechnology & Applied Microbiology
Xi-Dong Li, Yong-Qiang Gao, Wei-Hua Wu, Li-Mei Chen, Yi Wang
Summary: The study identified an S-type anion channel ZmSLAC1 in maize guard cells that plays a crucial role in stomatal closure under drought stress, regulated by ZmCPK35 and ZmCPK37. Increasing the expression levels of ZmCPK35 and ZmCPK37 is a feasible approach to enhance maize drought tolerance and reduce yield loss under drought conditions.
PLANT BIOTECHNOLOGY JOURNAL
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Zhiyong Wang, Xiang Zhao, Zhenzhen Ren, Salah Fatouh Abou-Elwafa, Xiaoyu Pu, Yingfang Zhu, Dandan Dou, Huihui Su, Haiyang Cheng, Zhixue Liu, Yanhui Chen, Ertao Wang, Ruixin Shao, Lixia Ku
Summary: A novel transcription factor gene ZmERF21 was identified to be closely associated with drought tolerance in maize seedlings, with overexpression leading to increased chlorophyll content and antioxidant enzyme activities. It may directly regulate the expression of genes related to hormone and Ca signaling to enhance drought tolerance in maize.
PLANT CELL AND ENVIRONMENT
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Yang Xiang, Xiujuan Sun, Xiangli Bian, Tianhui Wei, Tong Han, Jingwei Yan, Aying Zhang
Summary: This study revealed that ZmNAC49 is induced by drought stress and overexpression can enhance stress tolerance in maize by reducing stomatal density. Additionally, ZmNAC49 directly binds to the promoter of ZmMUTE to suppress its expression, providing a mechanism for the enhanced drought tolerance observed.
JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL BOTANY
(2021)
Article
Plant Sciences
Xiupeng Mei, Zikun Zhao, Yang Bai, Qiuyue Yang, Yuling Gan, Wenqin Wang, Chaofeng Li, Jiuguang Wang, Yilin Cai
Summary: Salt stress is a significant factor that restricts crop growth and productivity. This study reveals that ZmSTG1 contributes to salt tolerance in maize by maintaining photosystem activity. ZmSTG1 is an endoplasmic reticulum localized protein, and its expression levels in maize inbred lines are influenced by retrotransposon insertion in the promoter region. Overexpressing ZmSTG1 enhances plant growth vigor, while knocking out ZmSTG1 weakens plant growth under normal and salt stress conditions. Transcriptome and metabolome analyses suggest that ZmSTG1 may regulate the expression of lipid trafficking-related genes through the abscisic acid (ABA) signaling pathway, leading to increased concentrations of galactolipids and phospholipids in the photosynthetic membrane under salt stress. Knocking out ZmSTG1 impairs plant photosystem II (PSII) activity, while overexpressing ZmSTG1 improves PSII activity under salt stress conditions. Additionally, the application of the salt-tolerant locus enhances salt tolerance in hybrid maize plants.
PLANT CELL AND ENVIRONMENT
(2023)
