Bacillus subtilis strain L1 promotes nitrate reductase activity in Arabidopsis and elicits enhanced growth performance in Arabidopsis,lettuce, and wheat

Journal of Plant Research - Plant growth promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) are a group of bacteria that promote plants growth in the rhizosphere. PGPRs are involved in various mechanisms that...     

The Arabidopsis LOS5/ABA3 Locus Encodes a Molybdenum Cofactor Sulfurase and Modulates Cold Stress– and Osmotic Stress–Responsive Gene Expression

To understand low temperature and osmotic stress signaling in plants, we isolated and characterized two allelic Arabidopsis mutants, los5-1 and los5-2, which are impaired in gene induction by cold and osmotic stresses. Expression of RD29A-LUC (the firefly luciferase reporter gene under the control of the stress-responsive RD29A promoter) in response to cold and salt/drought is reduced in the los5 mutants, but the response to abscisic acid (ABA) remains unaltered. RNA gel blot analysis indicates that the los5 mutation reduces the induction of several stress-responsive genes by cold and severely diminishes or even completely blocks the induction of RD29A, COR15, COR47, RD22, and P5CS by osmotic stresses. los5 mutant plants are compromised in their tolerance to freezing, salt, or drought stress. los5 plants are ABA deficient, as indicated by increased transpirational water loss and reduced accumulation of ABA under drought stress in the mutant. A comparison with another ABA-deficient mutant, aba1, reveals that the impaired low-temperature gene regulation is specific to the los5 mutation. Genetic tests suggest that los5 is allelic to aba3. Map-based cloning reveals that LOS5/ABA3 encodes a molybdenum cofactor (MoCo) sulfurase. MoCo sulfurase catalyzes the generation of the sulfurylated form of MoCo, a cofactor required by aldehyde oxidase that functions in the last step of ABA biosynthesis in plants. The LOS5/ABA3 gene is expressed ubiquitously in different plant parts, and the expression level increases in response to drought, salt, or ABA treatment. Our results show that LOS5/ABA3 is a key regulator of ABA biosynthesis, stress-responsive gene expression, and stress tolerance.     

Glucosamine causes overproduction of reactive oxygen species, leading to repression of hypocotyl elongation through a hexokinase-mediated mechanism in Arabidopsis

Glucosamine (GlcN) is a naturally occurring amino-sugar that is synthesized by amidation of fructose-6-phosphate. Although a number of reports have examined the biological effects of GlcN on insulin resistance in mammalian systems, little is known about its effects on plant growth. In this study, we have shown that exogenous GlcN inhibits hypocotyl elongation in Arabidopsis, whereas glucose and its analogs alleviate this inhibitory effect. The hexokinase (HXK)-specific inhibitor mannoheptulose also restored hypocotyl elongation. The gin2-1 mutants with an alteration in AtHXK1 exhibited higher tolerance to GlcN. We also found that GlcN induces a significant increase in the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). In addition, the GlcN-mediated inhibition of hypocotyl elongation was relieved by reducing agents such as ascorbic acid and glutathione. GlcN treatment resulted in significant induction of expression of GST1, GST2 and GST6, which are marker genes for ROS production. The gin2 mutation also represses the ROS production and the GST2 induction by GlcN treatment. Taken together, these results provide evidence that GlcN induces HXK-mediated induction of oxidative stress, leading to growth repression in Arabidopsis thaliana.     

TTG1-mediated flavonols biosynthesis alleviates root growth inhibition in response to ABA

Key message

Our results demonstrate that the flavonoids biosynthetic pathway can be effectively manipulated to confer enhanced plant root growth under water-stress conditions.

Abstract

Abscisic acid (ABA) is one of most important phytohormones. It functions in various processes during the plant lifecycle. Previous studies indicate that ABA has a negative effect on root growth and branching. Auxin is another key plant growth regulator that plays an essential role in plant growth and development. In contrast to ABA, auxin is a positive regulator of root growth and development at low concentrations. This study was performed to help understand whether flavonoids can suppress the effect of ABA on lateral root growth. The recessive TRANSPARENT TESTA GLABRA 1 (ttg1) mutant was characterized on ABA and sucrose treatments. It was determined that auxin mobilization could be altered by modifying flavonoids biosynthesis, which resulted in alterations of root architecture in response to ABA treatment. Moreover, transgenic TTG1-overexpression (TTG1-OX) seedlings exhibited enhanced root length and lateral root number compared to wild-type seedlings grown under normal or stress conditions. Genetic manipulation of the flavonoids biosynthetic pathway could therefore be employed successfully for the improvement of plant root systems by overcoming the inhibition of ABA and some abiotic stresses.     

Drastic anthocyanin increase in response to <Emphasis Type="Italic">PAP1</Emphasis> overexpression in <Emphasis Type="Italic">fls1</Emphasis> knockout mutant confers enhanced osmotic stress tolerance in <Emphasis Type="Italic">Arabidopsis thaliana</Emphasis>

Key message

pap1 - D/fls1ko double mutant plants that produce substantial amounts of anthocyanin show tolerance to abiotic stress.

Abstract

Anthocyanins are flavonoids that are abundant in various plants and have beneficial effects on both plants and humans. Many genes in flavonoid biosynthetic pathways have been identified, including those in the MYB-bHLH-WD40 (MBW) complex. The MYB gene Production of Anthocyanin Pigment 1 (PAP1) plays a particularly important role in anthocyanin accumulation. PAP1 expression in many plant systems strongly increases anthocyanin levels, resulting in a dark purple color in many plant organs. In this study, we generated double mutant plants that harbor fls1ko in the pap1-D background (i.e., pap1-D/fls1ko plants), to examine whether anthocyanins can be further enhanced by blocking flavonol biosynthesis under PAP1 overexpression. We also wanted to examine whether the increased anthocyanin levels contribute to defense against osmotic stresses. The pap1-D/fls1ko mutants accumulated higher anthocyanin levels than pap1-D plants in both control and sucrose-treated conditions. However, flavonoid biosynthesis genes were slightly down-regulated in the pap1-D/fls1ko seedlings as compared to their expression in pap1-D seedlings. We also report the performance of pap1-D/fls1ko seedlings in response to plant osmotic stresses.