Ultrastructure of differentiating epidermal cells of maize root under water deficit conditions

The ultrastructure of differentiating epidermal cells of maize root (within the distance of 1 and 2 mm from the root body apex) were studied under conditions of non-lethal and lethal osmotic stresses of nutrient medium containing polyethylene glycol 4000, as well as regeneration of their ultrastructure following rehydration. The structural response to water deficit of the cells investigated was dependent on both the stress duration and the stage of their ontogenic development. Following non-lethal stress, in younger cells investigated (1 mm), condensation of nuclear chromatin, decrease of polyribosomes and increased density of free ribosomes in cytoplasm, reduction of mitochondrial cristae and occurrence of intramitochondrial inclusions, less compact dictyosomes were observed. Pastid structure remained unchanged. Microtubules were lacking in treated cells. In the more differentiated cells (2 mm) protoplast retreat from cell walls was also observed as well as a general decrease of ribosomes and ER elements in parietal cytoplasm, an increased number of intramitochondrial inclusions and mitochondrial membrane fragmentation. In these cells, Golgi apparatus was also lacking. The ultrastructure regeneration of the more differentiated cells was less pronounced. Lethal osmotic stress would cause more severe structural damage in all the cell components investigated.     

Ultrastructure of cortical cells of maize root under water stress conditions

Following moderate water stress in the cortical cells of theZea mays primary roots, the condensation of the nuclear chromatin, a higher density of free ribosomes and a reduction of polyribosomes, the reduction of mitochondrial cristae, elongation of ER elements, less compact dictyosomes and inhibited production of the Golgi vesicles were observed. Severe water stress would cause more severe structural damage in the cortical cells. The more differentiated cortical cells showed more expressive ultrastructural damage when compared with the meristematic nonvacuolated cells. Similarly, the cells of the peripheral layers of the cortex suffered more from water deficit than the cells of the layers situated closer to the central cylinder.     

Localization of intracellular calcium in root meristematic cells and root cap cells of maize

The localization of Ca²⁺ in cells of the periblem and dermatogen in the root meristem and the columella and peripheral cells of the root cap of maize was examined by the precipitation method of potassium pyroantimonate and EGTA-treatment. In periblem and dermatogen cells, Ca²⁺ was found to be localized in the nucleoplasm and granular zone of the nucleolus. Ca²⁺ was also found in most cell organelles: in the matrix in mitochondria, on the thylakoid membrane in proplastids, in the vacuoles and on the plasma membranes. Ca²⁺ was also distributed throughout the cytoplasmic ground matrix. Much Ca²⁺ was present in the cell wall soon after its formation during the cell division. Ca²⁺ was also conspicuous in the vesicles of Golgi in the dermatogen cells. In columella and peripheral cells, there was less Ca²⁺ in the organelles and cytoplasmic ground matrix, but Ca²⁺ was present in Golgi vesicles in the peripheral cells. Electron microscopic and X-ray microanalysis showed that Ca²⁺ was also present in the mucilaginous layer, the outermost cell wall of the peripheral cells.     

Ultrastructure of root cup meristematic cells of Cucumis sativus L. seedlings under inhibition of root growth by synthetic cyclopentene beta,beta'-triketone

A study was made of the ultrastructure of root cap meristematic cells in the seedlings of Cucumis sativus L., whose growth was inhibited by the action of 2-acetyl-4-metylcyclopent-4-en-1,3-dione (AMCD). It is shown that the treatment of seeds by this substance at a concentration of 100 microg/ml leads to the main root inhibition by 73% and, as compared to the control, causes the highest changes in mitochondria that do not reach normal dimensions and undergo degeneration. AMCD caused significant changes in the cell walls that in test samples unusually became electron-dense. Deposits of osmiophylic substance, presumably consisting of terpenoid-like compounds, were often found in the cytoplasm of treated cells as well as in the extracellular space. In many cells, plasmalemma and amiloplast membranes underwent destructive changes. We discuss a possible relation between inhibitory effect of AMCD on the root growth, and its influence on the ultrastructure in investigated cells.     

Significance of root hairs for plant performance under contrasting field conditions and water deficit

Background and AimsPrevious laboratory studies have suggested selection for root hair traits in future crop breeding to improve resource use efficiency and stress tolerance. However, data on the interplay between root hairs and open-field systems, under contrasting soils and climate conditions, are limited. As such, this study aims to experimentally elucidate some of the impacts that root hairs have on plant performance on a field scale.MethodsA field experiment was set up in Scotland for two consecutive years, under contrasting climate conditions and different soil textures (i.e. clay loam vs. sandy loam). Five barley (Hordeum vulgare) genotypes exhibiting variation in root hair length and density were used in the study. Root hair length, density and rhizosheath weight were measured at several growth stages, as well as shoot biomass, plant water status, shoot phosphorus (P) accumulation and grain yield.Key ResultsMeasurements of root hair density, length and its correlation with rhizosheath weight highlighted trait robustness in the field under variable environmental conditions, although significant variations were found between soil textures as the growing season progressed. Root hairs did not confer a notable advantage to barley under optimal conditions, but under soil water deficit root hairs enhanced plant water status and stress tolerance resulting in a less negative leaf water potential and lower leaf abscisic acid concentration, while promoting shoot P accumulation. Furthermore, the presence of root hairs did not decrease yield under optimal conditions, while root hairs enhanced yield stability under drought.ConclusionsSelecting for beneficial root hair traits can enhance yield stability without diminishing yield potential, overcoming the breeder’s dilemma of trying to simultaneously enhance both productivity and resilience. Therefore, the maintenance or enhancement of root hairs can represent a key trait for breeding the next generation of crops for improved drought tolerance in relation to climate change.     

Silicon fertigation with appropriate source reduces water requirement of maize under water deficit

Plant and Soil - The objective was to evaluate soluble sources of silicon (Si) applied through fertigation in mitigating water deficit in maize plants. Another objective was to determine the...     

Subcellular compartmentation of different lipophilic fluorescein derivatives in maize root epidermal cells

Summary Fluorescence microscopy offers some distinct advantages over other techniques for studying ion transport processes in situ with plant cells. However, the use of this technology in plant cells has been limited by our lack of understanding the mechanisms that influence the subcellular distribution of dyes after loading with the lipophilic precursors. In this study, the subcellular distribution of 5-(and 6-)carboxydichlorofluorescein (CDCF), carboxy-SNAFL-1, and carboxy-SNARF-1 was compared to that of 2,7-bis-(2-carboxyethyl)-5-(and 6-)carboxyfluorescein (BCECF) after incubation of maize roots with their respective lipophilic precursors. Previously, we reported that incubation of roots with BCECF-acetomethyl ester (BCECF-AM) led to vacuolar accumulation of this dye. Similar results were found when roots were incubated with CDCF-diacetate. In contrast, carboxy-SNAFL-1 appeared to be confined to the cytoplasm based on the distribution of fluorescence and the excitation spectra of the dye in situ. On the other hand, incubation of roots with carboxy-SNARF-1-acetoxymethyl acetate yielded fluorescence throughout the cell. When the cytoplasm of epidermal cells was loaded with the BCECF acid by incubation at pH 4 in the absence of external Ca, the dye was retained in the cytoplasm at least 3 h after the loading period. This result indicated that vacuolar accumulation of BCECF during loading of BCECF-AM was not due to transport of BCECF from cytoplasm to vacuole. The esterase activities responsible for the production of either carboxy-SNAFL-1 or BCECF from their respective lipophilic precursor by extracts of roots were compared. The characterization of esterase activities was consistent with the subcellular distribution of these dyes in root cells. The results of these experiments suggest that in maize root epidermal cells the subcellular distribution of these fluorescein dyes may be determined by the characteristics of the esterase activities responsible for hydrolysis of the lipophilic precursor.Abbreviations BCECF (BCECF-AM) 2,7-bis-(2-carboxyethyl)-5-(and 6-)carboxyfluorescein (its acetoxymethyl ester) - BTB bis-trispropane - CDCF (CDCF-DA) 5-(and 6-)carboxy-2,7-dichlorofluorescein (its diacetate derivative) - DAPI 4,6-diamidino-2 phenylindole dihydrochloride - DMSO dimethylsulfoxide - HEPES N-[2-hydroxyethyl] piperazine-N-[2-ethanesulfonic acid] - MES 2-[N-morpholino]ethane-sulfonic acid - SNAFL-1 (SNAFL-1-DA) carboxyl SNAFL-1 (its diacetate) - SNARF-1 (SNARF-1-AM) carboxyl SNARF-1 (its acetoxymethyl acetate)     

苗期水分亏缺对玉米根系发育及解剖结构的影响

利用盆栽试验,研究了不同水分亏缺[土壤含水量分别为田间持水量的75%～85%(对照)、65%～75%(轻度)、55%～65%(中度)、45%～55%(重度)]对玉米苗期根系发育及解剖结构的影响.结果表明:干旱抑制了植株生长,随着水分亏缺程度的加重,根系长度缩短、根直径变细、总生物量降低;而根系活力、根冠比、根尖多糖含量均增加;侧根根毛长度、根毛密度、根毛总长度在中度水分亏缺条件下达到最大.组织切片观察结果表明,根直径变细主要是由于根的中柱面积减小、导管直径缩小所致,不同水分亏缺处理间导管的数量差异不大,但水分亏缺使导管壁变得不规整.根尖多糖含量的增加主要表现在表皮细胞和根冠细胞内,在表皮细胞内多糖主要以游离形式分布,在根冠细胞内主要以淀粉粒形式分布.总之,在水分亏缺条件下,玉米通过改变导管结构、增加表皮细胞与根冠细胞内多糖的含量及扩大根毛总表面积,来调节根系对水分的吸收能力,增强玉米植株的抗旱性,但根毛并不随着亏缺程度的加重而无限制的增长,在过度干旱条件下,根毛会受到抑制或损伤.     

Short-term boron deprivation inhibits endocytosis of cell wall pectins in meristematic cells of maize and wheat root apices

By using immunofluorescence microscopy, we observed rapidly altered distribution patterns of cell wall pectins in meristematic cells of maize (Zea mays) and wheat (Triticum aestivum) root apices. This response was shown for homogalacturonan pectins characterized by a low level (up to 40%) of methylesterification and for rhamnogalacturonan II pectins cross-linked by a borate diol diester. Under boron deprivation, abundance of these pectins rapidly increased in cell walls, whereas their internalization was inhibited, as evidenced by a reduced and even blocked accumulation of these cell wall pectins within brefeldin A-induced compartments. In contrast, root cells of species sensitive to the boron deprivation, like zucchini (Cucurbita pepo) and alfalfa (Medicago sativa), do not internalize cell wall pectins into brefeldin A compartments and do not show accumulation of pectins in their cell walls under boron deprivation. For maize and wheat root apices, we favor an apoplastic target for the primary action of boron deprivation, which signals deeper into the cell via endocytosis-mediated pectin signaling along putative cell wall-plasma membrane-cytoskeleton continuum.     

Genetic divergence among Egyptian cotton genotypes under water deficit conditions

Backgroundwater shortage is the greatest significant reason controlling crop yield that harmfully affects fruit production, boll shedding, lint yield and fiber properties quality in cotton plants. Objectives: this study was carried out at Sakha Agricultural Research Station, Kafr El-Sheikh, Agric. Res. Center, Egypt, during 2014 and 2015 growing seasons. A study was undertaken in cotton (G. barbadense L.) to detect the magnitude of genetic divergence among parental cotton genotypes and their F₁s cross combinations and to select most suitable combinations for tolerant water deficient. Results and conclusion: the data showed that the first eight main principal components with eigen value more than one are extracted from the complicated components, the total cumulative variance of these eight factors amount for about 85.28% of the total multivariate variance. Suggesting that these PCA scores might be used to summarize the original variables in any further analysis of the data. The female parent 10,229 formed wide cluster having wide divergent distance from the other groups. On the same trend, the extra-long varieties Giza 96 and Giza 45 formed unique groups, cluster number 8 and cluster 1 nearly related. Cluster number 7 and cluster 4 which consisted of two genotypes for each characterized by susstable to water deficit conditions. The cross combinations Giza 77 x Dandra, Giza 77 x Pima S6, Giza 96 x Australy and Minufy x Dandra grouped at the same cluster, however the cross combinations Giza 86 x Dandra and Giza 68 × 10,229 classified into two different clusters. The data revealed that the inter cluster distance was higher than the intra cluster, indicating wide genetic divergent among the studied genotypes. Principal components analysis is useful in identifying and most influential characters affecting genetic variation of population.     

Repression of early lateral root initiation events by transient water deficit in barley and maize

The formation of lateral roots (LRs) is a key driver of root system architecture and developmental plasticity. The first stage of LR formation, which leads to the acquisition of founder cell identity in the pericycle, is the primary determinant of root branching patterns. The fact that initiation events occur asynchronously in a very small number of cells inside the parent root has been a major difficulty in the study of the molecular regulation of branching patterns. Inducible systems that trigger synchronous lateral formation at predictable sites have proven extremely valuable in Arabidopsis to decipher the first steps of LR formation. Here, we present a LR repression system for cereals that relies on a transient water-deficit treatment, which blocks LR initiation before the first formative divisions. Using a time-lapse approach, we analysed the dynamics of this repression along growing roots and were able to show that it targets a very narrow developmental window of the initiation process. Interestingly, the repression can be exploited to obtain negative control root samples where LR initiation is absent. This system could be instrumental in the analysis of the molecular basis of drought-responsive as well as intrinsic pathways of LR formation in cereals.     

Regulation of root water uptake under abiotic stress conditions

A common effect of several abiotic stresses is to cause tissue dehydration. Such dehydration is caused by the imbalance between root water uptake and leaf transpiration. Under some specific stress conditions, regulation of root water uptake is more crucial to overcome stress injury than regulation of leaf transpiration. This review first describes present knowledge about how water is taken up by roots and then discusses how specific stress situations such as drought, salinity, low temperature, and flooding modify root water uptake. The rate of root water uptake of a given plant is the result of its root hydraulic characteristics, which are ultimately regulated by aquaporin activity and, to some extent, by suberin deposition. Present knowledge about the effects of different stresses on these features is also summarized. Finally, current findings regarding how molecular signals such as the plant hormones abscisic acid, ethylene, and salicylic acid, and how reactive oxygen species may modulate the final response of root water uptake under stress conditions are discussed.     

Cd-induced system of defence in the garlic root meristematic cells

Studies on cadmium effects in the root meristematic cells of Allium sativum L. were carried out using electron microscopy in order to explain the possible mechanisms of garlic seedlings’ tolerance to Cd stress. Seedlings were treated with 0.01, 0.10 and 1.00 mM CdCl₂ solutions for 0.5, 1, 2, 4, 8, 10, 12, 24 and 48 h, respectively. The results indicated that cell walls, plasma membrane and main organelles actively participated in Cd detoxification and tolerance at low Cd concentrations. Once excessive Cd ions entered the cytosol, a defence mechanism becomes activated, protecting the cells against cadmium toxicity. However, under high Cd content in cells, the cell structure was damaged, even leading to cells death.     

Compensating effect of fulvic acid and super-absorbent polymer on leaf gas exchange and water use efficiency of maize under moderate water deficit conditions

A field-based pot experiment with maize plants was conducted to examine the effect of combined fulvic acid (FA) and super-absorbent polymer (SAP) on leaf gas exchange, water use efficiency, and grain yield under soil water deficit. SAP (45 kg hm^?2) was applied to the topsoil at sowing. Plants were well-watered (80% field capacity), but subjected to water deficit (50% field capacity) from tassel stage to grain-fill. FA solution (2 g L^?1) was sprayed onto plant leaves at 2 and 9 days after imposing water deficit. Under water deficit, SAP and FA application did not affect evapotranspiration, but increased leaf abscisic acid and decreased leaf transpiration rate with a little change in photosynthesis, thus improving instantaneous water use efficiency. Applying SAP and FA under water deficit also increased grain yield by 19% and grain water use efficiency by 24%, largely attributed to an increase in kernel number. In contrast, under well-watered condition the two chemicals increased stomatal conductance, leaf transpiration, photosynthesis and chlorophyll content, but did not change kernel number and were relatively less effective in respect to water use efficiency compared to water-stressed condition. This study showed that application of foliar FA and soil SAP had little effect on evapotranspiration but maintained high photosynthesis and kernel number, and improved water use efficiency under soil water deficit.