Early transcriptional responses in Solanum peruvianum and Solanum lycopersicum account for different acclimation processes during water scarcity events

Abstract

Cultivated tomato Solanum lycopersicum (Slyc) is sensitive to water shortages, while its wild relative Solanum peruvianum L. (Sper), an herbaceous perennial small shrub, can grow under water scarcity and soil salinity environments. Plastic Sper modifies the plant architecture when suffering from drought, which is mediated by the replacement of leaf organs, among other changes. The early events that trigger acclimation and improve these morphological traits are unknown. In this study, a physiological and transcriptomic approach was used to understand the processes that differentiate the response in Slyc and Sper in the context of acclimation to stress and future consequences for plant architecture. In this regard, moderate (MD) and severe drought (SD) were imposed, mediating PEG treatments. The results showed a reduction in water and osmotic potential during stress, which correlated with the upregulation of sugar and proline metabolism-related genes. Additionally, the senescence-related genes FTSH6 protease and asparagine synthase were highly induced in both species. However, GO categories such as “protein ubiquitination” or “endopeptidase inhibitor activity” were differentially enriched in Sper and Slyc, respectively. Genes related to polyamine biosynthesis were induced, while several cyclins and kinetin were downregulated in Sper under drought treatments. Repression of photosynthesis-related genes was correlated with a higher reduction in the electron transport rate in Slyc than in Sper. Additionally, transcription factors from the ERF, WRKY and NAC families were commonly induced in Sper. Although some similar responses were induced in both species under drought stress, many important changes were detected to be differentially induced. This suggests that different pathways dictate the strategies to address the early response to drought and the consequent episodes in the acclimation process in both tomato species.

Regulation of Anthocyanin Biosynthesis by Drought and UV-B Radiation in Wild Tomato (Solanum peruvianum) Fruit

“…Table S1 shows the specific primer sequences for genes. Sequences of experimental genes were obtained from Solanum peruvianum transcriptome reported by our group recently [ 30 ] and deposited in the NCBI GenBank database (Accession Nos. ON568202 and ON568201 for SpDFR and SpAN2 , respectively).…”

Comparative transcriptomics reveals key genes contributing to the differences in drought tolerance among three cultivars of foxtail millet (Setaria italica)

“…Plants can regulate the synthesis of ethylene in plants by increasing its expression levels, thereby improving the drought resistance of plants (Eglous et al, 2013). FTSH6 (homology of Seita.4G099200), identified as a potential drought tolerance marker in Quercus ilex (Guerrero-Sanchez et al, 2021), was highly induced when the tomato was subjected to water stress (Tapia et al, 2021). The expression of R40C1 (homology of Seita.5G069300) and rpl20 (homology of Seita.J013800) were related to the drought tolerance potential of rice and Caragana cultivars, respectively (Jiang et al, 2018;Sahid et al, 2020).…”

Water Shortage Affects Vegetative and Reproductive Stages of Common Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) Chilean Landraces, Differentially Impacting Grain Yield Components

“…According to some historical chronicles, selection and exchange of ancestral common bean germplasms were performed by prehispanic cultures [ 13 , 14 ]. In this sense, adapted wild species or crop landraces offer a great source of genetic diversity for developing modern cultivars with improved grain yield under drought conditions [ 15 , 16 ].…”