Molecular and Physiological Evaluation of Bread Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) Genotypes for Stay Green under Drought Stress

Abstract

Water availability is considered as the main limiting factor of wheat growth illuminating the need of cultivars best adapted to drought situations for better wheat production and yield. Among these, the stay-green trait is thought to be related to the ability of wheat plants to maintain photosynthesis and CO2 assimilation, and a detailed molecular understanding of this trait may help in the selection of high-yielding, drought-tolerant wheats. The current study, therefore, evaluated the physiological responses of the selected wheat genotypes under pot-induced water stress conditions through different field capacities. The study also focused on exploring the molecular mechanisms involved in drought tolerance conferred due to the stay-green trait by studying the expression pattern of the selected PSI-associated light-harvesting complex I (LHC1) and PSII-associated LHCII gene families related to pigment-binding proteins. The results revealed that the studied traits, including relative water content, membrane stability index and chlorophyll, were variably and negatively affected, while the proline content was positively enhanced in the studied wheats under water stress treatments. Molecular diagnosis of the selected wheat genotypes using the expression profile of 06 genes, viz. TaLhca1, TaLhca2, TaLhca3, TaLhcb1, TaLhcb4 and TaLhcb6 that encodes for the LHCI and LHCII proteins, indicated variable responses to different levels of drought stress. The results obtained showed the relation between the genotypes and the severity of the drought stress condition. Among the studied genotypes, Chirya-1 and SD-28 performed well with a higher level of gene expression under drought stress conditions and may be used in genetic crosses to enrich the genetic background of common wheat against drought stress.

The Impact of Trichoderma harzianum Together with Copper and Boron on Wheat Yield

“…81 Photosynthesis in plants is controlled by various aspects including light, water, temperature, carbon dioxide, soil pH, and availability of nutrients, which interact directly or indirectly by changing the chemical and enzymatic procedures of photosynthesis in various plants. 95,96 In the present research, the photosynthetic pigments were remarkably increased under the applied foliar treatment of Cu and B alone and along with T. harzianum. Results of the current research are in general agreement with those of ref 93.…”

Molecular Characterization of Germin-like Protein Genes in Zea mays (ZmGLPs) Using Various In Silico Approaches

“…However, still, their function is not fully understood. GLPs are expressed in all types of tissues (flowers, seeds, roots, stems, leaves, and embryos) by playing a pivotal role against diverse environmental stresses. , Previously, among abiotic stresses, they were found effective against heavy metals, , drought, , salt, , desiccation, heat, , abscisic acid (ABA), and UV radiation acclimation mediated by methylation in the promoter region as observed in rice . Among biotic stresses, they were active against herbivore-induced damage, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (S.…”

Comparative Effects of Hydropriming and Iron Priming on Germination and Seedling Morphophysiological Attributes of Stay-Green Wheat

“…Changes in photosynthetic pigments and subsequently in chlorophyll fluorescence attributes may lead to an alteration in photosynthetic efficiency, including the capability to harvest light; hence, observing these traits is essential to determine the plant photosynthetic effectiveness. In the current research, a differential trend was observed in the chlorophyll content, which was positive in the case of plants primed with tap water and Fe-10 mM, which may be attributed to simultaneous changes in osmoprotectant and different response levels of the studied wheats. − …”