Physiology and metabonomics reveal differences in drought resistance among soybean varieties

Abstract

Background The soybean is an important food crop worldwide. Drought during the first pod stage significantly affects soybean yield, and understanding the metabolomic and physiological changes in soybeans under drought stress is crucial. This study identified the differential metabolites in initial pod stage soybean leaves under polyethylene glycol-simulated drought stress, using ultra performance liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry, and the physiological indexes related to drought resistance. Results Physiologically, drought resistance also generates enzyme and antioxidant activity; levels of superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, and catalase first increased and subsequently decreased, while those of soluble sugar, soluble protein, malondialdehyde, and proline content increased in both varieties. The contents of CAT, proline and soluble sugar in Heinong 44 (HN44) were higher than those in Heinong 65 (HN65), and the contents of MDA were lower than those in HN65. In metabolomics, the OPLS-DA model was used to screen different metabolites. KEGG analysis showed that the two varieties resisted drought through different ways. Amino acid metabolism and lipid metabolism play a key role in drought resistance of the two varieties, respectively. TCA cycle was one of the core pathways of drought resistance in two varieties. Changes in the content of l-Asparagine and citric acid may be one of the reasons for the difference in drought resistance between the two varieties. Conclusions We think that the reasons of drought resistance among soybean varieties are as follows: the main metabolic pathways are different under drought stress; the contents of metabolites in these metabolic pathways are different; some physiological indexes are different, such as MDA, CAT, proline content and so on. Our study enhances the understanding of the metabolomic soybean drought stress response and provides a reference for soybean drought resistance breeding.

Drought Stress Alters Photosynthetic and Carbohydrate-related Proteins in Leaves of Banana

“…In contrast, rewatering reduced MDA and proline contents, indicating the capacity of bananas to maintain membrane integrity. Similar ndings have been reported in various drought-stressed plants, such as rice(Correia et al 2018), soybean(Wang et al, 2022), and mustard(Rhythm et al 2022). The signi cant increase in REL in drought-stressed bananas suggests that the trans-membrane electrolyte transport was impaired, or cell membrane injury Increased antioxidant activities have led to a low level of H 2 O 2 in stressed banana plants.…”

Combined physiological and metabolomic analysis reveals the effects of different biostimulants on maize production and reproduction

“…These alkaloids and unsaturated fatty acids, which were significantly up-regulated in humic acid treatment, accounted for the majority of the up-regulated metabolites in grain. Mohamed et al found that these upregulated unsaturated fatty acids and alkaloids enhanced soybean resistance to water deficit (Mohamed and Latif, 2017), and similar results were also shown in a study of interspecific drought resistance in soybean (Wang et al, 2022). In conclusion, these up-regulated metabolites altered the stress resistance of maize grains to a certain extent, reduced the accumulation of malondialdehyde in maize plants during drought stress by activating the antioxidant defense system (Figure 2), and improved the growth status of the crops.…”

Mepiquat chloride inhibits soybean growth but improves drought resistance

“…Accumulation of flavonoids is beneficial for plants to resist abiotic stress ( Petrussa et al, 2013 ). In our previous study, metabolomic changes in these two varieties after drought stress at the flowering stage were analyzed ( Wang et al, 2022 ). Four flavonoids accumulated in HN44 and seven in HN65.…”