The era of cultivating smart rice with high light efficiency and heat tolerance has come of age

Biotic and abiotic environmental factors shape plant responses. As such the interplay between viral infection and heat-stress can trigger specific physiological and metabolic plant responses that lead to gene-specific changes in defense and development. However, although plant gene expression patterns have been thoroughly studied under a single stress, the extent to which the combination of both stressors could modulate common or exclusive signaling pathways remains unclear. In this study, we examined the effects of watermelon mosaic virus infection and diurnal temperature variations (20/14 C, 26/20 C, and 32/24 C) on the gene responses of two plant species (melon and zucchini), each with high- and low-temperature tolerance, using a differential 3mRNA-seq approach. The WMV load was much greater in zucchini than in melon plants, and was also dependent on the temperature conditions and tolerance of each plant species. Our comparative RNA-seq analysis revealed that the percentage of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) was higher in the thermo-susceptible plants of both species under the combination of WMV infection and low temperatures (20 C). Among these significantly regulated genes, between 37 % and 45 % were related to biotic and/or abiotic stress. Furthermore, we found that 30 GO terms were involved in the response to both combined stress from low temperatures and 23 GO terms for high temperatures, which were exclusive to the thermotolerant varieties. Together, these findings allowed the identification of two unique orthologous genes linked to temperature and virus infection in melon and zucchini plants. Understanding the effects of biotic and abiotic factors on plant responses is essential for unraveling the complexity of plant-pathogen-environment interactions and developing strategies to enhance plant resilience and productivity under changing climatic conditions.

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Analysis of drought and heat stress response genes in rice using co-expression network and differentially expressed gene analyses

Cao

Huang

Yang

et al. 2023

Preprint

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Studies on Oryza sativa (rice) are crucial for improving agricultural productivity and ensuring global sustenance security, especially considering the increasing drought and heat stress caused by extreme climate change. Currently, the genes and mechanisms underlying drought and heat resistance in rice are not fully understood, and the scope for enhancing the development of new strains remains considerable. To accurately identify the key genes related to drought and heat stress responses in rice, multiple datasets from the Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database were integrated in this study. A co-expression network was constructed using a Weighted Correlation Network Analysis (WGCNA) algorithm. We further distinguished the core network and intersected it with differentially expressed genes and multiple expression datasets for screening. Differences in gene expression levels were verified using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR). OsDjC53, MBF1C, BAG6, HSP23.2, and HSP21.9 were found to be associated with the heat stress response, and it is also possible that UGT83A1 and OsCPn60a1, although not directly related, are affected by drought stress. This study offers significant insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying stress responses in rice, which could promote the development of stress-tolerant rice breeds.

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The era of cultivating smart rice with high light efficiency and heat tolerance has come of age

Cited by 5 publications

References 107 publications

Adverse effects of heat shock in rice (Oryza sativa L.) and approaches to mitigate it for sustainable rice production under the changing climate: A comprehensive review

Adverse effects of heat shock in rice (Oryza sativa L.) and approaches to mitigate it for sustainable rice production under the changing climate: A comprehensive review

The combined effect of viral infection and temperature on the gene response of melon and zucchini plants with different levels of temperature tolerance

Analysis of drought and heat stress response genes in rice using co-expression network and differentially expressed gene analyses

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