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Molecular Mechanisms of Salinity Tolerance: Experience from Salt Tolerant Algae and Halophyte Plants

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A special issue of International Journal of Molecular Sciences (ISSN 1422-0067). This special issue belongs to the section "Molecular Plant Sciences".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2024) | Viewed by 9690

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Special Issue Editors

Dr. Vadim Volkov

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Guest Editor

K.A. Timiryazev Institute of Plant Physiology RAS, 127276 Moscow, Russia
Interests: ion transport; water transport; membrane transport; halophytes; electrophysiology; ion channels and transporters; biophysics; visual perception; action potentials
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Dr. Mary Beilby

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Guest Editor

School of Physics, Biophysics, The University of New South Wales, Kensington, NSW 2052, Australia
Interests: biophysics; electrophysiology (plant cells); ion transporters; salt tolerance and sensitivity; action potential (plants); circadian rhythms; data-logging and experimental computer control; teaching techniques
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Dr. Yuri Vladimirovich Balnokin

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Guest Editor

K.A. Timiryazev Institute of Plant Physiology RAS, 127276 Moscow, Russia
Interests: ion transport; salt tolerance; vesicular trafficking; plant cell biology; halophytes; electrophysiology; cell ultrasrtucture; plant water relations; drought tolerance

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Soil salinization is one of the major threats for modern agriculture, igniting the demise of Sumer civilization. Currently, the annual losses from salinization in the world exceed USD 27 billion, which is expected to sharply increase with the ongoing global climate change. Therefore, the molecular mechanisms of salinity tolerance and sensitivity of plants, as well as their directed regulation and selected gene editing, are of practical interest for agriculture and society apart from pure scientific value. This Special Issue aims to decipher, outline, and stress the specific molecular features and networks in the creation of organisms, especially plants and algae, which are salt-tolerant. We wish to address the extremes associated with halophyte plants which grow under high salinity, exceeding that of sea water, as well as salt-tolerant algae which evolved mechanisms to adequately control K⁺, Na⁺, and Cl⁻ concentrations in cytoplasm; acquire nutrients; and successfully flourish under salinity. Original research papers and reviews describing molecular tools of green photosynthesising organisms to overcome and cope with salinity are all invited to contribute to the Special Issue.

This special issue is supervised by Dr. Vadim Volkov, Dr. Mary Beilby and Dr. Yuri Vladimirovich Balnokin and assisted by our Topical Advisory Panel Member Dr. Larissa Popova (Russian Academy of Sciences).

Dr. Vadim Volkov
Dr. Mary Beilby
Dr. Yuri Vladimirovich Balnokin
Guest Editors

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Keywords

plant salinity tolerance
ion transport
ion channels and transporters
P-type ATPases
vesicular trafficking
halopytes
salt tolerant algae
molecular mechanisms
gene expression
systems biology

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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30 pages, 2822 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Time-Resolved Salt Stress Response of Dunaliella tertiolecta—A Comprehensive System Biology Perspective

by Linda Keil, Norbert Mehlmer, Philipp Cavelius, Daniel Garbe, Martina Haack, Manfred Ritz, Dania Awad and Thomas Brück

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(20), 15374; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms242015374 - 19 Oct 2023

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1519

Abstract

Algae-driven processes, such as direct CO₂ fixation into glycerol, provide new routes for sustainable chemical production in synergy with greenhouse gas mitigation. The marine microalgae Dunaliella tertiolecta is reported to accumulate high amounts of intracellular glycerol upon exposure to high salt concentrations. We have conducted a comprehensive, time-resolved systems biology study to decipher the metabolic response of D. tertiolecta up to 24 h under continuous light conditions. Initially, due to a lack of reference sequences required for MS/MS-based protein identification, a high-quality draft genome of D. tertiolecta was generated. Subsequently, a database was designed by combining the genome with transcriptome data obtained before and after salt stress. This database allowed for detection of differentially expressed proteins and identification of phosphorylated proteins, which are involved in the short- and long-term adaptation to salt stress, respectively. Specifically, in the rapid salt adaptation response, proteins linked to the Ca²⁺ signaling pathway and ion channel proteins were significantly increased. While phosphorylation is key in maintaining ion homeostasis during the rapid adaptation to salt stress, phosphofructokinase is required for long-term adaption. Lacking β-carotene, synthesis under salt stress conditions might be substituted by the redox-sensitive protein CP12. Furthermore, salt stress induces upregulation of Calvin–Benson cycle-related proteins. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Mechanisms of Salinity Tolerance: Experience from Salt Tolerant Algae and Halophyte Plants)

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16 pages, 3404 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Unique Features of the m⁶A Methylome and Its Response to Salt Stress in the Roots of Sugar Beet (Beta vulgaris)

by Junliang Li, Qiuying Pang and Xiufeng Yan

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(14), 11659; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241411659 - 19 Jul 2023

Viewed by 1146

Abstract

Salt is one of the most important environmental factors in crop growth and development. N⁶-methyladenosine (m⁶A) is an epigenetic modification that regulates plant–environment interaction at transcriptional and translational levels. Sugar beet is a salt-tolerant sugar-yielding crop, but how m⁶A modification affects its response to salt stress remains unknown. In this study, m⁶A-seq was used to explore the role of m⁶A modification in response to salt stress in sugar beet (Beta vulgaris). Transcriptome-wide m⁶A methylation profiles and physiological responses to high salinity were investigated in beet roots. After treatment with 300 mM NaCl, the activities of peroxidase and catalase, the root activity, and the contents of Na⁺, K⁺, and Ca²⁺ in the roots were significantly affected by salt stress. Compared with the control plants, 6904 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and 566 differentially methylated peaks (DMPs) were identified. Association analysis revealed that 243 DEGs contained DMP, and 80% of these DEGs had expression patterns that were negatively correlated with the extent of m⁶A modification. Further analysis verified that m⁶A methylation may regulate the expression of some genes by controlling their mRNA stability. Functional analysis revealed that m⁶A modifications primarily affect the expression of genes involved in energy metabolism, transport, signal transduction, transcription factors, and cell wall organization. This study provides evidence that a post-transcriptional regulatory mechanism mediates gene expression during salt stress by affecting the stability of mRNA in the root. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Mechanisms of Salinity Tolerance: Experience from Salt Tolerant Algae and Halophyte Plants)

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19 pages, 4440 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Involvement of the Membrane Nanodomain Protein, AtFlot1, in Vesicular Transport of Plasma Membrane H⁺-ATPase in Arabidopsis thaliana under Salt Stress

by Lyudmila A. Khalilova, Olga V. Lobreva, Olga I. Nedelyaeva, Igor V. Karpichev and Yurii V. Balnokin

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(2), 1251; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24021251 - 08 Jan 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1470

Abstract

The aim of this study was to elucidate whether the membrane nanodomain protein AtFlot1 is involved in vesicular transport pathways and regulation of the P-type H⁺-ATPase content in plasma membrane of A. thaliana under salt stress. Transmission electron microscopy revealed changes in the endosomal system of A. thaliana root cells due to knockout mutation SALK_205125C (Atflot1ko). Immunoblotting of the plasma membrane-enriched fractions isolated from plant organs with an antibody to the H⁺-ATPase demonstrated changes in the H⁺-ATPase content in plasma membrane in response to the Atflot1ko mutation and salt shock. Expression levels of the main H⁺-ATPase isoforms, PMA1 and PMA2, as well as endocytosis activity of root cells determined by endocytic probe FM4-64 uptake assay, were unchanged in the Atflot1ko mutant. We have shown that AtFlot1 participates in regulation of the H⁺-ATPase content in the plasma membrane. We hypothesized that AtFlot1 is involved in both exocytosis and endocytosis, and, thus, contributes to the maintenance of cell ion homeostasis under salt stress. The lack of a pronounced Atflot1ko phenotype under salt stress conditions may be due to the assumed ability of Atflot1ko to switch vesicular transport to alternative pathways. Functional redundancy of AtFlot proteins may play a role in the functioning of these alternative pathways. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Mechanisms of Salinity Tolerance: Experience from Salt Tolerant Algae and Halophyte Plants)

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19 pages, 4470 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Chloride Channel Family in the Euhalophyte Suaeda altissima (L.) Pall: Cloning of Novel Members SaCLCa2 and SaCLCc2, General Characterization of the Family

by Olga I. Nedelyaeva, Larissa G. Popova, Dmitrii E. Khramov, Vadim S. Volkov and Yurii V. Balnokin

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(2), 941; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24020941 - 04 Jan 2023

Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1437

Abstract

CLC family genes, comprising anion channels and anion/H⁺ antiporters, are widely represented in nearly all prokaryotes and eukaryotes. CLC proteins carry out a plethora of functions at the cellular level. Here the coding sequences of the SaCLCa2 and SaCLCc2 genes, homologous to Arabidopsis thaliana CLCa and CLCc, were cloned from the euhalophyte Suaeda altissima (L.) Pall. Both the genes cloned belong to the CLC family as supported by the presence of the key conserved motifs and glutamates inherent for CLC proteins. SaCLCa2 and SaCLCc2 were heterologously expressed in Saccharomyces cerevisiae GEF1 disrupted strain, Δgef1, where GEF1 encodes the only CLC family protein, the Cl⁻ transporter Gef1p, in undisrupted strains of yeast. The Δgef1 strain is characterized by inability to grow on YPD yeast medium containing Mn²⁺ ions. Expression of SaCLCa2 in Δgef1 cells growing on this medium did not rescue the growth defect phenotype of the mutant. However, a partial growth restoration occurred when the Δgef1 strain was transformed by SaCLCa2(C544T), the gene encoding protein in which proline, specific for nitrate, was replaced with serine, specific for chloride, in the selectivity filter. Unlike SaCLCa2, expression of SaCLCc2 in Δgef1 resulted in a partial growth restoration under these conditions. Analysis of SaCLCa2 and SaCLCc2 expression in the euhalophyte Suaeda altissima (L.) Pall by quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) under different growth conditions demonstrated stimulation of SaCLCa2 expression by nitrate and stimulation of SaCLCc2 expression by chloride. The results of yeast complementation assay, the presence of both the “gating” and “proton” glutamates in aa sequences of both the proteins, as well results of the gene expression in euhalophyte Suaeda altissima (L.) Pall suggest that SaCLCa2 and SaCLCc2 function as anion/H⁺ antiporters with nitrate and chloride specificities, respectively. The general bioinformatic overview of seven CLC genes cloned from euhalophyte Suaeda altissima is given, together with results on their expression in roots and leaves under different levels of salinity. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Mechanisms of Salinity Tolerance: Experience from Salt Tolerant Algae and Halophyte Plants)

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Review

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29 pages, 3501 KiB

Open AccessReview

Yeast Heterologous Expression Systems for the Study of Plant Membrane Proteins

by Larissa G. Popova, Dmitrii E. Khramov, Olga I. Nedelyaeva and Vadim S. Volkov

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2023, 24(13), 10768; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms241310768 - 28 Jun 2023

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2582

Abstract

Researchers are often interested in proteins that are present in cells in small ratios compared to the total amount of proteins. These proteins include transcription factors, hormones and specific membrane proteins. However, sufficient amounts of well-purified protein preparations are required for functional and structural studies of these proteins, including the creation of artificial proteoliposomes and the growth of protein 2D and 3D crystals. This aim can be achieved by the expression of the target protein in a heterologous system. This review describes the applications of yeast heterologous expression systems in studies of plant membrane proteins. An initial brief description introduces the widely used heterologous expression systems of the baker’s yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae and the methylotrophic yeast Pichia pastoris. S. cerevisiae is further considered a convenient model system for functional studies of heterologously expressed proteins, while P. pastoris has the advantage of using these yeast cells as factories for producing large quantities of proteins of interest. The application of both expression systems is described for functional and structural studies of membrane proteins from plants, namely, K⁺- and Na⁺-transporters, various ATPases and anion transporters, and other transport proteins. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Molecular Mechanisms of Salinity Tolerance: Experience from Salt Tolerant Algae and Halophyte Plants)

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Molecular Mechanisms of Salinity Tolerance: Experience from Salt Tolerant Algae and Halophyte Plants

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