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Abiotic Stresses in Cereals
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Abiotic Stresses in Cereals

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Crop Physiology and Crop Production".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 April 2024 | Viewed by 6232

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Beata Dedicova

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Plant Breeding, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), Alnarp Box 190, 23422 Lomma, Sweden
Interests: biotechnology crops; tissue cultures, monocots, dicots, and trees; bioreactor technology; abiotic stress
Dr. Jagadish Rane

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
ICAR-National Institute of Abiotic Stress Management, School of Water Stress Management, Barmati-Pune 413115, India
Interests: abiotic stress; plant phenomics; under-utilised crops
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Abiotic stresses in plants are consequences of suboptimal levels of nonliving factors in the growing environment. Generally, these factors are integral parts of the atmosphere–plant–soil continuum and adversely affect plant growth and productivity. Climate change predictions point to the amplification of these atmospheric stresses concerning magnitude, duration and intensity and hence threat to global food security. Hence, the management of abiotic stress in agriculture is gaining momentum. While climate-smart practices are feasible options, climate-resilient crops are likely to be key drivers of future food production. Hence, designing crop plants for resilient agriculture can play a critical role. Exploring and exploiting the existing diversity and creation of new diversity through advanced techniques such as CRISPER-Cas is essential to identify potential genotypes of crops resilient to abiotic stresses. Though many scientific insights have been generated on mechanisms underlying abiotic stress tolerance in crop plants, much remains to be translated into the products for use in complementing crop improvement programs in harsh environments. This Special Issue on Abiotic Stress in Plants will highlight omics interventions for traits and in plants that confer resilience to abiotic stresses.

Dr. Beata Dedicova
Dr. Jagadish Rane
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Plants is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • drought
  • high temperature
  • heavy metals
  • chill tolerance
  • waterlogging
  • plant nutrient imbalance
  • salinity
  • alkalinity
  • extreme solar radiation
  • mechanisms
  • traits
  • genes

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 7680 KiB  
Article
Quantifying the Individual and Combined Effects of Short-Term Heat Stress at Booting and Flowering Stages on Nonstructural Carbohydrates Remobilization in Rice
by Aqib Mahmood, Wei Wang, Muhammad Ali Raza, Iftikhar Ali, Bing Liu, Leilei Liu, Yan Zhu, Liang Tang and Weixing Cao
Plants 2024, 13(6), 810; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13060810 - 12 Mar 2024
Viewed by 620
Abstract
Rice production is threatened by climate change, particularly heat stress (HS). Nonstructural carbohydrates (NSCs) remobilization is a key physiological mechanism that allows rice plants to cope with HS. To investigate the impact of short-term HS on the remobilization of nonstructural carbohydrates (NSCs) in [...] Read more.
Rice production is threatened by climate change, particularly heat stress (HS). Nonstructural carbohydrates (NSCs) remobilization is a key physiological mechanism that allows rice plants to cope with HS. To investigate the impact of short-term HS on the remobilization of nonstructural carbohydrates (NSCs) in rice, two cultivars (Huaidao-5 and Wuyunjing-24) were subjected to varying temperature regimes: 32/22/27 °C as the control treatment, alongside 40/30/35 °C and 44/34/39 °C, for durations of 2 and 4 days during the booting, flowering, and combined stages (booting + flowering) within phytotrons across the years 2016 and 2017. The findings revealed that the stem’s NSC concentration increased, while the panicle’s NSCs concentration, the efficiency of NSCs translocation from the stem, and the stem NSC contribution to grain yield exhibited a consistent decline. Additionally, sugar and starch concentrations increased in leaves and stems during late grain filling and maturity stages, while in panicles, the starch concentration decreased and sugar concentration increased. The heat-tolerant cultivar, Wuyunjing-24, exhibited higher panicle NSC accumulation under HS than the heat-sensitive cultivar, Huaidao-5, which had more stem NSC accumulation. The flowering stage was the most vulnerable to HS, followed by the combined and booting stages. Heat degree days (HDDs) were utilized to quantify the effects of HS on NSC accumulation and translocation, revealing that the flowering stage was the most affected. These findings suggest that severe HS makes the stem the primary carbohydrate storage sink, and alleviation under combined HS aids in evaluating NSC accumulation, benefiting breeders in developing heat-tolerant rice varieties. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Abiotic Stresses in Cereals)
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12 pages, 1321 KiB  
Article
Effects of Waterlogging at Flowering Stage on the Grain Yield and Starch Quality of Waxy Maize
by Huan Yang, Xuemei Cai and Dalei Lu
Plants 2024, 13(1), 108; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants13010108 - 29 Dec 2023
Viewed by 674
Abstract
Waterlogging is a common abiotic stress in global maize production. Maize flowering stage (from tasseling to silking) is more fragile to environmental stresses, and this stage frequently overlapped the plum rain season in the middle and lower reaches of Yangtze river in China [...] Read more.
Waterlogging is a common abiotic stress in global maize production. Maize flowering stage (from tasseling to silking) is more fragile to environmental stresses, and this stage frequently overlapped the plum rain season in the middle and lower reaches of Yangtze river in China and affect the yield and quality of spring-sown maize severely. In the present study, the soil moisture content under control and waterlogging conditions at the flowering stage was controlled by a negative-pressure water supply and controlling pot device in a pot trial in 2014–2015. The grain yield, starch content, and starch structural and functional properties under two soil moisture levels were compared using Suyunuo5 (SYN5) and Yunuo7 (YN7) as materials, which are the control hybrids of National waxy maize hybrid regional trials in Southern China. The results observed that the grain yield was reduced by 29.1% for SYN5 with waterlogging due to the decreased grain weight and numbers, which was significantly higher than that of YN7 (14.7%), indicated that YN7 was more tolerant to waterlogging. The grain starch content in YN7 was decreased by 9.4% when plants suffered waterlogging at the flowering stage, whereas the content in SYN5 was only decreased in 2014 and unaffected in 2015. The size of starch granules and proportion of small-molecule amylopectin with waterlogging at the flowering stage increased in SYN5 and decreased in YN7 in both years. The type of starch crystalline structure was not changed by waterlogging, whereas the relative crystallinity was reduced in SYN5 and increased in YN7. The pasting viscosities were decreased, and the pasting temperature was unaffected by waterlogging in general. The gelatinization enthalpy was unaffected by waterlogging in both hybrids in both years, whereas the retrogradation enthalpy and percentage in both hybrids were reduced by waterlogging in 2014 and unaffected in 2015. Between the two hybrids, YN7 has high pasting viscosities and low retrogradation percentage than SYN5, indicated its advantages on produce starch for more viscous and less retrograde food. In conclusion, waterlogging at the flowering stage reduced the grain yield, restricted starch accumulation, and deteriorated the pasting viscosity of waxy maize. Results provide information for utilization of waxy maize grain in food production. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Abiotic Stresses in Cereals)
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20 pages, 2489 KiB  
Article
Calcium-Dependent Protein Kinase 5 (OsCPK5) Overexpression in Upland Rice (Oryza sativa L.) under Water Deficit
by Thaís Ignez da Cruz, Dhiôvanna Corrêia Rocha, Anna Cristina Lanna, Beata Dedicova, Rosana Pereira Vianello and Claudio Brondani
Plants 2023, 12(22), 3826; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12223826 - 11 Nov 2023
Viewed by 718
Abstract
Water deficit significantly affects global crop growth and productivity, particularly in water-limited environments, such as upland rice cultivation, reducing grain yield. Plants activate various defense mechanisms during water deficit, involving numerous genes and complex metabolic pathways. Exploring homologous genes that are linked to [...] Read more.
Water deficit significantly affects global crop growth and productivity, particularly in water-limited environments, such as upland rice cultivation, reducing grain yield. Plants activate various defense mechanisms during water deficit, involving numerous genes and complex metabolic pathways. Exploring homologous genes that are linked to enhanced drought tolerance through the use of genomic data from model organisms can aid in the functional validation of target species. We evaluated the upland rice OsCPK5 gene, an A. thaliana AtCPK6 homolog, by overexpressing it in the BRSMG Curinga cultivar. Transformants were assessed using a semi-automated phenotyping platform under two irrigation conditions: regular watering, and water deficit applied 79 days after seeding, lasting 14 days, followed by irrigation at 80% field capacity. The physiological data and leaf samples were collected at reproductive stages R3, R6, and R8. The genetically modified (GM) plants consistently exhibited higher OsCPK5 gene expression levels across stages, peaking during grain filling, and displayed reduced stomatal conductance and photosynthetic rate and increased water-use efficiency compared to non-GM (NGM) plants under drought. The GM plants also exhibited a higher filled grain percentage under both irrigation conditions. Their drought susceptibility index was 0.9 times lower than that of NGM plants, and they maintained a higher chlorophyll a/b index, indicating sustained photosynthesis. The NGM plants under water deficit exhibited more leaf senescence, while the OsCPK5-overexpressing plants retained their green leaves. Overall, OsCPK5 overexpression induced diverse drought tolerance mechanisms, indicating the potential for future development of more drought-tolerant rice cultivars. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Abiotic Stresses in Cereals)
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17 pages, 2489 KiB  
Article
Water Stress Alters Physiological, Spectral, and Agronomic Indexes of Wheat Genotypes
by Cássio Jardim Tavares, Walter Quadros Ribeiro Junior, Maria Lucrécia Gerosa Ramos, Lucas Felisberto Pereira, Onno Muller, Raphael Augusto das Chagas Noqueli Casari, Carlos Antonio Ferreira de Sousa and Anderson Rodrigo da Silva
Plants 2023, 12(20), 3571; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12203571 - 14 Oct 2023
Viewed by 1215
Abstract
Selecting drought-tolerant and more water-efficient wheat genotypes is a research priority, specifically in regions with irregular rainfall or areas where climate change is expected to result in reduced water availability. The objective of this work was to use high-throughput measurements with morphophysiological traits [...] Read more.
Selecting drought-tolerant and more water-efficient wheat genotypes is a research priority, specifically in regions with irregular rainfall or areas where climate change is expected to result in reduced water availability. The objective of this work was to use high-throughput measurements with morphophysiological traits to characterize wheat genotypes in relation to water stress. Field experiments were conducted from May to September 2018 and 2019, using a sprinkler bar irrigation system to control water availability to eighteen wheat genotypes: BRS 254; BRS 264; CPAC 01019; CPAC 01047; CPAC 07258; CPAC 08318; CPAC 9110; BRS 394 (irrigated biotypes), and Aliança; BR 18_Terena; BRS 404; MGS Brilhante; PF 020037; PF 020062; PF 120337; PF 100368; PF 080492; and TBIO Sintonia (rainfed biotypes). The water regimes varied from 22 to 100% of the crop evapotranspiration replacement. Water stress negatively affected gas exchange, vegetation indices, and grain yield. High throughput variables TCARI, NDVI, OSAVI, SAVI, PRI, NDRE, and GNDVI had higher yield and morphophysiological measurement correlations. The drought resistance index indicated that genotypes Aliança, BRS 254, BRS 404, CPAC 01019, PF 020062, and PF 080492 were more drought tolerant. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Abiotic Stresses in Cereals)
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21 pages, 3799 KiB  
Article
Hydrogen Sulfide Alleviates Cadmium Stress by Enhancing Photosynthetic Efficiency and Regulating Sugar Metabolism in Wheat Seedlings
by Xiang Zheng, Bei Zhang, Ni Pan, Xue Cheng and Wei Lu
Plants 2023, 12(13), 2413; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12132413 - 22 Jun 2023
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 1179
Abstract
Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) plays prominent multifunctional roles in the mediation of various physiological processes and stress responses to plants. In this study, hydroponic experiments were carried out to explore the effects of NaHS pretreatment on the growth of wheat (Triticum [...] Read more.
Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) plays prominent multifunctional roles in the mediation of various physiological processes and stress responses to plants. In this study, hydroponic experiments were carried out to explore the effects of NaHS pretreatment on the growth of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) under 50 μM cadmium (Cd). Compared with Cd treatment alone, 50 μM NaHS pretreatment increased the plant height, soluble sugar content of shoots and roots, and dry weight of shoots and roots under Cd stress, while the Cd concentration of shoots and roots was significantly reduced by 18.1% and 25.9%, respectively. Meanwhile, NaHS pretreatment protected the photosynthetic apparatus by increasing the net photosynthetic rate and PSII electron transportation rate of wheat leaves under Cd stress. NaHS pretreatment significantly increased the soluble sugar content to maintain the osmotic pressure balance of the leaf cells. The gene expression results associated with photosynthetic carbon assimilation and sucrose synthesis in wheat leaves suggested that the NaHS pretreatment significantly up-regulated the expression of TaRBCL, TaRBCS, and TaPRK, while it down-regulated the expression of TaFBA, TaSuSy, TaSAInv, and TaA/NInv. In summary, NaHS pretreatment improved the resistance of wheat seedlings under Cd stress by increasing the rate of photosynthesis and regulating the expression of genes related to sugar metabolism. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Abiotic Stresses in Cereals)
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17 pages, 20949 KiB  
Article
Effects of Spraying KH2PO4 on Flag Leaf Physiological Characteristics and Grain Yield and Quality under Heat Stress during the Filling Period in Winter Wheat
by Jinpeng Li, Zhongwei Li, Xinyue Li, Xiuqiao Tang, Huilian Liu, Jincai Li and Youhong Song
Plants 2023, 12(9), 1801; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12091801 - 27 Apr 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1322
Abstract
As one of the most important wheat-producing areas in China, wheat is prone to heat stress during the grain filling period in the Huang-Huai-Hai Plain (3HP), which lowers yields and degrades the grain quality of wheat. To assess the effects of spraying potassium [...] Read more.
As one of the most important wheat-producing areas in China, wheat is prone to heat stress during the grain filling period in the Huang-Huai-Hai Plain (3HP), which lowers yields and degrades the grain quality of wheat. To assess the effects of spraying potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KH2PO4) on the physiological traits in flag leaves and grain yield (GY) and quality under heat stress during the filling period, we conducted a two-year field experiment in the winter wheat growing seasons of 2020–2022. In this study, spraying water combined with heat stress (HT), 0.3% KH2PO4 (KDP), and 0.3% KH2PO4 combined with heat stress (PHT) were designed, and spraying water alone was used as a control (CK). The dates for the spraying were the third and eleventh day after anthesis, and a plastic film shed was used to impose heat stress on the wheat plants during the grain filling period. The results showed that spraying KH2PO4 significantly improved the chlorophyll content and net photosynthesis rate (Pn) in flag leaves compared with the non-sprayed treatments. Compared with CK, the Pn in HT decreased by 8.97% after heat stress, while Pn in PHT decreased by 7.44% compared to that of KDP. The activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase, and peroxidase in flag leaves were significantly reduced when the wheat was subjected to heat stress, while malonaldehyde content increased, and the enzyme activities were significantly enhanced when KH2PO4 was sprayed. Heat stress significantly decreased the contribution rate of dry matter accumulation (DM) after anthesis of wheat to grain (CRAA), whereas spraying KH2PO4 significantly increased the CRAA and harvest index. At maturity, the DM in CK was significantly higher than that in HT, KDP was significantly higher than PHT, and KDP had the highest DM. Compared with CK, the GY in KDP significantly increased by 9.85% over the two years, while the GY in HT decreased by 11.44% compared with that of CK, and the GY in PHT decreased by 6.31% compared to that of KDP. Spraying KH2PO4 after anthesis primarily helped GY by maintaining a high thousand grain weight to lessen the negative effects of heat stress on wheat. Moreover, heat stress significantly reduced protein concentration, wet gluten content, dough development time, and hardness index in grains of mature, while spraying KH2PO4 maintained a sufficient grain quality under the conditions of achieving higher yields. Overall, spraying KH2PO4 after anthesis could enhance the heat stress resistance of wheat and maintain the photosynthetic capacity of flag leaves, ensuring the dry matter production and reducing the negative effects on grain yield and quality in the 3HP. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Abiotic Stresses in Cereals)
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Planned Papers

The below list represents only planned manuscripts. Some of these manuscripts have not been received by the Editorial Office yet. Papers submitted to MDPI journals are subject to peer-review.

Title: Effect of Overexpression of a Calcium-Dependent Protein Kinase (OsCPK5) in Upland Rice (Oryza sativa L.) Under Water Deficit
Authors: Beata Dedicova; Cláudio Brondani
Affiliation: Department of Plant Breeding, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), Alnarp Box 190, 23422 Lomma, Sweden; EMBRAPA Rice and Beans (Biotechnology Laboratory), Santo Antônio de Goiás, Goiás, Brazil
Abstract: Water deficit is one of the main environmental factors that seriously affect crop growth and productivity worldwide, especially in environments where there are water limitations, such as upland rice cultivation, which can reduce grain productivity. Different defense mechanisms are activated by plants in cases of water deficit and involve a large number of genes and complex metabolic pathways. In this scenario, the study of orthologous genes, previously related to increased drought tolerance, could facilitate the functional validation of genes in the target species based on genomic information from a model species. Therefore, we investigated the function of the OsCPK5 gene in upland rice, AtCPK6 ortholog of A. thaliana, from the overexpression of this gene in the cultivar BRSMG Curinga. The transformation events were evaluated in an experiment with and without water deficit applied 79 days after seeding, in the reproductive stage, extending for 14 days, and after this period, there was a return of irrigation to 80% of field capacity for 7 days. The collection of physiological data and plant material occurred in stages R3 (panicle emission), R6 (panicle grain filling), and R8 (physiological maturation). Genetically modified (GM) plants showed higher levels of expression of the OsCPK5 gene, compared to NGM plants, in all collect stages and, in addition, its expression increased from the grain filling stage. In this phase, which corresponds to the end of the 14 days of drought, GM plants showed a drastic reduction in stomatal conductance, photosynthetic rate, and greater intrinsic efficiency in water use compared to non-genetically modified plants (NGM) grown under water deficit. In addition, GM plants showed a smaller percentage decrease in grain/plant weight after drought treatment (52.7%) and a higher percentage of whole grains in both irrigation treatments when compared to NGM plants. The drought susceptibility index of the GM plants was 0.9 times lower than that of the NGM plants and, in addition, the GM plants had a higher chlorophyll a/b index in the last collect stage, both in the irrigated (10.7%) and in the drought (12%) in relation to NGM plants. NGM plants under water deficit showed a more senescent appearance in their leaves as they approached the harvest time, while plants overexpressing the OsCPK5 gene preserved the green appearance of their leaves in this period. The set of alterations resulting from the overexpression of the OsCPK5 gene in relation to the BRSMG Curinga cultivar indicates that different mechanisms involved in drought tolerance were induced, which may result in the future development of rice cultivars that are more tolerant to this condition.

Title: A20/AN1 Stress-Associated Protein from Aeluropus littoralis promotes Water deficit resilience in marker-free durum wheat
Author: Ben Romdhane
Highlights: - AlSAP expression has no detrimental effects on the growth and productivity of durum wheat plants. - The AlSAP-durum wheat lines exhibited enhanced growth associated with improved physiological traits, which contributed to25% higher grain yield under water-deficit conditions. -AlSAP gene enhances the water deficit resilience ability in durum wheat lines which can compensate the GY losses in arid regions.

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