Transcriptome and metabolite profiles reveal differential molecular responses of wild and cultivated amaranth species to water deficit and salt stress.

ABSTRACT:

Main conclusion

A. hybridus tolerance to salinity depends on constitutively active mechanisms, whereas A. hypochondriacus tolerance to salt and water deficit depends on a constitutive protection and a robust transcriptional response. Drought and soil salinity are two environmental factors that significantly affect crop production. To gain a better understanding of how amaranth responds to these abiotic stresses, we analyzed the transcriptomic and metabolomic changes in the leaves of Amaranthus hybridus, a wild species, and A. hypochondriacus, a cultivated species used for seed production. We identified differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between the two species and under different stress conditions. Control plants of A. hypochondriacus exhibited higher expression levels of genes

SUBMITTER: Barba de la Rosa AP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12855421 | biostudies-literature | 2026 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature