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Maize glossy6 is involved in cuticular wax deposition and drought tolerance.

ABSTRACT: Cuticular waxes, long-chain hydrocarbon compounds, form the outermost layer of plant surfaces in most terrestrial plants. The presence of cuticular waxes protects plants from water loss and other environmental stresses. Cloning and characterization of genes involved in the regulation, biosynthesis, and extracellular transport of cuticular waxes onto the surface of epidermal cells have revealed the molecular basis of cuticular wax accumulation. However, intracellular trafficking of synthesized waxes to the plasma membrane for cellular secretion is poorly understood. Here, we characterized a maize glossy (gl6) mutant that exhibited decreased epicuticular wax load, increased cuticle permeability, and reduced seedling drought tolerance relative to wild-type. We combined an RNA-sequencing-based mapping approach (BSR-Seq) and chromosome walking to identify the gl6 candidate gene, which was confirmed via the analysis of multiple independent mutant alleles. The gl6 gene represents a novel maize glossy gene containing a conserved, but uncharacterized, DUF538 domain. This study suggests that the GL6 protein may be involved in the intracellular trafficking of cuticular waxes, opening the door to elucidating the poorly understood process by which cuticular wax is transported from its site of biosynthesis to the plasma membrane.

SUBMITTER: Li L

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6598097 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Maize glossy6 is involved in cuticular wax deposition and drought tolerance.

Li Li L Du Yicong Y He Cheng C Dietrich Charles R CR Li Jiankun J Ma Xiaoli X Wang Rui R Liu Qiang Q Liu Sanzhen S Wang Guoying G Schnable Patrick S PS Zheng Jun J

Journal of experimental botany 20190601 12

Cuticular waxes, long-chain hydrocarbon compounds, form the outermost layer of plant surfaces in most terrestrial plants. The presence of cuticular waxes protects plants from water loss and other environmental stresses. Cloning and characterization of genes involved in the regulation, biosynthesis, and extracellular transport of cuticular waxes onto the surface of epidermal cells have revealed the molecular basis of cuticular wax accumulation. However, intracellular trafficking of synthesized wa ...[more]

PMID: 30919902

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Project description:Previous studies have shown that wheat grain yield is seriously affected by drought stress, and leaf cuticular wax is reportedly associated with drought tolerance. However, most studies have focused on cuticular wax biosynthesis and model species. The effects of cuticular wax on wheat drought tolerance have rarely been studied. The aims of the current study were to study the effects of leaf cuticular wax on wheat grain yield under drought stress using the above-mentioned wheat NILs and to discuss the possible physiological mechanism of cuticular wax on high grain yield under drought stress. Compared to water-irrigated (WI) conditions, the cuticular wax content (CWC) in glaucous and non-glaucous NILs under drought-stress (DS) conditions both increased; mean increase values were 151.1 and 114.4%, respectively, which was corroborated by scanning electronic microscopy images of large wax particles loaded on the surfaces of flag leaves. The average yield of glaucous NILs was higher than that of non-glaucous NILs under DS conditions in 2014 and 2015; mean values were 7368.37 kg·ha-1 and 7103.51 kg·ha-1. This suggested that glaucous NILs were more drought-tolerant than non-glaucous NILs (P = 0.05), which was supported by the findings of drought tolerance indices TOL and SSI in both years, the relatively high water potential and relative water content, and the low ELWL. Furthermore, the photosynthesis rate (Pn ) of glaucous and non-glaucous wheat NILs under DS conditions decreased by 7.5 and 9.8%, respectively; however, glaucous NILs still had higher mean values of Pn than those of non-glaucous NILs, which perhaps resulted in the higher yield of glaucous NILs. This could be explained by the fact that glaucous NILs had a smaller Fv/Fm reduction, a smaller PI reduction and a greater ABS/RC increase than non-glaucous NILs under DS conditions. This is the first report to show that wheat cuticular wax accumulation is associated with drought tolerance. Moreover, the leaf CWC can be an effective selection criterion in the development of drought-tolerant wheat cultivars.

Project description:BackgroundCuticular wax plays important role in protecting plants from drought stress. In Arabidopsis WRI4 improves drought tolerance by regulating the biosynthesis of fatty acids and cuticular wax. Cyperus esculentus (yellow nutsedge) is a tough weed found in tropical and temperate zones as well as in cooler regions. In the current study, we report the molecular cloning of a WRI4-like gene from Cyperus esculentus and its functional characterization in Arabidopsis.ResultsUsing RACE PCR, full-length WRI-like gene was amplified from yellow nutsedge. Phylogenetic analyses and amino acid comparison suggested it to be a WRI4-like gene. According to the tissue-specific expression data, the highest expression of WRI4-like gene was found in leaves, followed by roots and tuber. Transgenic Arabidopsis plants expressing nutsedge WRI4-like gene manifested improved drought stress tolerance. Transgenic lines showed significantly reduced stomatal conductance, transpiration rate, chlorophyll leaching, water loss and improved water use efficiency (WUE). In the absence of drought stress, expression of key genes for fatty acid biosynthesis was not significantly different between transgenic lines and WT while that of cuticular wax biosynthesis genes was significantly higher in transgenic lines than WT. The PEG-simulated drought stress significantly increased expression of key genes for fatty acid as well as wax biosynthesis in transgenic Arabidopsis lines but not in WT plants. Consistent with the gene expression data, cuticular wax load and deposition was significantly higher in stem and leaves of transgenic lines compared with WT under control as well as drought stress conditions.ConclusionsWRI4-like gene from Cyperus esculentus improves drought tolerance in Arabidopsis probably by promoting cuticular wax biosynthesis and deposition. This in turn lowers chlorophyll leaching, stomatal conductance, transpiration rate, water loss and improves water use efficiency under drought stress conditions. Therefore, CeWRI4-like gene could be a good candidate for improving drought tolerance in crops.

Project description:BackgroundCuticular waxes cover plant surface and play important roles in protecting plants from abiotic and biotic stresses. The variations of wax deposition and chemical compositions under changing environments have been shown to be related to plant adaptations. However, it is still not clear whether the wax depositions could be adjusted to increase plant adaptations to stressed conditions.MethodsIn this study, exogenous methyl jasmonate (MeJA), the ethylene precursor 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) and salicylic acid (SA) were applied to test their effects on cuticular wax deposition in two Brassica napus cultivars, Zhongshuang 9 (ZS9, low wax coverage ) and Yuyou 19 (YY19, high wax coverage). Next, we measured the water loss rate and the transcriptional expression of genes involved in wax biosynthesis as well as genes related to disease defense.ResultsSeven wax compound classes, including fatty acids, aldehydes, alkanes, secondary alcohols, ketones, and unbranched as well as branched primary alcohols, were identified in B. napus leaf wax mixtures. MeJA, SA and ACC treatments had no significant effect on total wax amounts in YY19, whereas ACC reduced total wax amounts in ZS9. Overall, hormone treatments led to an increase in the amounts of aldehydes and ketones, and a decrease of secondary alcohol in ZS9, whereas they led to a decrease of alkane amounts and an increase of secondary alcohol amounts in YY19. Concomitantly, both cultivars also exhibited different changes in cuticle permeability, with leaf water loss rate per 15 min increased from 1.57% (averaged across treatments) at 1.57% (averaged across treatments) at 15 min to 3.12% at 30 min for ZS9 (except for ACC treated plant) and decreased for YY19. MeJA-treated plants of both cultivars relatively had higher water loss rate per 15 min when compared to other treatments. Conclusion. Our findings that B. napus leaf wax composition and cuticle permeability are altered by exogenous SA, MeJA and ACC suggest that the hormone treatments affect wax composition, and that the changes in wax profiles would cause changes in cuticle permeability.

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Maize glossy6 is involved in cuticular wax deposition and drought tolerance.

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Maize glossy6 is involved in cuticular wax deposition and drought tolerance.

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