Desiccation tolerance in the Antarctic moss Sanionia uncinata

Abstract Background One of the most extreme environments on our planet is the Maritime Antarctic territory, due to its low-water availability, which restricts the development of plants. Sanionia uncinata Hedw. (Amblystegiaceae), the main colonizer of the Maritime Antarctic, has effective mechanisms...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Marisol Pizarro, Rodrigo A. Contreras, Hans Köhler, Gustavo E. Zúñiga
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMC 2019-08-01
Series:Biological Research
Subjects:
Online Access:http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40659-019-0251-6
_version_ 1828497748916174848
author Marisol Pizarro
Rodrigo A. Contreras
Hans Köhler
Gustavo E. Zúñiga
author_facet Marisol Pizarro
Rodrigo A. Contreras
Hans Köhler
Gustavo E. Zúñiga
author_sort Marisol Pizarro
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Background One of the most extreme environments on our planet is the Maritime Antarctic territory, due to its low-water availability, which restricts the development of plants. Sanionia uncinata Hedw. (Amblystegiaceae), the main colonizer of the Maritime Antarctic, has effective mechanisms to tolerate this environment. It has been described that the tolerance to desiccation is mediated by the hormone abscisic acid (ABA), antioxidants systems, accumulation of compatible solutes and proteins of the late embryogenesis abundant (LEA). However, to date, these mechanisms have not been described in S. uncinata. Therefore, in this work, we postulate that the tolerance to desiccation in the Antarctic moss S. uncinata is mediated by the accumulation of ABA, the osmolytes proline and glycine betaine, and dehydrins (an LEA class 11 proteins). To demonstrate our hypothesis, S. uncinata was subjected to desiccation for 24 h (loss in 95% of water content), and the effects on its physiological, photosynthetic, antioxidant and biochemical parameters were determined. Results Our results showed an accumulation of ABA in response to water loss, and the activation of protective responses that involves an increment in levels of proline and glycine betaine, an increment in the activity of antioxidant enzymes such as SOD, CAT, APX and POD, and the accumulation of dehydrins proteins. Conclusion The results showed, suggest that S. uncinata is a  desiccation-tolerant moss, property mediated by high cellular plasticity regulated by ABA.
first_indexed 2024-12-11T12:53:28Z
format Article
id doaj.art-337edf2c0ed3428eb5ce5b7238842975
institution Directory Open Access Journal
issn 0717-6287
language English
last_indexed 2024-12-11T12:53:28Z
publishDate 2019-08-01
publisher BMC
record_format Article
series Biological Research
spelling doaj.art-337edf2c0ed3428eb5ce5b72388429752022-12-22T01:06:38ZengBMCBiological Research0717-62872019-08-0152111110.1186/s40659-019-0251-6Desiccation tolerance in the Antarctic moss Sanionia uncinataMarisol Pizarro0Rodrigo A. Contreras1Hans Köhler2Gustavo E. Zúñiga3Laboratorio de Fisiología y Biotecnología Vegetal, Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Química y Biología, and CEDENNA, Universidad de Santiago de ChileLaboratorio de Fisiología y Biotecnología Vegetal, Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Química y Biología, and CEDENNA, Universidad de Santiago de ChileLaboratorio de Fisiología y Biotecnología Vegetal, Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Química y Biología, and CEDENNA, Universidad de Santiago de ChileLaboratorio de Fisiología y Biotecnología Vegetal, Departamento de Biología, Facultad de Química y Biología, and CEDENNA, Universidad de Santiago de ChileAbstract Background One of the most extreme environments on our planet is the Maritime Antarctic territory, due to its low-water availability, which restricts the development of plants. Sanionia uncinata Hedw. (Amblystegiaceae), the main colonizer of the Maritime Antarctic, has effective mechanisms to tolerate this environment. It has been described that the tolerance to desiccation is mediated by the hormone abscisic acid (ABA), antioxidants systems, accumulation of compatible solutes and proteins of the late embryogenesis abundant (LEA). However, to date, these mechanisms have not been described in S. uncinata. Therefore, in this work, we postulate that the tolerance to desiccation in the Antarctic moss S. uncinata is mediated by the accumulation of ABA, the osmolytes proline and glycine betaine, and dehydrins (an LEA class 11 proteins). To demonstrate our hypothesis, S. uncinata was subjected to desiccation for 24 h (loss in 95% of water content), and the effects on its physiological, photosynthetic, antioxidant and biochemical parameters were determined. Results Our results showed an accumulation of ABA in response to water loss, and the activation of protective responses that involves an increment in levels of proline and glycine betaine, an increment in the activity of antioxidant enzymes such as SOD, CAT, APX and POD, and the accumulation of dehydrins proteins. Conclusion The results showed, suggest that S. uncinata is a  desiccation-tolerant moss, property mediated by high cellular plasticity regulated by ABA.http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40659-019-0251-6Antarctic mossesABAWater stressDesiccation toleranceMaritime Antarctic
spellingShingle Marisol Pizarro
Rodrigo A. Contreras
Hans Köhler
Gustavo E. Zúñiga
Desiccation tolerance in the Antarctic moss Sanionia uncinata
Biological Research
Antarctic mosses
ABA
Water stress
Desiccation tolerance
Maritime Antarctic
title Desiccation tolerance in the Antarctic moss Sanionia uncinata
title_full Desiccation tolerance in the Antarctic moss Sanionia uncinata
title_fullStr Desiccation tolerance in the Antarctic moss Sanionia uncinata
title_full_unstemmed Desiccation tolerance in the Antarctic moss Sanionia uncinata
title_short Desiccation tolerance in the Antarctic moss Sanionia uncinata
title_sort desiccation tolerance in the antarctic moss sanionia uncinata
topic Antarctic mosses
ABA
Water stress
Desiccation tolerance
Maritime Antarctic
url http://link.springer.com/article/10.1186/s40659-019-0251-6
work_keys_str_mv AT marisolpizarro desiccationtoleranceintheantarcticmosssanioniauncinata
AT rodrigoacontreras desiccationtoleranceintheantarcticmosssanioniauncinata
AT hanskohler desiccationtoleranceintheantarcticmosssanioniauncinata
AT gustavoezuniga desiccationtoleranceintheantarcticmosssanioniauncinata