Enhancement of the Expression of <i>ZmBZR1</i> and <i>ZmBES1</i> Regulatory Genes and Antioxidant Defense Genes Triggers Water Stress Mitigation in Maize (<i>Zea mays</i> L.) Plants Treated with 24-Epibrassinolide in Combination with Spermine
Water shortages greatly threaten global food security and limit crop production. Hence, increasing crop water stress tolerance is a critical way to secure agricultural production. 24-Epibrassinolide (EBL) and spermine (Spm) are closely involved in plant growth and development, as well as stress tole...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-10-01
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| Series: | Agronomy |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/12/10/2517 |
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| author | Neveen B. Talaat Ahmed S. Ibrahim Bahaa T. Shawky |
| author_facet | Neveen B. Talaat Ahmed S. Ibrahim Bahaa T. Shawky |
| author_sort | Neveen B. Talaat |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Water shortages greatly threaten global food security and limit crop production. Hence, increasing crop water stress tolerance is a critical way to secure agricultural production. 24-Epibrassinolide (EBL) and spermine (Spm) are closely involved in plant growth and development, as well as stress tolerance. In this study, the potential role of 0.1 mg L<sup>−1</sup> EBL and/or 25 mg L<sup>−1</sup> Spm foliage applications in improving the tolerance of maize to water-deficit conditions (50% and 75% field capacity) was investigated. We found that EBL, either alone or in combination with Spm, plays a major role in maize drought tolerance through upregulating the expression of both regulatory genes (<i>ZmBZR1</i> and <i>ZmBES1</i>) of the brassinosteroid signal transduction pathway and gene-encoding antioxidant defense enzymes <i>ZmSOD</i>, <i>ZmCAT</i>, <i>ZmAPX</i>, <i>ZmMDHAR</i>, <i>ZmDHAR</i>, and <i>ZmGR.</i> Moreover, exogenous treatments alleviated the inhibition of maize plant growth and productivity and mitigated drought-induced oxidative stress by improving antioxidant enzyme (superoxide dismutase, catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, dehydroascorbate reductase, monodehydroascorbate reductase, glutathione reductase) activity, enhancing antioxidant molecule (ascorbate, glutathione) content, preventing reactive oxygen species accumulation, and maintaining cell membrane integrity. These findings reveal that the application of EBL, either individually or in combination with Spm, can be a good strategy for ameliorating water stress in sustainable agricultural systems. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T20:53:39Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-81245397f2ae4e6cb38099d80317efae |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4395 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T20:53:39Z |
| publishDate | 2022-10-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Agronomy |
| spelling | doaj.art-81245397f2ae4e6cb38099d80317efae2023-11-23T22:28:35ZengMDPI AGAgronomy2073-43952022-10-011210251710.3390/agronomy12102517Enhancement of the Expression of <i>ZmBZR1</i> and <i>ZmBES1</i> Regulatory Genes and Antioxidant Defense Genes Triggers Water Stress Mitigation in Maize (<i>Zea mays</i> L.) Plants Treated with 24-Epibrassinolide in Combination with SpermineNeveen B. Talaat0Ahmed S. Ibrahim1Bahaa T. Shawky2Department of Plant Physiology, Faculty of Agriculture, Cairo University, Giza 12613, EgyptDepartment of Plant Physiology, Faculty of Agriculture, Cairo University, Giza 12613, EgyptDepartment of Microbial Chemistry, Biotechnology Research Institute, National Research Centre, Giza 12311, EgyptWater shortages greatly threaten global food security and limit crop production. Hence, increasing crop water stress tolerance is a critical way to secure agricultural production. 24-Epibrassinolide (EBL) and spermine (Spm) are closely involved in plant growth and development, as well as stress tolerance. In this study, the potential role of 0.1 mg L<sup>−1</sup> EBL and/or 25 mg L<sup>−1</sup> Spm foliage applications in improving the tolerance of maize to water-deficit conditions (50% and 75% field capacity) was investigated. We found that EBL, either alone or in combination with Spm, plays a major role in maize drought tolerance through upregulating the expression of both regulatory genes (<i>ZmBZR1</i> and <i>ZmBES1</i>) of the brassinosteroid signal transduction pathway and gene-encoding antioxidant defense enzymes <i>ZmSOD</i>, <i>ZmCAT</i>, <i>ZmAPX</i>, <i>ZmMDHAR</i>, <i>ZmDHAR</i>, and <i>ZmGR.</i> Moreover, exogenous treatments alleviated the inhibition of maize plant growth and productivity and mitigated drought-induced oxidative stress by improving antioxidant enzyme (superoxide dismutase, catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, dehydroascorbate reductase, monodehydroascorbate reductase, glutathione reductase) activity, enhancing antioxidant molecule (ascorbate, glutathione) content, preventing reactive oxygen species accumulation, and maintaining cell membrane integrity. These findings reveal that the application of EBL, either individually or in combination with Spm, can be a good strategy for ameliorating water stress in sustainable agricultural systems.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/12/10/2517antioxidant defense gene expressionBZR1BES1drought stress24-epibrassinolidemaize |
| spellingShingle | Neveen B. Talaat Ahmed S. Ibrahim Bahaa T. Shawky Enhancement of the Expression of <i>ZmBZR1</i> and <i>ZmBES1</i> Regulatory Genes and Antioxidant Defense Genes Triggers Water Stress Mitigation in Maize (<i>Zea mays</i> L.) Plants Treated with 24-Epibrassinolide in Combination with Spermine Agronomy antioxidant defense gene expression BZR1 BES1 drought stress 24-epibrassinolide maize |
| title | Enhancement of the Expression of <i>ZmBZR1</i> and <i>ZmBES1</i> Regulatory Genes and Antioxidant Defense Genes Triggers Water Stress Mitigation in Maize (<i>Zea mays</i> L.) Plants Treated with 24-Epibrassinolide in Combination with Spermine |
| title_full | Enhancement of the Expression of <i>ZmBZR1</i> and <i>ZmBES1</i> Regulatory Genes and Antioxidant Defense Genes Triggers Water Stress Mitigation in Maize (<i>Zea mays</i> L.) Plants Treated with 24-Epibrassinolide in Combination with Spermine |
| title_fullStr | Enhancement of the Expression of <i>ZmBZR1</i> and <i>ZmBES1</i> Regulatory Genes and Antioxidant Defense Genes Triggers Water Stress Mitigation in Maize (<i>Zea mays</i> L.) Plants Treated with 24-Epibrassinolide in Combination with Spermine |
| title_full_unstemmed | Enhancement of the Expression of <i>ZmBZR1</i> and <i>ZmBES1</i> Regulatory Genes and Antioxidant Defense Genes Triggers Water Stress Mitigation in Maize (<i>Zea mays</i> L.) Plants Treated with 24-Epibrassinolide in Combination with Spermine |
| title_short | Enhancement of the Expression of <i>ZmBZR1</i> and <i>ZmBES1</i> Regulatory Genes and Antioxidant Defense Genes Triggers Water Stress Mitigation in Maize (<i>Zea mays</i> L.) Plants Treated with 24-Epibrassinolide in Combination with Spermine |
| title_sort | enhancement of the expression of i zmbzr1 i and i zmbes1 i regulatory genes and antioxidant defense genes triggers water stress mitigation in maize i zea mays i l plants treated with 24 epibrassinolide in combination with spermine |
| topic | antioxidant defense gene expression BZR1 BES1 drought stress 24-epibrassinolide maize |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/12/10/2517 |
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