Effects of Phloem-Feeding Pest, <i>Dalbulus maidis</i> on Morphological Expression of Drought-Tolerant Traits in Maize
Drought is amongst the most important stressors affecting maize production globally. Existing strategies to offset drought impacts are centered around the rapid development of drought-tolerant cultivars through plant breeding. However, under both current conditions and projected climate changes, add...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-09-01
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| Series: | Stresses |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-7140/2/3/23 |
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| author | Tara-Kay L. Jones Raul F. Medina Julio S. Bernal |
| author_facet | Tara-Kay L. Jones Raul F. Medina Julio S. Bernal |
| author_sort | Tara-Kay L. Jones |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Drought is amongst the most important stressors affecting maize production globally. Existing strategies to offset drought impacts are centered around the rapid development of drought-tolerant cultivars through plant breeding. However, under both current conditions and projected climate changes, additional stressors such as insect pests will co-occur. To determine the impact of combined insect and drought stress on drought tolerance in maize, we assessed the effects of <i>Dalbulus maidis</i>, drought, and both stresses combined in drought-tolerant maize hybrids. We measured several maize morphological growth traits (i.e., plant height, stem diameter, shoot weight, root weight, root length, and root-to-shoot ratio) at the end of a 28-day period of pulse-stress and no-stress control exposure. We found that seedling growth declined when both stressors co-occurred. Nevertheless, drought-tolerant maize hybrids remained strongly tolerant to drought regardless of <i>D. maidis</i> infestation. While our results showed that drought tolerance is maintained in drought-tolerant maize seedlings, future studies should address any effects on maize yield. Our study highlights the importance of testing the combined effects of drought and insect stressors to better predict insect–plant interactions in the context of plant breeding for drought-tolerant traits in a changing climate. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T22:30:18Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-d76a8bd3dac0452d880107f366357056 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2673-7140 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T22:30:18Z |
| publishDate | 2022-09-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Stresses |
| spelling | doaj.art-d76a8bd3dac0452d880107f3663570562023-11-23T18:58:06ZengMDPI AGStresses2673-71402022-09-012332233510.3390/stresses2030023Effects of Phloem-Feeding Pest, <i>Dalbulus maidis</i> on Morphological Expression of Drought-Tolerant Traits in MaizeTara-Kay L. Jones0Raul F. Medina1Julio S. Bernal2Department of Entomology, Texas A&M University, TAMU 2475, College Station, TX 77843-2475, USADepartment of Entomology, Texas A&M University, TAMU 2475, College Station, TX 77843-2475, USADepartment of Entomology, Texas A&M University, TAMU 2475, College Station, TX 77843-2475, USADrought is amongst the most important stressors affecting maize production globally. Existing strategies to offset drought impacts are centered around the rapid development of drought-tolerant cultivars through plant breeding. However, under both current conditions and projected climate changes, additional stressors such as insect pests will co-occur. To determine the impact of combined insect and drought stress on drought tolerance in maize, we assessed the effects of <i>Dalbulus maidis</i>, drought, and both stresses combined in drought-tolerant maize hybrids. We measured several maize morphological growth traits (i.e., plant height, stem diameter, shoot weight, root weight, root length, and root-to-shoot ratio) at the end of a 28-day period of pulse-stress and no-stress control exposure. We found that seedling growth declined when both stressors co-occurred. Nevertheless, drought-tolerant maize hybrids remained strongly tolerant to drought regardless of <i>D. maidis</i> infestation. While our results showed that drought tolerance is maintained in drought-tolerant maize seedlings, future studies should address any effects on maize yield. Our study highlights the importance of testing the combined effects of drought and insect stressors to better predict insect–plant interactions in the context of plant breeding for drought-tolerant traits in a changing climate.https://www.mdpi.com/2673-7140/2/3/23abiotic stressbiotic stressdrought tolerancepiercing-sucking insectsclimate change |
| spellingShingle | Tara-Kay L. Jones Raul F. Medina Julio S. Bernal Effects of Phloem-Feeding Pest, <i>Dalbulus maidis</i> on Morphological Expression of Drought-Tolerant Traits in Maize Stresses abiotic stress biotic stress drought tolerance piercing-sucking insects climate change |
| title | Effects of Phloem-Feeding Pest, <i>Dalbulus maidis</i> on Morphological Expression of Drought-Tolerant Traits in Maize |
| title_full | Effects of Phloem-Feeding Pest, <i>Dalbulus maidis</i> on Morphological Expression of Drought-Tolerant Traits in Maize |
| title_fullStr | Effects of Phloem-Feeding Pest, <i>Dalbulus maidis</i> on Morphological Expression of Drought-Tolerant Traits in Maize |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effects of Phloem-Feeding Pest, <i>Dalbulus maidis</i> on Morphological Expression of Drought-Tolerant Traits in Maize |
| title_short | Effects of Phloem-Feeding Pest, <i>Dalbulus maidis</i> on Morphological Expression of Drought-Tolerant Traits in Maize |
| title_sort | effects of phloem feeding pest i dalbulus maidis i on morphological expression of drought tolerant traits in maize |
| topic | abiotic stress biotic stress drought tolerance piercing-sucking insects climate change |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2673-7140/2/3/23 |
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