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Yu J, Khomenko I, Biasioli F, Li M, Varotto C. A Novel Isoprene Synthase from the Monocot Tree Copernicia prunifera (Arecaceae) Confers Enhanced Drought Tolerance in Transgenic Arabidopsis. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:15329. [PMID: 37895009 PMCID: PMC10607627 DOI: 10.3390/ijms242015329] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2023] [Revised: 09/18/2023] [Accepted: 10/17/2023] [Indexed: 10/29/2023] Open
Abstract
The capacity to emit isoprene, among other stresses, protects plants from drought, but the molecular mechanisms underlying this trait are only partly understood. The Arecaceae (palms) constitute a very interesting model system to test the involvement of isoprene in enhancing drought tolerance, as their high isoprene emissions may have contributed to make them hyperdominant in neotropical dry forests, characterized by recurrent and extended periods of drought stress. In this study we isolated and functionally characterized a novel isoprene synthase, the gene responsible for isoprene biosynthesis, from Copernicia prunifera, a palm from seasonally dry tropical forests. When overexpressed in the non-emitter Arabidopsis thaliana, CprISPS conferred significant levels of isoprene emission, together with enhanced tolerance to water limitation throughout plant growth and development, from germination to maturity. CprISPS overexpressors displayed higher germination, cotyledon/leaf greening, water usage efficiency, and survival than WT Arabidopsis under various types of water limitation. This increased drought tolerance was accompanied by a marked transcriptional up-regulation of both ABA-dependent and ABA-independent key drought response genes. Taken together, these results demonstrate the capacity of CprISPS to enhance drought tolerance in Arabidopsis and suggest that isoprene emission could have evolved in Arecaceae as an adaptive mechanism against drought.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiamei Yu
- Biodiversity, Ecology and Environment Area, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all’Adige, 38098 Trento, Italy;
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, 35121 Padova, Italy
| | - Iuliia Khomenko
- Food and Nutrition Area, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all’Adige, 38098 Trento, Italy; (I.K.); (F.B.)
| | - Franco Biasioli
- Food and Nutrition Area, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all’Adige, 38098 Trento, Italy; (I.K.); (F.B.)
| | - Mingai Li
- Biodiversity, Ecology and Environment Area, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all’Adige, 38098 Trento, Italy;
- National Biodiversity Future Center (NBFC), 90133 Palermo, Italy
| | - Claudio Varotto
- Biodiversity, Ecology and Environment Area, Research and Innovation Centre, Fondazione Edmund Mach, San Michele all’Adige, 38098 Trento, Italy;
- National Biodiversity Future Center (NBFC), 90133 Palermo, Italy
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Parmagnani AS, Kanchiswamy CN, Paponov IA, Bossi S, Malnoy M, Maffei ME. Bacterial Volatiles (mVOC) Emitted by the Phytopathogen Erwinia amylovora Promote Arabidopsis thaliana Growth and Oxidative Stress. Antioxidants (Basel) 2023; 12:antiox12030600. [PMID: 36978848 PMCID: PMC10045578 DOI: 10.3390/antiox12030600] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2023] [Revised: 02/21/2023] [Accepted: 02/25/2023] [Indexed: 03/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Phytopathogens are well known for their devastating activity that causes worldwide significant crop losses. However, their exploitation for crop welfare is relatively unknown. Here, we show that the microbial volatile organic compound (mVOC) profile of the bacterial phytopathogen, Erwinia amylovora, enhances Arabidopsis thaliana shoot and root growth. GC-MS head-space analyses revealed the presence of typical microbial volatiles, including 1-nonanol and 1-dodecanol. E. amylovora mVOCs triggered early signaling events including plasma transmembrane potential Vm depolarization, cytosolic Ca2+ fluctuation, K+-gated channel activity, and reactive oxygen species (ROS) and nitric oxide (NO) burst from few minutes to 16 h upon exposure. These early events were followed by the modulation of the expression of genes involved in plant growth and defense responses and responsive to phytohormones, including abscisic acid, gibberellin, and auxin (including the efflux carriers PIN1 and PIN3). When tested, synthetic 1-nonanol and 1-dodecanol induced root growth and modulated genes coding for ROS. Our results show that E. amylovora mVOCs affect A. thaliana growth through a cascade of early and late signaling events that involve phytohormones and ROS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ambra S. Parmagnani
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Via Quarello 15/a, 10135 Turin, Italy
| | | | - Ivan A. Paponov
- Department of Food Science, Aarhus University, 8200 Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Simone Bossi
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Via Quarello 15/a, 10135 Turin, Italy
| | - Mickael Malnoy
- Research and Innovation Centre, Edmund Mach Foundation, Via Edmund Mach 1, 38098 San Michele all’Adige, Italy
| | - Massimo E. Maffei
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Via Quarello 15/a, 10135 Turin, Italy
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +39-011-670-5967
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Pollastri S, Velikova V, Castaldini M, Fineschi S, Ghirardo A, Renaut J, Schnitzler JP, Sergeant K, Winkler JB, Zorzan S, Loreto F. Isoprene-Emitting Tobacco Plants Are Less Affected by Moderate Water Deficit under Future Climate Change Scenario and Show Adjustments of Stress-Related Proteins in Actual Climate. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2023; 12:333. [PMID: 36679046 PMCID: PMC9862500 DOI: 10.3390/plants12020333] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2022] [Revised: 01/02/2023] [Accepted: 01/04/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Isoprene-emitting plants are better protected against thermal and oxidative stresses, which is a desirable trait in a climate-changing (drier and warmer) world. Here we compared the ecophysiological performances of transgenic isoprene-emitting and wild-type non-emitting tobacco plants during water stress and after re-watering in actual environmental conditions (400 ppm of CO2 and 28 °C of average daily temperature) and in a future climate scenario (600 ppm of CO2 and 32 °C of average daily temperature). Furthermore, we intended to complement the present knowledge on the mechanisms involved in isoprene-induced resistance to water deficit stress by examining the proteome of transgenic isoprene-emitting and wild-type non-emitting tobacco plants during water stress and after re-watering in actual climate. Isoprene emitters maintained higher photosynthesis and electron transport rates under moderate stress in future climate conditions. However, physiological resistance to water stress in the isoprene-emitting plants was not as marked as expected in actual climate conditions, perhaps because the stress developed rapidly. In actual climate, isoprene emission capacity affected the tobacco proteomic profile, in particular by upregulating proteins associated with stress protection. Our results strengthen the hypothesis that isoprene biosynthesis is related to metabolic changes at the gene and protein levels involved in the activation of general stress defensive mechanisms of plants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Susanna Pollastri
- Institute for Sustainable Plant Protection (IPSP), National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Via Madonna del Piano 10, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Florence, Italy
| | - Violeta Velikova
- Institute of Plant Physiology and Genetics, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev Str., bl. 21, 1113 Sofia, Bulgaria
- Institute of Biophysics and Biomedical Engineering, Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Acad. G. Bonchev Str., bl. 21, 1113 Sofia, Bulgaria
| | - Maurizio Castaldini
- Council for Agricultural Research and Economics, Research Center for Agriculture and Environment, Via di Lanciola 12/A, 50125 Cascine del Riccio, Florence, Italy
| | - Silvia Fineschi
- Institute of Heritage Science-CNR (ISPC), National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Via Madonna del Piano 10, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Florence, Italy
| | - Andrea Ghirardo
- Research Unit Environmental Simulation (EUS), Helmholtz Zentrum München, Institute of Biochemical Plant Pathology, D-85764 Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Jenny Renaut
- GreenTech Innovation Centre, Environmental Research and Innovation (ERIN) Department, Luxembourg Institute of Scienceand Technology (LIST), L-4362 Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Jörg-Peter Schnitzler
- Research Unit Environmental Simulation (EUS), Helmholtz Zentrum München, Institute of Biochemical Plant Pathology, D-85764 Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Kjell Sergeant
- GreenTech Innovation Centre, Environmental Research and Innovation (ERIN) Department, Luxembourg Institute of Scienceand Technology (LIST), L-4362 Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Jana Barbro Winkler
- Research Unit Environmental Simulation (EUS), Helmholtz Zentrum München, Institute of Biochemical Plant Pathology, D-85764 Neuherberg, Germany
| | - Simone Zorzan
- GreenTech Innovation Centre, Environmental Research and Innovation (ERIN) Department, Luxembourg Institute of Scienceand Technology (LIST), L-4362 Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
| | - Francesco Loreto
- Department of Biology, University of Naples Federico II, Via Cinthia, 80126 Naples, Naples, Italy
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Dani KGS, Pollastri S, Pinosio S, Reichelt M, Sharkey TD, Schnitzler J, Loreto F. Isoprene enhances leaf cytokinin metabolism and induces early senescence. THE NEW PHYTOLOGIST 2022; 234:961-974. [PMID: 34716577 PMCID: PMC9300082 DOI: 10.1111/nph.17833] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2021] [Accepted: 10/22/2021] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
Isoprene, a major biogenic volatile hydrocarbon of climate-relevance, indisputably mitigates abiotic stresses in emitting plants. However functional relevance of constitutive isoprene emission in unstressed plants remains contested. Isoprene and cytokinins (CKs) are synthesized from a common substrate and pathway in chloroplasts. It was postulated that isoprene emission may affect CK-metabolism. Using transgenic isoprene-emitting (IE) Arabidopsis and isoprene nonemitting (NE) RNA-interference grey poplars (paired with respective NE and IE genotypes), the life of individual IE and NE leaves from emergence to abscission was followed under stress-free conditions. We monitored plant growth rate, aboveground developmental phenotype, modelled leaf photosynthetic energy status, quantified the abundance of leaf CKs, analysed Arabidopsis and poplar leaf transcriptomes by RNA-sequencing in presence and absence of isoprene during leaf senescence. Isoprene emission by unstressed leaves enhanced the abundance of CKs (isopentenyl adenine and its precursor) by > 200%, significantly upregulated genes coding for CK-synthesis, CK-signalling and CK-degradation, hastened plant development, increased chloroplast metabolic rate, altered photosynthetic energy status, induced early leaf senescence in both Arabidopsis and poplar. IE leaves senesced sooner even in decapitated poplars where source-sink relationships and hormone homeostasis were perturbed. Constitutive isoprene emission significantly accelerates CK-led leaf and organismal development and induces early senescence independent of growth constraints. Isoprene emission provides an early-riser evolutionary advantage and shortens lifecycle duration to assist rapid diversification in unstressed emitters.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kaidala Ganesha Srikanta Dani
- Institute for Sustainable Plant ProtectionNational Research Council of ItalyVia Madonna del Piano 1050019Sesto FiorentinoFlorenceItaly
- Department of Biology, Agriculture and Food SciencesNational Research Council of ItalyPiazzale Aldo Moro 700185RomeItaly
| | - Susanna Pollastri
- Institute for Sustainable Plant ProtectionNational Research Council of ItalyVia Madonna del Piano 1050019Sesto FiorentinoFlorenceItaly
| | - Sara Pinosio
- Institute of Biosciences and BioresourcesNational Research Council of ItalyVia Madonna del Piano 1050019Sesto FiorentinoFlorenceItaly
- Institute for Applied GenomicsVia Jacopo Linussio 5133100UdineItaly
| | - Michael Reichelt
- Department of BiochemistryMax Planck Institute for Chemical EcologyHans‐Knöll Strasse 8D‐07745JenaGermany
| | - Thomas D. Sharkey
- MSU‐DOE Plant Research LaboratoryDepartment of Biochemistry and Molecular BiologyMichigan State UniversityEast LansingMI48824USA
| | - Jörg‐Peter Schnitzler
- Research Unit Environmental SimulationInstitute of Biochemical Plant PathologyHelmholtz Zentrum MünchenGerman Research Center for Environmental Health85764NeuherbergGermany
| | - Francesco Loreto
- Department of Biology, Agriculture and Food SciencesNational Research Council of ItalyPiazzale Aldo Moro 700185RomeItaly
- Department of BiologyUniversity of Naples Federico IIVia Cinthia80126NaplesItaly
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A WRKY Transcription Factor, EjWRKY17, from Eriobotrya japonica Enhances Drought Tolerance in Transgenic Arabidopsis. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms22115593. [PMID: 34070474 PMCID: PMC8197471 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22115593] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2021] [Revised: 05/11/2021] [Accepted: 05/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
The WRKY gene family, which is one of the largest transcription factor (TF) families, plays an important role in numerous aspects of plant growth and development, especially in various stress responses. However, the functional roles of the WRKY gene family in loquat are relatively unknown. In this study, a novel WRKY gene, EjWRKY17, was characterized from Eriobotrya japonica, which was significantly upregulated in leaves by melatonin treatment during drought stress. The EjWRKY17 protein, belonging to group II of the WRKY family, was localized in the nucleus. The results indicated that overexpression of EjWRKY17 increased cotyledon greening and root elongation in transgenic Arabidopsis lines under abscisic acid (ABA) treatment. Meanwhile, overexpression of EjWRKY17 led to enhanced drought tolerance in transgenic lines, which was supported by the lower water loss, limited electrolyte leakage, and lower levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and malondialdehyde (MDA). Further investigations showed that overexpression of EjWRKY17 promoted ABA-mediated stomatal closure and remarkably up-regulated ABA biosynthesis and stress-related gene expression in transgenic lines under drought stress. Overall, our findings reveal that EjWRKY17 possibly acts as a positive regulator in ABA-regulated drought tolerance.
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Isoprene: An Antioxidant Itself or a Molecule with Multiple Regulatory Functions in Plants? Antioxidants (Basel) 2021; 10:antiox10050684. [PMID: 33925614 PMCID: PMC8146742 DOI: 10.3390/antiox10050684] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2021] [Revised: 04/16/2021] [Accepted: 04/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Isoprene (C5H8) is a small lipophilic, volatile organic compound (VOC), synthesized in chloroplasts of plants through the photosynthesis-dependent 2-C-methyl-D-erythritol 4-phosphate (MEP) pathway. Isoprene-emitting plants are better protected against thermal and oxidative stresses but only about 20% of the terrestrial plants are able to synthesize isoprene. Many studies have been performed to understand the still elusive isoprene protective mechanism. Isoprene reacts with, and quenches, many harmful reactive oxygen species (ROS) like singlet oxygen (1O2). A role for isoprene as antioxidant, made possible by its reduced state and conjugated double bonds, has been often suggested, and sometimes demonstrated. However, as isoprene is present at very low concentrations compared to other molecules, its antioxidant role is still controversial. Here we review updated evidences on the function(s) of isoprene, and outline contrasting indications on whether isoprene is an antioxidant directly scavenging ROS, or a membrane strengthener, or a modulator of genomic, proteomic and metabolomic profiles (perhaps as a secondary effect of ROS removal) eventually leading to priming of antioxidant plant defenses, or a signal of stress for neighbor plants alike other VOCs, or a hormone-like molecule, controlling the metabolic flux of other hormones made by the MEP pathway, or acting itself as a growth and development hormone.
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Li M, Xu J, Lyu F, Khomenko I, Biasioli F, Villani M, Baldan B, Varotto C. Evolution of isoprene emission in Arecaceae (palms). Evol Appl 2021; 14:902-914. [PMID: 33897811 PMCID: PMC8061277 DOI: 10.1111/eva.13169] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2020] [Revised: 11/05/2020] [Accepted: 11/09/2020] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Isoprene synthase (IspS) is the sole enzyme in plants responsible for the yearly emission in the atmosphere of thousands of tonnes of the natural hydrocarbon isoprene worldwide. Species of the monocotyledonous family Arecaceae (palms) are among the highest plant emitters, but to date no IspS gene from this family has been identified. Here, we screened with PTR-ToF-MS 18 genera of the Arecaceae for isoprene emission and found that the majority of the sampled species emits isoprene. Putative IspS genes from six different genera were sequenced and three of them were functionally characterized by heterologous overexpression in Arabidopsis thaliana, demonstrating that they encode functional IspS genes. Site-directed mutagenesis and expression in Arabidopsis demonstrated the functional relevance of a novel IspS diagnostic tetrad from Arecaceae, whose most variable amino acids could not preserve catalytic function when substituted by a putatively dicotyledonous-specific tetrad. In particular, mutation of threonine 479 likely impairs the open-closed transition of the enzyme by altering the network of hydrogen bonds between helices H1α, H, and I. These results shed new light on the evolution of IspS in monocots, suggesting that isoprene emission is an ancestral trait within the Arecaceae family. The identification of IspS from Arecaceae provides promising novel enzymes for the production of isoprene in heterologous systems and allows the screening and selection of commercially relevant palm varieties with lower environmental impact.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mingai Li
- Department of Biodiversity and Molecular Ecology, Research and Innovation CentreFondazione Edmund MachSan Michele all'AdigeItaly
| | - Jia Xu
- Department of Biodiversity and Molecular Ecology, Research and Innovation CentreFondazione Edmund MachSan Michele all'AdigeItaly
| | - Fuling Lyu
- Department of Biodiversity and Molecular Ecology, Research and Innovation CentreFondazione Edmund MachSan Michele all'AdigeItaly
- Experimental Center of Forestry in North ChinaChinese Academy of ForestryBeijingChina
| | - Iuliia Khomenko
- Department of Food Quality and Nutrition, Research and Innovation CentreFondazione Edmund MachSan Michele all'AdigeItaly
| | - Franco Biasioli
- Department of Food Quality and Nutrition, Research and Innovation CentreFondazione Edmund MachSan Michele all'AdigeItaly
| | | | - Barbara Baldan
- Botanical Garden of PadovaUniversity of PadovaPadovaItaly
- Department of BiologyUniversity of PadovaPadovaItaly
| | - Claudio Varotto
- Department of Biodiversity and Molecular Ecology, Research and Innovation CentreFondazione Edmund MachSan Michele all'AdigeItaly
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