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Dias MC, Santos C, Araújo M, Barros PM, Oliveira M, de Oliveira JMPF. Quercus suber Roots Activate Antioxidant and Membrane Protective Processes in Response to High Salinity. Plants (Basel) 2022; 11:plants11040557. [PMID: 35214887 PMCID: PMC8875824 DOI: 10.3390/plants11040557] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/17/2022] [Revised: 02/12/2022] [Accepted: 02/17/2022] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
Cork oak (Quercus suber) is a species native to Mediterranean areas and its adaptation to the increasingly prevalent abiotic stresses, such as soil salinization, remain unknown. In sequence with recent studies on salt stress response in the leaf, it is fundamental to uncover the plasticity of roots directly exposed to high salinity to better understand how Q. suber copes with salt stress. In the present study we aimed to unveil the antioxidants and key-genes involved in the stress-responses (early vs. later responses) of Q. suber roots exposed to high salinity. Two-month-old Q. suber plants were watered with 300 mM NaCl solution and enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants, lipid peroxidation and the relative expression of genes related to stress response were analysed 8 h and 6 days after salt treatment. After an 8 h of exposure, roots activated the expression of QsLTI30 and QsFAD7 genes involved in stress membrane protection, and QsRAV1 and QsCZF1 genes involved in tolerance and adaptation. As a result of the continued salinity stress (6 days), lipid peroxidation increased, which was associated with an upregulation of QsLTI30 gene. Moreover, other protective mechanisms were activated, such as the upregulation of genes related to antioxidant status, QsCSD1 and QsAPX2, and the increase of the antioxidant enzyme activities of superoxide dismutase, catalase, and ascorbate peroxidase, concomitantly with total antioxidant activity and phenols. These data suggest a response dependent on the time of salinity exposure, leading Q. suber roots to adopt protective complementary strategies to deal with salt stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Celeste Dias
- Centre for Functional Ecology, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456 Coimbra, Portugal; (M.C.D.); (M.A.)
| | - Conceição Santos
- LAQV, REQUIMTE, Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, 4169-007 Porto, Portugal;
- IB2 Laboratory, Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, 4169-007 Porto, Portugal
| | - Márcia Araújo
- Centre for Functional Ecology, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra, Calçada Martim de Freitas, 3000-456 Coimbra, Portugal; (M.C.D.); (M.A.)
- IB2 Laboratory, Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Porto, Rua do Campo Alegre, 4169-007 Porto, Portugal
| | - Pedro M. Barros
- Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Genomics of Plant Stress, Av. da República, 2780-157 Oeiras, Portugal; (P.M.B.); (M.O.)
| | - Margarida Oliveira
- Instituto de Tecnologia Química e Biológica António Xavier, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Genomics of Plant Stress, Av. da República, 2780-157 Oeiras, Portugal; (P.M.B.); (M.O.)
| | - José Miguel P. Ferreira de Oliveira
- LAQV, REQUIMTE, Laboratory of Applied Chemistry, Department of Chemical Sciences, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Porto, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal
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