Components of the Phenylpropanoid Pathway in the Implementation of the Protective Effect of Sodium Nitroprusside on Wheat under Salinity

Dilara Maslennikova; Sergey Ivanov; Svetlana Petrova; Guzel Burkhanova; Igor Maksimov; Oksana Lastochkina

doi:10.3390/plants12112123

Components of the Phenylpropanoid Pathway in the Implementation of the Protective Effect of Sodium Nitroprusside on Wheat under Salinity

Plants (Basel). 2023 May 26;12(11):2123. doi: 10.3390/plants12112123.

Authors

Dilara Maslennikova¹, Sergey Ivanov², Svetlana Petrova², Guzel Burkhanova¹, Igor Maksimov¹, Oksana Lastochkina¹

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Biochemistry and Genetics UFRC RAS, 71 Pr. Oktyabrya, 450054 Ufa, Russia.
² Ufa Institute of Chemistry UFRC RAS, 69 Pr. Oktyabrya, 450054 Ufa, Russia.

Abstract

Nitric oxide (NO) is a multifunctional, gaseous signaling molecule implicated in both physiological and protective responses to biotic and abiotic stresses, including salinity. In this work, we studied the effects of 200 µM exogenous sodium nitroprusside (SNP, a donor of NO) on the components of the phenylpropanoid pathway, such as lignin and salicylic acid (SA), and its relationship with wheat seedling growth under normal and salinity (2% NaCl) conditions. It was established that exogenous SNP contributed to the accumulation of endogenous SA and increased the level of transcription of the pathogenesis-related protein 1 (PR1) gene. It was found that endogenous SA played an important role in the growth-stimulating effect of SNP, as evidenced by the growth parameters. In addition, under the influence of SNP, the activation of phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL), tyrosine ammonia lyase (TAL), and peroxidase (POD), an increase in the level of transcription of the TaPAL and TaPRX genes, and the acceleration of lignin accumulation in the cell walls of roots were revealed. Such an increase in the barrier properties of the cell walls during the period of preadaptation played an important role in protection against salinity stress. Salinity led to significant SA accumulation and lignin deposition in the roots, strong activation of TAL, PAL, and POD, and suppression of seedling growth. Pretreatment with SNP under salinity conditions resulted in additional lignification of the root cell walls, decreased stress-induced endogenous SA generation, and lower PAL, TAL, and POD activities in comparison to untreated stressed plants. Thus, the obtained data suggested that during pretreatment with SNP, phenylpropanoid metabolism was activated (i.e., lignin and SA), which contributed to reducing the negative effects of salinity stress, as evidenced by the improved plant growth parameters.

Keywords: Triticum aestivum L.; lignin; nitric oxide; peroxidase; phenylalanine ammonia lyase; salicylic acid; salinity; sodium nitroprusside; tyrosine ammonia lyase.

Grants and funding

The study was conducted within the framework of the state assignments of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation (numbers AAAA-A21-122041400162-3 and 123011300044-5), using the instrument park of the RCCU “Agidel” and “KODINK” UFRC RAS. The HPLC analysis was performed on equipment at the Center for the Collective Use “Chemistry” of the Ufa Institute of Chemistry UFRC RAS.