Ethylene enhanced waterlogging tolerance by changing root architecture and inducing aerenchyma formation in maize seedlings

Shiying Geng; Ziqing Lin; Shipeng Xie; Jinzhong Xiao; Haiyan Wang; Xi Zhao; Yuyi Zhou; Liusheng Duan

doi:10.1016/j.jplph.2023.154042

Ethylene enhanced waterlogging tolerance by changing root architecture and inducing aerenchyma formation in maize seedlings

J Plant Physiol. 2023 Aug:287:154042. doi: 10.1016/j.jplph.2023.154042. Epub 2023 Jun 16.

Authors

Shiying Geng¹, Ziqing Lin¹, Shipeng Xie¹, Jinzhong Xiao¹, Haiyan Wang², Xi Zhao², Yuyi Zhou³, Liusheng Duan⁴

Affiliations

¹ Engineering Research Center of Plant Growth Regulator, Ministry of Education & College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, No. 2 Yuanmingyuan Xi Lu, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, China; State Key Laboratory of Plant Environmental Resilience, China Agricultural University, No. 2 Yuanmingyuan Xi Lu, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, China.
² Engineering Research Center of Plant Growth Regulator, Ministry of Education & College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, No. 2 Yuanmingyuan Xi Lu, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, China.
³ Engineering Research Center of Plant Growth Regulator, Ministry of Education & College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, No. 2 Yuanmingyuan Xi Lu, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, China; State Key Laboratory of Plant Environmental Resilience, China Agricultural University, No. 2 Yuanmingyuan Xi Lu, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, China. Electronic address: zhouyuyi@cau.edu.cn.
⁴ Engineering Research Center of Plant Growth Regulator, Ministry of Education & College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, China Agricultural University, No. 2 Yuanmingyuan Xi Lu, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, China; State Key Laboratory of Plant Environmental Resilience, China Agricultural University, No. 2 Yuanmingyuan Xi Lu, Haidian District, Beijing, 100193, China; College of Plant Science and Technology, Beijing University of Agriculture, Beijing, 102206, China.

PMID: 37348450
DOI: 10.1016/j.jplph.2023.154042

Abstract

Waterlogging negatively affects maize growth and yield. In this study, we found that ethylene played a vital role in plant adaptation to waterlogging. ET promotes better growth in seedlings under waterlogging conditions by altering root architecture and increasing lateral root formation by 42.1%. What's more, plants with high endogenous ethylene levels exhibited reduced sensitivity to waterlogging stress. ET also induced the formation of aerenchyma, a specialized tissue that facilitates gas exchange, in a different pattern compared to aerenchyma formed under waterlogging. Aerenchyma induced by ET was mainly located in the medial cortex of the roots and was not prone to decay. ethylene inhibited root elongation under normal conditions, but this inhibition was not alleviated under waterlogging stress. Upon activation of the ET signaling pathway, the transcription factor EREB90 promoted aerenchyma formation by enhancing the programmed cell death process. Overexpression of EREB90 resulted in increased waterlogging tolerance compared to wild type plants. Our findings suggest that pre-treatment of maize seedlings with ET before waterlogging stress can trigger the programmed cell death process and induce aerenchyma formation, thus improving waterlogging resistance.

Keywords: Aerenchyma; Ethylene; Maize; Waterlogging.