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Alice Casassola

Bio: Alice Casassola is an academic researcher from Universidade de Passo Fundo. The author has contributed to research in topics: Germination & Crop. The author has an hindex of 5, co-authored 7 publications receiving 328 citations.

Papers
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A brief summary of antioxidant defense and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) signaling in wheat plants is offered to alleviate oxidative damage and is an important factor contributing to stress tolerance in cereals.
Abstract: Currently, food security depends on the increased production of cereals such as wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), which is an important source of calories and protein for humans. However, cells of the crop have suffered from the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which can cause severe oxidative damage to the plants, due to environmental stresses. ROS are toxic molecules found in various subcellular compartments. The equilibrium between the production and detoxification of ROS is sustained by enzymatic and nonenzymatic antioxidants. In the present review, we offer a brief summary of antioxidant defense and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) signaling in wheat plants. Wheat plants increase antioxidant defense mechanisms under abiotic stresses, such as drought, cold, heat, salinity and UV-B radiation, to alleviate oxidative damage. Moreover, H2O2 signaling is an important factor contributing to stress tolerance in cereals.

275 citations

Book ChapterDOI
17 Feb 2016
TL;DR: The involvement of antioxidant enzymes in the tolerance of plants to various stresses is reported and the equilibrium between the production and detoxification of ROS is sustained by enzyme and nonenzymatic antioxidants.
Abstract: Plants are continuously exposed to several stress factors in field, which affect their production. These environmental adversities generally induce the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which can cause severe oxidative damage to plants. ROS are toxic molecules found in various subcellular compartments. The equilibrium between the production and detoxification of ROS is sustained by enzymatic and nonenzymatic antioxidants. Due to advances in molecular approaches during the last decades, nowadays it is possible to develop economically important transgenic crops that have increased tolerance to stresses. This chapter discusses the oxidative stress and damage to plants. In addition, it reports the involvement of antioxidant enzymes in the tolerance of plants to various stresses.

130 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The early induction of transcription of defence-related genes supports the pre-haustorial resistance phenotype in Toropi, providing a valuable source of genes controlling leaf rust resistance for wheat breeding.

36 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Focusing on defense-related processes in plants, a brief review and examples of each of these methodologies and their advantages and limitations regarding the study of plant gene expression are presented.
Abstract: The plant genes involved in cellular signaling and metabolism have not been fully identified, while the function(s) of many of those which have are as yet incompletely characterized. Gene expression analysis allows the identification of genes and the study of their relationship with cellular processes. There are several options available for studying gene expression, including the use of cDNA and microarray libraries and techniques such as suppression subtractive hybridization (SSH), differential display (DD), RNA fingerprinting by arbitrary primed PCR (RAP), expressed sequence tags (EST), serial analysis of gene expression (SAGE), representational difference analysis (RDA), cDNA-amplified fragment length polymorphism (cDNA-AFLP) and RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq). Focusing on defense-related processes in plants, we present a brief review and examples of each of these methodologies and their advantages and limitations regarding the study of plant gene expression.

21 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Os marcadores SSR foram eficientes na selecao de genotipos geneticamente diversos apesar da similaridade fenotipica a as linhagens PF 9027, PF 950351, PF 030132, PF 979002, PF 040488 e IWT 04019 podem ser utilizadas como parentais em cruzamentos induzidos considerando variabilidade genet
Abstract: Parental selection is an important step in breeding programs, and genetic variability increases the chances of obtaining variance in progenies. The objectives of this study were to phenotype 29 wheat genotypes and determine the genetic variability among them, in order to identify potential parental lines for breeding programs at Embrapa Wheat. For phenotyping, traits such as plant height, cycle and grains characteristics were assessed and the data were analyzed by the Euclidean distance. The genetic distance was estimated using 97 microsatellite molecular markers and the data were analyzed by Nei72 coefficient. The average distance observed for phenotyping was 10.1, and the genetic distance was 31 %. SSR markers were efficient for selecting genetically diverse genotypes despite their phenotypic similarity, and lines PF 9027, PF 950351, PF 030132, PF 979002, PF 040488 and IWT 04019 can be used as parental for future crosses, since they have genetic diversity and suitable agronomic traits.

8 citations


Cited by
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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Over the past two decades it has been proven that ROS together with non‐photochemical quenching (NPQ), hormones, Ca2+ waves, and electrical signals are the main players in SAA and SAR, two physiological processes essential for plant survival and productivity in unfavorable conditions.

377 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This review has concentrated on fresh new information and other promising and emerging topics of oxidative stress and antioxidant mechanisms in plants, giving particular attention to genotoxicity, transgenerational alterations and quantitative trait loci associated with enhancements in the plant tolerance to stresses.

255 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A detailed overview of morpho-physiological responses of wheat to heat stress may help formulating appropriate strategies for heat-stressed wheat yield improvement, as well as searching for possible management strategies to increase productivity and sustainability of growing wheat.
Abstract: Increasing temperature and consequent changes in climate adversely affect plant growth and development, resulting in catastrophic loss of wheat productivity. For each degree rise in temperature, wheat production is estimated to reduce by 6%. A detailed overview of morpho-physiological responses of wheat to heat stress may help formulating appropriate strategies for heat-stressed wheat yield improvement. Additionally, searching for possible management strategies may increase productivity and sustainability of growing wheat. The major findings from this review are as follows: (1) heat stress significantly reduces seed germination and seedling growth, cell turgidity, and plant water-use efficiency; (2) at a cellular level, heat stress disturbs cellular functions through generating excessive reactive oxygen species, leading to oxidative stress; (3) the major responses of wheat to heat stress include the enhancement of leaf senescence, reduction of photosynthesis, deactivation of photosynthetic enzymes, and generation of oxidative damages to the chloroplasts; (4) heat stress also reduces grain number and size by affecting grain setting, assimilate translocation and duration and growth rate of grains; (5) effective approaches for managing heat stress in wheat include screening available germplasm under field trials and/or employing marker-assisted selection, application of exogenous protectants to seeds or plants, mapping quantitative trait locus conferring heat resistance and breeding; (6) a well-integrated genetic and agronomic management option may enhance wheat tolerance to heat. However, the success of applying various techniques of heat stress management requires greater understanding of heat tolerance features, molecular cloning, and characterization of genes. The overall success of the complex plant heat stress management depends on the concerted efforts of crop modelers, molecular biologists, and plant physiologists.

236 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: This review summarizes the most updated findings on the impact of drought stress on plant morphological, biochemical and physiological features and highlights plant mechanisms of tolerance which could be exploited to increase the plant capability to survive under limited water availability.
Abstract: Plants are often exposed to unfavorable environmental conditions, for instance abiotic stresses, which dramatically alter distribution of plant species among ecological niches and limit the yields of crop species. Among these, drought stress is one of the most impacting factors which alter seriously the plant physiology, finally leading to the decline of the crop productivity. Drought stress causes in plants a set of morpho-anatomical, physiological and biochemical changes, mainly addressed to limit the loss of water by transpiration with the attempt to increase the plant water use efficiency. The stomata closure, one of the first consistent reactions observed under drought, results in a series of consequent physiological/biochemical adjustments aimed at balancing the photosynthetic process as well as at enhancing the plant defense barriers against drought-promoted stress (e.g., stimulation of antioxidant systems, accumulation of osmolytes and stimulation of aquaporin synthesis), all representing an attempt by the plant to overcome the unfavorable period of limited water availability. In view of the severe changes in water availability imposed by climate change factors and considering the increasing human population, it is therefore of outmost importance to highlight: (i) how plants react to drought; (ii) the mechanisms of tolerance exhibited by some species/cultivars; and (iii) the techniques aimed at increasing the tolerance of crop species against limited water availability. All these aspects are necessary to respond to the continuously increasing demand for food, which unfortunately parallels the loss of arable land due to changes in rainfall dynamics and prolonged period of drought provoked by climate change factors. This review summarizes the most updated findings on the impact of drought stress on plant morphological, biochemical and physiological features and highlights plant mechanisms of tolerance which could be exploited to increase the plant capability to survive under limited water availability. In addition, possible applicative strategies to help the plant in counteracting unfavorable drought periods are also discussed.

219 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In order to improve plants' tolerance towards the harsh environment, it is vital to reinforce the comprehension of oxidative stress and antioxidant systems.
Abstract: Exposure to a variety of environmental factors such as salinity, drought, metal toxicity, extreme temperature, air pollutants, ultraviolet-B (UV-B) radiation, pesticides, and pathogen infection leads to subject oxidative stress in plants, which in turn affects multiple biological processes via reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation. ROS include hydroxyl radicals, singlet oxygen, and hydrogen peroxide in the plant cells and activates signaling pathways leading to some changes of physiological, biochemical, and molecular mechanisms in cellular metabolism. Excessive ROS, however, cause oxidative stress, a state of imbalance between the production of ROS and the neutralization of free radicals by antioxidants, resulting in damage of cellular components including lipids, nucleic acids, metabolites, and proteins, which finally leads to the death of cells in plants. Thus, maintaining a physiological level of ROS is crucial for aerobic organisms, which relies on the combined operation of enzymatic and nonenzymatic antioxidants. In order to improve plants’ tolerance towards the harsh environment, it is vital to reinforce the comprehension of oxidative stress and antioxidant systems. In this review, recent findings on the metabolism of ROS as well as the antioxidative defense machinery are briefly updated. The latest findings on differential regulation of antioxidants at multiple levels under adverse environment are also discussed here.

217 citations