Showing papers by "Antoni R. Slabas published in 2014"
TL;DR: A functional characterization of the genes and pathways identified here could lead to new targets for the enhancement of plant stress tolerance, which will be particularly important in the face of climate change and the increasing prevalence of these abiotic stress types.
Abstract: Abiotic stresses which include drought and heat are amongst the main limiting factors for plant growth and crop productivity. In the field, these stress types are rarely presented individually and plants are often subjected to a combination of stress types. Sorghum bicolor is a cereal crop which is grown in arid and semi-arid regions and is particularly well adapted to the hot and dry conditions in which it originates and is now grown as a crop. In order to better understand the mechanisms underlying combined stress tolerance in this important crop, we have used microarrays to investigate the transcriptional response of Sorghum subjected to heat and drought stresses imposed both individually and in combination. Microarrays consisting of 28585 gene probes identified gene expression changes equating to ~4% and 18% of genes on the chip following drought and heat stresses respectively. In response to combined stress ~20% of probes were differentially expressed. Whilst many of these transcript changes were in common with those changed in response to heat or drought alone, the levels of 2043 specific transcripts (representing 7% of all gene probes) were found to only be changed following the combined stress treatment. Ontological analysis of these ‘unique’ transcripts identified a potential role for specific transcription factors including MYB78 and ATAF1, chaperones including unique heat shock proteins (HSPs) and metabolic pathways including polyamine biosynthesis in the Sorghum combined stress response. These results show evidence for both cross-talk and specificity in the Sorghum response to combined heat and drought stress. It is clear that some aspects of the combined stress response are unique compared to those of individual stresses. A functional characterization of the genes and pathways identified here could lead to new targets for the enhancement of plant stress tolerance, which will be particularly important in the face of climate change and the increasing prevalence of these abiotic stress types.
178 citations
TL;DR: It is considered how both compounds could be useful tools in dissecting plant cell death signaling and similarities between the regulation of cell death triggered by Cd and fumonisin B1 are highlighted.
Abstract: Cadmium is an environmental pollutant with deleterious effects on both prokaryotic and eukaryotic organisms. In plants, the effects of cadmium toxicity are concentration dependent; lower doses destabilize many physiological processes and inhibit cell growth and multiplication, while higher doses evoke a more severe response that triggers activation of cell death. We recently investigated the effects of light on cadmium toxicity in Arabidopsis using a cell suspension culture system. Although not affecting the inhibitory effects on cell multiplication, we found that light is a powerful regulator of Cd-induced cell death. A very specific proteomic response, which was clearly controlled by light, preceded cell death. Here we discuss the implications of these findings and highlight similarities between the regulation of cell death triggered by Cd and fumonisin B1. We consider how both compounds could be useful tools in dissecting plant cell death signaling.
2 citations