Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science最新文献

{"title":"Impact of Melatonin Application on Wheat Agronomic Traits Under Abiotic Stress: A Meta‐Analysis","authors":"Shah Fahad, Ihsan Muhammad, Shaohong Zhang, Mona S. Alwahibi, Mohamed S. Elshikh, Jun Wang","doi":"10.1111/jac.70016","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jac.70016","url":null,"abstract":"This meta‐analysis assesses the effects of melatonin (Mel) on various wheat agronomic traits, revealing significant heterogeneity and potential publication bias. This comprehensive analysis highlights the variability across studies (<jats:italic>I</jats:italic><jats:sup>2</jats:sup> &gt; 98% for overall, leaf area, root and shoot weight), indicating a potential for selective reporting in the analysed studies. Grain yield and root weight showed <jats:italic>I</jats:italic><jats:sup>2</jats:sup> values of 93.78% and 99.54%, respectively, confirming the complex nature of melatonin's impact, which necessitates the use of random‐effects models. Notably, the study uncovers significant heterogeneity in wheat traits (<jats:italic>p</jats:italic> &lt; 0.05). Mel increased grain yield by 33.50% and positively influenced root and shoot weights compared to control (no melatonin; nMel). However, the effects varied across different Mel concentration, application method and environmental stressors. Grain yield significantly increased with Mel application, particularly in foliar spray by 41.40%, compared to nMel. Mel consistently enhanced the overall response ratio (ln<jats:italic>RR</jats:italic>) of grain yield, grain weight, root length, shoot length, leaf area, plant height, shoot weight and root weight by 33.50%, 24.01%, 21.28%, 32.99%, 36.33%, 15.94%, 22.14% and 20.86% compared to nMel. Compared to nMel, the most pronounced grain yield was observed in Mel under salt stress conditions. The benefits of Mel were more pronounced in Egypt, where grain yield increased by 52.91%, suggesting that local environmental factors significantly influence its efficacy. Its impact varied across different cultivars, with Jimai_22 increased root length by 70.83% and Sids_14 by 56.39% compared to nMel, emphasising the importance of genetic factors. Mel application under salt and Cd stress conditions increased root weight by 336% and 470%, respectively, while decreased by 87% under waterlogging compared to no stress conditions. This indicates that Mel greatly increased plant resistance to abiotic stresses by modulating stress‐responsive pathways and improving agronomic traits.","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"81 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2024-12-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142901707","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Morpho‐Physiological Traits Linked to Water Stress Responses Among Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench Varieties: A Field Study in Kenya","authors":"Vincent Ochieng Suba, Rosepiah Munene, Osman Mustafa, Sara Loftus, Mutez Ahmed, Michaela Dippold, Dennis Otieno, Juxiu Liu, Yuelin Li","doi":"10.1111/jac.70006","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jac.70006","url":null,"abstract":"Sorghum is a drought‐tolerant crop with the potential to alleviate food insecurity in arid and semiarid regions of the world. This study aimed to identify the morphological and physiological traits that are associated with drought tolerance in three sorghum varieties grown in Kenya: the Makueni (MKL) landrace, Gadam (GD) open‐pollinated variety and the IESH 22012 hybrid. A randomised split‐plot design was employed, comprising three sorghum varieties and two moisture input levels (control and drought), replicated four times during the 2021 and 2022 crop seasons. Rainout shelters were utilised to impose drought conditions. Drought stress significantly influenced all traits, and the three varieties exhibited distinct responses. Based on grain yield, IESH demonstrated superior potential, followed by GD, while MKL ranked third under drought conditions. Across all varieties, drought led to reductions in transpiration rates (MKL: 40%, GD: 46% and IESH: 20%) and stomatal conductance (MKL: 31%, GD: 39% and IESH: 21%). Assimilation rates were reduced by 51%, 38% and 23% for GD, MKL and IESH, respectively. Similarly, drought decreased biomass by 46% for GD, 30% for IESH and 26% for MKL. Grain yields were also reduced by 51% for GD, 37% for MKL and 33% for IESH. GD exhibited a more pronounced yield decline than IESH in response to water shortages, indicating a greater sensitivity to reduced water supply. Overall, the results indicate that sorghum responds to drought by reducing plant size, biomass accumulation, leaf area, transpiration rate and stomatal conductance. However, the phenotypic drought response, including the allocation of reduced carbon and biomass formation among plant organs, is specific to each variety. The IESH variety was identified as more suitable for both drought‐stress and nonstress environments, considering its favourable morphological, physiological and yield‐related traits, as well as its sensitivity and tolerance indices.","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"41 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2024-12-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142904748","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Physiological and Molecular Responses to Salinity in Two Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) Varieties","authors":"Yuelin Wang, Hanjun Zhou, Liang Xu, Xiefeng Ye","doi":"10.1111/jac.70007","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jac.70007","url":null,"abstract":"This study compared the salt tolerance of two tobacco varieties with different salt tolerances during the germination period—Basma (Oriental tobacco) and K326 (flue‐cured tobacco)—under NaCl stress. Basma exhibited higher antioxidant enzyme activity (1.16–3.58 times that of K326), reduced levels by 16.5% during the peak accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and effectively regulated ion homeostasis by upregulating <jats:italic>NtSOS1</jats:italic>, reducing Na+ accumulation in aboveground tissues by 21.01–22.90 times and in underground tissues by 12.84–14.15 times compared to K326. Additionally, Basma increased the indole‐3‐acetic acid (IAA) content in underground tissues by 1.5 times after 72 h of saline stress, a change supported by increased expression of <jats:italic>NtPIN4</jats:italic>. In summary, Basma demonstrated greater salt tolerance than K326 by increasing antioxidant enzyme activity, regulating ion homeostasis and maintaining IAA balance. These findings suggest that enhancing ROS scavenging, modifying root structure and applying IAA can effectively enhance salt tolerance in tobacco cultivation.","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"202 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2024-12-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142887912","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Elevated CO2 Modulates N Uptake and N Use Efficiency of Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) Response to Soil Progressive Drought at Topping Stage","authors":"Lin Zhang, Fulai Liu, Guitong Li","doi":"10.1111/jac.70017","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jac.70017","url":null,"abstract":"Rising atmospheric CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub> concentration ([CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>]) is believed to mitigate the drought stress on plant, and is regulated by soil nitrogen availability. Nonetheless, effects of elevated [CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>] (<jats:italic>e</jats:italic>[CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>]) on plant response to drought and their interactive effects on plant N uptake and utilisation remain critical unknown. In this study, three‐month‐old potted tobacco plants (a C<jats:sub>3</jats:sub> model and crop plant) cultivated at two CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub> concentrations (400 and 800 μmol mol <jats:sup>−1</jats:sup>) were exposed to progressive drought stress after budding‐topping. In this study, <jats:sup>15</jats:sup>N isotopic technique used for analysing the fertiliser‐N transformation in soil and plant organs. Results shown drought generally decreased tobacco biomass, and soil nutrient supply significantly intensify this leaf biomass decreasing induced by drought, while <jats:italic>e</jats:italic>[CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>] could alleviate the soil drought and nutrient effects on biomass decreasing in upper‐leaf. During progressive drought, <jats:italic>e</jats:italic>[CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>]‐plants are able to maintain higher root hydraulic conductivity (<jats:italic>K</jats:italic><jats:sub>r</jats:sub>) than their <jats:italic>a</jats:italic>[CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>]‐counterparts, the higher <jats:italic>K</jats:italic><jats:sub>r</jats:sub> induced by <jats:italic>e</jats:italic>[CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>] were correlated with leaf stomatal conductance (<jats:italic>g</jats:italic><jats:sub>s</jats:sub>) decrease and xylem sap ABA ([ABA]<jats:sub>xylem</jats:sub>) increase. In other words, soil nutrient supply enhanced the [ABA]<jats:sub>xylem</jats:sub> of drought‐stressed plants with 3–7 folds higher than none nutrient supply counterparts. Elevated [CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>] induced more fertiliser‐N accumulated in tobacco leaves, especially under well‐watered conditions, which in turn yielded higher photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency in leaves but low in whole plant. These results suggested that <jats:italic>e</jats:italic>[CO<jats:sub>2</jats:sub>] could alleviate drought‐induced photosynthesis limitation by improving root biomass (mainly fine root) and <jats:italic>K</jats:italic><jats:sub>r</jats:sub>, but the alleviation varied with soil nutrient conditions, thereby mitigating the drought‐negative effects on upper‐leaf growth, finally improved tobacco water use efficiency and tobacco production.","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"311 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2024-12-28","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142887907","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Strong Source and Fluent Flow May Increase Grain Weight and Yield in Water‐Saving and Drought‐Resistance Rice: A 5‐Year Field Study","authors":"Kun Liu, Hong Zhao, Dangping Hou, Chenyu Wang, Zhikang Li, Jiarong Cui, Yu Zhang, Yiying Zhang, Li Ren, Jian Huang, Jingli Zhang, Jingyan Huang, Shouguo Li, Yunxia Chu, Hairong Chen, Shan Deng, Ruixi Han","doi":"10.1111/jac.70018","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/jac.70018","url":null,"abstract":"Water‐saving and drought‐resistance rice (WDR) is a new type of cultivated rice, which not only has the characteristics of high yield and quality of rice, but also has the properties of water‐saving and drought‐resistance of upland rice. However, the source, flow and sink basis of its high yield were still unclear. It was of great significance for the breeding of high‐yielding WDR varieties and cultivation regulation to clarify the characteristics of the source, flow, and sink of WDR yield formation and its regulation effects. In this study, WDR varieties (more than 20) with three groups of different grain weight types: small grain weight type (SGWT, grain weight &lt; 22.5 mg), medium grain weight type (MGWT, 22.5 mg &lt; grain weight &lt; 25 mg) and large grain weight type (LGWT, grain weight &gt; 25 mg), were selected as materials. The contribution of grain weight to the yield, the changes of source (flag leaf length and width), flow (stem length and diameter), and sink (grain length and width) and the regulation effects of grain fertiliser application rate (GFAR) on grain weight in WDR were studied through a 5‐year field cultivation. The results showed that (1) the average yield of LGWT was significantly higher than that of SGWT and MGWT varieties, with an increase of 5.23%–9.88% and 2.06%–3.08%, respectively. Larger grain weight was the primary feature of high‐yielding WDR varieties. (2) There was a significant positive correlation between grain weight and, flag leaf width (source) and stem diameter (flow) at the middle grain filling stage (25 days after heading) (<jats:italic>r</jats:italic> = 0.467*–0.688**). (3) Compared with no GFAR treatment, the applying GFAR treatments (GFAR at 25 and 50 kg ha<jats:sup>−1</jats:sup>) increased the stem diameter, flag leaf width, grain weight and yield of Huhan1505 (SGWT), Huhan1517 (MGWT) and Hanyou756 (LGWT) to varying degrees, and the increase of SGWT was greater. Larger flag leaf width (strong source) and wider stem diameter (fluent flow) were material foundation for high yield of WDR. Promoting source strength and smooth flow at the middle grain filling stage was conducive to promoting the increase of grain weight and yield of WDR.","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"147 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.5,"publicationDate":"2024-12-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142879847","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Yield and Forage Quality of the New Forage Perennial Legume Bituminaria bituminosa var. albomarginata cv. Lanza in Response to Rainfall Reduction and Competition","authors":"Jesús Fernández-Habas,&nbsp;Daniel Real,&nbsp;Tom Vanwalleghem,&nbsp;José Ramón Leal-Murillo,&nbsp;Pilar Fernández-Rebollo","doi":"10.1111/jac.70013","DOIUrl":"10.1111/jac.70013","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p><i>Bituminaria bituminosa</i> is a promising drought-tolerant perennial legume which could reduce the vulnerability of Mediterranean livestock systems to drought. A 3-year field split-plot experiment was carried out in southern Spain to test the response of <i>Bituminaria bituminosa</i> cv. Lanza (tedera) to a 24% annual rainfall reduction and competition in terms of yield and forage quality. The experiment included a whole-plot factor, Rainfall, with two treatments, 24% annual rainfall reduction and no rainfall reduction, and two subplot factors: Species (tedera and alfalfa) and Stand (pure and mixed). In the sowing year, tedera in pure stands was as productive as alfalfa in rainfed conditions (2740 kg ha⁻¹). In the second year, a suitable distribution of rainfall until April and a mild winter allowed production of tedera of 9526 kg ha⁻¹ compared to 1811 kg ha⁻¹ of alfalfa. In the third year, both species had a similar yield of 1843 kg ha⁻¹. Rainfall reduction marginally affected (<i>p</i> &lt; 0.1) the species production. The 24% rainfall reduction had less impact on tedera than management and the contrasting weather over years. In the second year, rainfall reduction caused a decline in the yield of, on average, 36% in alfalfa and 17% in tedera. Contrary to the previous year, in the third year, both species showed a similar increase in yield under reduced rainfall due to a possible protective effect of the rainout shelters in winter. Tedera suffered from frost damage indicating the cold tolerance of cv. Lanza may not be enough to persist in some Mediterranean areas of the Iberian Peninsula. Competition strongly affected both species, leading to failure, especially in tedera, whose establishment may be severely limited by fast-growing grasses. Tedera showed suitable forage quality, especially in the leaf fraction (CP = 16%). However, uncut tedera developed lignified stems that caused a great decline in forage quality. Rainfall reduction had little or no impact on forage quality.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"211 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-12-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142867071","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Waterlogging Effects on Root Morphology, Yield, and Stress Tolerance in Cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp) Grown on Semi-Arid Vertisols","authors":"E. Senthamil,&nbsp;Hanamant M. Halli,&nbsp;P. S. Basavaraj,&nbsp;S. S. Angadi,&nbsp;Vinay M. Gangana Gowdra,&nbsp;C. B. Harisha,&nbsp;K. M. Boraiah,&nbsp;B. Sandeep Adavi,&nbsp;S. R. Salakinkoppa,&nbsp;Ganesh Mohite,&nbsp;K. Sammi Reddy","doi":"10.1111/jac.70014","DOIUrl":"10.1111/jac.70014","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>Waterlogging, a global environmental stress, jeopardises food security, causing an economic loss of US$ 74 billion. This could intensify by 14%–35% due to climate change, particularly affecting leguminous crops by altering root morphology and yields. Therefore, studies on the crops root systems and yield reduction to waterlogging stress are required to ensure global food security (sustainable development goals; SDG 2) and an adaptation strategy against climate threats (SDG 13). Hence, studies were conducted for 2 years (2022 and 2023) to understand the effect of varied durations of waterlogging (1–25 days) at three growth stages (15 DAE; Days After Emergence, 25 DAE and at 50% flowering) of cowpea. Results revealed that the highest reduction in root length density (17.97%), surface density (17.31%), weight density (17.63%) and volume density (19.60%) was observed at early growth stages of cowpea (15 DAE) over control. As a result, the maximum reduction in crop growth and grain yield (62.90%) with the lowest yield stability index (YSI ~0.62) and stress tolerance index (STI ~0.78) were recorded. Waterlogging for 17 to 25 days significantly reduced root morphological features and growth, resulting in highest reduction in grain yield (71.32%–81.64%), and the lowest YSI and STI. Notably, plants at early growth stages produced a greater number of lengthier aerial roots with increasing waterlogging durations after 7 days. Whereas, the interaction of 1 day waterlogging at 25 DAE reported minimal yield reduction (~0.36%) with greater YSI (~0.99) and STI (~1.52). Therefore, the sensitivity of cowpea roots to waterlogging explained the reduction in grain yield and stress tolerance. In conclusion, cowpea was found to be highly sensitive at early growth stages (15 DAE) after 3 days of waterlogging stress on vertisols of semi-arid tropics.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"211 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-12-19","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142858314","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Root Lodging Resistance in Maize (Zea mays L.) Under Conservative Strip-Till Cultivation System","authors":"Ye Sha,&nbsp;Siyu Zhao,&nbsp;Zhanhong Hao,&nbsp;Zheng Liu,&nbsp;Wenlang Hu,&nbsp;Guozhong Feng,&nbsp;Fanjun Chen,&nbsp;Guohua Mi","doi":"10.1111/jac.70008","DOIUrl":"10.1111/jac.70008","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>Root lodging significantly affects maize yield and is influenced by both genotypes and soil characteristics. Strip-till (ST) is a conservative cultivation method that disturbs only the planting strip, leaving the remaining soil undisturbed and covered with maize residues. Less is known about the effect of ST on root lodging. Here, a field experiment was conducted in Northeast China in 2020 and 2021 with 20 maize genotypes to study the relationship between root lodging and soil environment and root system architecture (RSA) under ST. Compared with conventional-till (CT), in which the maize residues were cleared and the soil was cultivated using a rotary tiller, ST led to a smaller and narrower RSA, with crown root length reduced by 9.5% and crown root biomass reduced by 9.3%. Additionally, inter-row root expansion angle and width were smaller by 5.3% and 17.3%, respectively. Despite these reductions, the root lodging rate in ST plants was significantly lower than in CT plants, with an absolute decrease of 25.5%. This enhanced resistance is attributed to the increased soil strength in the inter-row, where the soil bulk density was 10.3% higher and the soil porosity was 10.2% lower in the 0–10 cm layer. Notably, certain maize genotypes, such as ZD958, developed a greater number of fine roots in the compacted inter-row soil, showing a 66.4% increase compared to XY335 in the 0–12 cm soil layer. This trait contributed to improved resistance to root lodging. In conclusion, ST enhances root lodging resistance and offers opportunities to increase maize yield through optimised management practices, including the selection of high-yielding cultivars with wide RSA.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"211 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-12-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142832242","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Exogenous Melatonin Enhances Pollen Fertility of Drought-Stressed Cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) by Improving Antioxidant Metabolism","authors":"Huilian Yu,&nbsp;Kaiyang Zhao,&nbsp;Ke Yan,&nbsp;Yizheng Wen,&nbsp;Zicheng Gao,&nbsp;Shijie Xue,&nbsp;Wenqing Zhao,&nbsp;Shanshan Wang,&nbsp;Zhiguo Zhou,&nbsp;Wei Hu","doi":"10.1111/jac.70010","DOIUrl":"10.1111/jac.70010","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>Exogenous melatonin (MT) can aid crops in mitigating drought stress, yet its impacts on cotton pollen fertility under drought remain understudied. To address this, a study on the effects of exogenous MT on cotton pollen sterility and internal physiological metabolism under drought stress was conducted. Results showed that although antioxidant enzymes catalase (CAT), peroxidase (POD) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities increased in drought-stressed anthers, yet this was insufficient to balance reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels, which led to higher hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) and superoxide anion (O₂⁻) accumulation, resulting in oxidative stress, manifested by elevated malondialdehyde (MDA) and reduced pollen viability. Remarkably, the application of MT further bolstered the activities of CAT, POD and SOD in drought-stressed anthers, effectively mitigating the accumulation of O₂⁻ and H₂O₂. This enhancement facilitated the antioxidant defence system under drought conditions. Simultaneously, the activity of ascorbate peroxidase (APX) was reduced, which prevented the reduction of dehydroascorbate (DHA) to ASA, and the ascorbic acid-glutathione (AsA-GSH) cycle was destroyed, leading to the accumulation of GSH. Nevertheless, MT application triggered upregulation of both <i>GhDHAR</i> and <i>GhMDHAR</i> expressions, promoting AsA synthesis and regeneration, respectively, thereby elevating AsA levels. Furthermore, MT revitalised APX activity, accelerating the removal of H₂O₂ through AsA-mediated reduction, ultimately restoring the balance of the AsA-GSH cycle and enhancing the overall antioxidant capacity of drought-stressed anthers. In summary, exogenous MT can enhance the scavenging ability of ROS in drought-affected anthers by elevating the activities of CAT, POD and SOD and by enhancing APX activity in the AsA-GSH cycle, thereby alleviating drought-induced oxidative stress and improving pollen fertility under water deficit stress.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"211 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-12-14","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142823244","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The Architecture of Adaptive Lignin Biosynthesis Navigating Environmental Stresses in Plants","authors":"Abdul Jalal,&nbsp;Yongli Wang,&nbsp;Chenyang Cai,&nbsp;Aliya Ayaz,&nbsp;Khulood Fahad Alabbosh,&nbsp;Khalid Ali Khan,&nbsp;Song Han,&nbsp;Daochen Zhu","doi":"10.1111/jac.70012","DOIUrl":"10.1111/jac.70012","url":null,"abstract":"<div>\u0000 \u0000 <p>In natural ecosystems, plants are under continuous environmental stresses, compromising plants' survival and propagation. Being sessile in nature, plants evolved various signalling pathways to cope with adverse changing environments, and to optimise their adaptation to terrestrial conditions. The plant cell wall, rich in polymers, is actively engaged in the signalling process. In this context, the phenylpropanoid pathway, producing protective secondary metabolites like flavonoids and lignin, played a crucial role in the early plants' colonisation on land. In this review, we highlighted the current knowledge and the impending gaps of lignin biosynthesis in plants, and the hydrophobic and impervious properties of lignin facilitating effective transportation of solutes and water within vascular system along with its significance to protect plants from environmental stressors either abiotic like temperature, drought, salinity and heavy metals or biotic such as herbivorous insects, root-knot nematodes and phytopathogens. Additionally, the identification of essential biosynthetic genes that play a role in regulating lignin biosynthesis, as well as their contribution to improving stress tolerance through modifications in lignification of cell wall and biochemical mechanisms of lignin in the evolution of land plants are discussed, including the synergistic action of dirigent proteins and laccase in producing monolignol radicals. This discussion provided future research direction to develop genetic engineering approaches to improve lignin in terrestrial plants and develop stress-tolerant plants that will improve the resilience and survival of plants under challenging environmental conditions.</p>\u0000 </div>","PeriodicalId":14864,"journal":{"name":"Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science","volume":"211 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":3.7,"publicationDate":"2024-12-13","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142820858","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"农林科学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}