Application of dihydroquercetin reduces oxidative damage and enhances drought resistance in wheat

Drought stress is one of the main abiotic stressors affecting wheat yield. In recent years, plant-derived compounds have played a key role in improving wheat stress resistance and have been widely used to enhance crop drought resistance and yield. Currently, flavonoids, as important secondary metabolites in plants, are related to drought resistance. In this study, we found through screening that the flavonoid compound dihydroquercetin can improve the drought resistance of wheat. The results indicate that exogenous dihydroquercetin can significantly improve the survival rate, relative water content, fresh weight, and dry weight of wheat seedlings under drought conditions. Biochemical assays combined with transcriptome analysis demonstrate that under drought stress, dihydroquercetin simultaneously enhances antioxidant capacity and upregulates the expression of β-glucosidase (BGLU2) and aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH) in the phenylpropanoid biosynthesis pathway. These changes collectively enhance the antioxidant capacity of wheat and reduce the content of superoxide anions and hydrogen peroxide. Dihydroquercetin also upregulated the expression of important genes in the glycerophospholipid metabolism pathway, including phospholipase D (PLD), no special phospholipase C (NPC), and glycerophosphodiesterase (GDPD), alleviating damage to the cell membrane, reducing malondialdehyde content. Therefore, the application of dihydroquercetin improves drought resistance in wheat by promoting antioxidant capacity and alleviating drought-induced oxidative damage. This study lays the groundwork for implementing dihydroquercetin to boost wheat's drought resilience in agricultural settings.