Physiological and Molecular Plant Responses to Salt Stress

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Response to Abiotic Stress and Climate Change".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2020) | Viewed by 14925

Special Issue Editor

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Agricultural soils becoming saline have been rising over the last decades, because of the overuse of fertilizers or because of watering with saline solutions, such as reclaimed waters. At this point, understanding how plants respond to salinity stress is critical in order to develop crop plants tolerant to salt stress. In this Special Issue, manuscripts dealing with how plants respond to salinity at physiological and molecular levels are welcome in any kind of plant species. Omics manuscripts are encouraged, but the Issue is not limited to such manuscripts. Moreover, manuscripts dealing with the use of alternative practices to overcome salt stress, like the use of soil with beneficial microorganisms, are also encouraged. Manuscripts should address novel aspects of plant salinity tolerance and advance our knowledge on that subject.

Prof. Ricardo Aroca
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • cellular responses
  • ionic transport
  • metabolomics
  • osmotic adjustment
  • proteomocs
  • transcriptomic

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

21 pages, 1516 KiB  
Article
Multidimensional Evaluation for Detecting Salt Tolerance of Bread Wheat Genotypes Under Actual Saline Field Growing Conditions
by Elsayed Mansour, Ehab S. A. Moustafa, El-Sayed M. Desoky, Mohamed M. A. Ali, Mohamed A. T. Yasin, Ahmed Attia, Nasser Alsuhaibani, Muhammad Usman Tahir and Salah El-Hendawy
Plants 2020, 9(10), 1324; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9101324 - 6 Oct 2020
Cited by 77 | Viewed by 4615
Abstract
Field-based trials and genotype evaluation until yielding stage are two important steps in improving the salt tolerance of crop genotypes and identifying what parameters can be strong candidates for the better understanding of salt tolerance mechanisms in different genotypes. In this study, the [...] Read more.
Field-based trials and genotype evaluation until yielding stage are two important steps in improving the salt tolerance of crop genotypes and identifying what parameters can be strong candidates for the better understanding of salt tolerance mechanisms in different genotypes. In this study, the salt tolerance of 18 bread wheat genotypes was evaluated under natural saline field conditions and at three saline irrigation levels (5.25, 8.35, and 11.12 dS m−1) extracted from wells. Multidimensional evaluation for salt tolerance of these genotypes was done using a set of agronomic and physio-biochemical attributes. Based on yield index under three salinity levels, the genotypes were classified into four groups ranging from salt-tolerant to salt-sensitive genotypes. The salt-tolerant genotypes exhibited values of total chlorophyll, gas exchange (net photosynthetic rate, transpiration rate, and stomatal conductance), water relation (relative water content and membrane stability index), nonenzymatic osmolytes (soluble sugar, free proline, and ascorbic acid), antioxidant enzyme activities (superoxide dismutase, catalase, and peroxidase), K+ content, and K+/Na+ ratio that were greater than those of salt-sensitive genotypes. Additionally, the salt-tolerant genotypes consistently exhibited good control of Na+ and Cl levels and maintained lower contents of malondialdehyde and electrolyte leakage under high salinity level, compared with the salt-sensitive genotypes. Several physio-biochemical parameters showed highly positive associations with grain yield and its components, whereas negative association was observed in other parameters. Accordingly, these physio-biochemical parameters can be used as individual or complementary screening criteria for evaluating salt tolerance and improvement of bread wheat genotypes under natural saline field conditions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Physiological and Molecular Plant Responses to Salt Stress)
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16 pages, 1837 KiB  
Article
miRNA–mRNA Integrated Analysis Reveals Roles for miRNAs in a Typical Halophyte, Reaumuria soongorica, during Seed Germination under Salt Stress
by Huilong Zhang, Xiaowei Liu, Xiuyan Yang, Haiwen Wu, Jianfeng Zhu and Huaxin Zhang
Plants 2020, 9(3), 351; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9030351 - 10 Mar 2020
Cited by 27 | Viewed by 3491
Abstract
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are endogenous small RNAs that play a crucial role in plant growth, development, and environmental stress responses. Reaumuria soongorica is a typical halophyte that is widely distributed in saline–alkali desert regions. Under salt stress, R. soongorica can complete germination, a critical [...] Read more.
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are endogenous small RNAs that play a crucial role in plant growth, development, and environmental stress responses. Reaumuria soongorica is a typical halophyte that is widely distributed in saline–alkali desert regions. Under salt stress, R. soongorica can complete germination, a critical biological process in the life cycle of seed plants. To identify miRNAs and predict target mRNAs involved in seed germination during salt stress, nine small-RNA libraries were constructed and analyzed from R. soongorica seeds treated with various concentrations of NaCl. We also obtained transcriptome data under the same treatment conditions. Further analysis identified 88 conserved miRNAs representing 25 defined families and discovered 13 novel miRNAs from nine libraries. A co-expression analysis was performed on the same samples to identify putative miRNA–mRNA interactions that were responsive to salt stress. A comparative analysis of expression during germination under 273 (threshold) and 43 mM (optimal) NaCl treatments identified 13 differentially expressed miRNAs and 23 corresponding target mRNAs, while a comparison between 43 mM NaCl and non-salt-stress conditions uncovered one differentially expressed miRNA and one corresponding target mRNA. These results provide basic data for further study of molecular mechanisms involved in the germination of salt-stressed R. soongorica seeds, and also provide a reference for the improvement of salt tolerance during plant germination. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Physiological and Molecular Plant Responses to Salt Stress)
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19 pages, 1928 KiB  
Article
Stomatal and Photosynthetic Traits Are Associated with Investigating Sodium Chloride Tolerance of Brassica napus L. Cultivars
by Ibrahim A. A. Mohamed, Nesma Shalby, Chenyang Bai, Meng Qin, Ramadan A. Agami, Kuai Jie, Bo Wang and Guangsheng Zhou
Plants 2020, 9(1), 62; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9010062 - 2 Jan 2020
Cited by 73 | Viewed by 6121
Abstract
The negative effects of salt stress vary among different rapeseed cultivars. In this study, we investigated the sodium chloride tolerance among 10 rapeseed cultivars based on membership function values (MFV) and Euclidean cluster analyses by exposing seedlings to 0, 100, or 200 mM [...] Read more.
The negative effects of salt stress vary among different rapeseed cultivars. In this study, we investigated the sodium chloride tolerance among 10 rapeseed cultivars based on membership function values (MFV) and Euclidean cluster analyses by exposing seedlings to 0, 100, or 200 mM NaCl. The NaCl toxicity significantly reduced growth, biomass, endogenous K+ levels, relative water content and increased electrolyte leakage, soluble sugar levels, proline levels, and antioxidant enzyme activities. SPAD values were highly variable among rapeseed cultivars. We identified three divergent (tolerant, moderately tolerant, and sensitive) groups. We found that Hua6919 and Yunyoushuang2 were the most salt-tolerant cultivars and that Zhongshuang11 and Yangyou9 were the most salt-sensitive cultivars. The rapeseed cultivars were further subjected to photosynthetic gas exchange and anatomical trait analyses. Among the photosynthetic gas exchange and anatomical traits, the stomatal aperture was the most highly correlated with salinity tolerance in rapeseed cultivars and thus, is important for future studies that aim to improve salinity tolerance in rapeseed. Thus, we identified and characterized two salt-tolerant cultivars that will be useful for breeding programs that aim to develop salt-tolerant rapeseed. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Physiological and Molecular Plant Responses to Salt Stress)
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