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Agriculture
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Responses and Tolerance to Abiotic Stress in Forage and Turf...
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Responses and Tolerance to Abiotic Stress in Forage and Turf Grasses

A special issue of Agriculture (ISSN 2077-0472). This special issue belongs to the section "Crop Production".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 October 2024) | Viewed by 3296

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Jibiao Fan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Animal Science and Technology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou 225009, China
Interests: turf grass; salt stress; growth; plant physiology; molecular regulation
Prof. Dr. Bin Xu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Agro-Grassland Science, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing 210095, China
Interests: turf grass; forage; abiotic stress; omics analysis; gene function
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Forage crops are plants that are used to provide high nutrition for herbivores, and turf grasses are plants that be used on sports fields, golf courses and home lawns. Hence, their growth condition determines the development of animal husbandry and life quality of people. However, the growth and development of plants are limited by diverse environmental stresses such as extreme temperature, water, salinity and soil pollution. To cope with adverse conditions, plants have evolved complex adaptive mechanisms at the physiological, metabolic and molecular levels. The environmental stress response mechanisms and signal pathways of key genes in plants have been research hotspots in recent years. However, the regulation mechanisms are still largely unknown in forage and turf grasses.

This Special Issue aims to highlight impactful research that focuses on revealing the adaptive mechanisms to abiotic stress in forage and turf grasses. This Special Issue will fully embrace disciplinary studies in agriculture that refer to physiology, biochemistry, genetics, and plant–microbe interactions at different levels, i.e., whole plant, cellular, subcellular and molecular levels, of forage and turf grasses. In addition, “omics” studies related to the stress responses of forage and turf grasses, for example, transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, etc., are also welcomed.

This Special Issue welcomes the submission of all types of articles, including original research, reviews, methodologies, opinions and commentaries.

Dr. Jibiao Fan
Prof. Dr. Bin Xu
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Agriculture is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • forage crop
  • turf grass
  • abiotic stress
  • stress response
  • physiology
  • genetics
  • gene function
  • molecular regulation
  • omics analysis

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 11748 KiB  
Article
Transcriptomic Analysis of Antimony Response in Tall Fescue (Festuca arundinacea)
by Xiaoqin Li, Fangming Wu, Yuanhang Xiang and Jibiao Fan
Agriculture 2024, 14(9), 1504; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14091504 - 2 Sep 2024
Viewed by 491
Abstract
Antimony (Sb) is a toxic trace element for plants and animals. With the development of industrial applications and mining, Sb pollution is becoming more serious. Phytoremediation is regarded as an eco-friendly technique to reduce the threat of Sb to the environment and human [...] Read more.
Antimony (Sb) is a toxic trace element for plants and animals. With the development of industrial applications and mining, Sb pollution is becoming more serious. Phytoremediation is regarded as an eco-friendly technique to reduce the threat of Sb to the environment and human health, and tall fescue that is highly adaptable to heavy metal stress can be a candidate species for Sb-contaminated soil phytoremediation. However, the mechanism of the Sb stress response in tall fescue is not clear. Therefore, transcriptomic analysis was used in this study to reveal the molecular mechanisms of Sb stress response regulation in tall fescue. The results suggested that the roots and leaves of tall fescue responded to Sb stress in different ways. In roots, the lignin and flavonoids might reduce the toxicity of Sb by anti-oxidation and Sb chelation. At the same time, the DEGs in leaves were mainly enriched in the pathways of glutathione metabolism, β-alanine metabolism, and glycine, serine, and threonine metabolism. Additionally, genes related to the pathways, such as 4CL, GST, AGXT2, and ALDH7A1, especially cytochrome P450 family genes (e.g., CYP73A, CYP75A, and CYP98A), might play key roles in the regulation of the Sb stress response in tall fescue. These findings provided a theoretical reference for the efficient use of tall fescue to control Sb-contaminated soil in the future. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Responses and Tolerance to Abiotic Stress in Forage and Turf Grasses)
►▼ Show Figures

Figure 1

Figure 1
<p>Physiological changes in tall fescue under Sb stress. (<b>A</b>) Plant height. (<b>B</b>) Root length. (<b>C</b>) Biomass. (<b>D</b>) EL (electrical leakage). (<b>E</b>) Chlorophyll content. (<b>F</b>) Catalase (CAT) activity. (<b>G</b>) Peroxidase (POD) activity. CK = control. Sb = treatment with 200 mg/L potassium antimony tartrate for 18 days. * represents <span class="html-italic">p</span> &lt; 0.05, ** represents <span class="html-italic">p</span> &lt; 0.01.</p> Full article ">Figure 2
<p>Basic conditions of DEGs in the roots and leaves of tall fescue. (<b>A</b>) The number of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) up-regulated, down-regulated, and total in the roots and leaves of tall fescue. (<b>B</b>) Venn plot of the DEGs of tissue comparisons.</p> Full article ">Figure 3
<p>Functional annotation of unigenes. (<b>A</b>) The annotation rate of unigenes in the seven databases. (<b>B</b>) Classification situation of unigenes that are annotated to the KEGG database. A: Cellular Processes; B: Environmental Information Processing; C: Genetic Information Processing; D: Metabolism; E: Organismal Systems. These are Level 1 categories in KEGG Pathway Hierarchy. (<b>C</b>) Classification situation of unigenes that are annexed to the GO database.</p> Full article ">Figure 4
<p>Functional analysis of DEGs. (<b>A</b>) GO enrichment pathway of DEGs in the root. (<b>B</b>) KEGG enrichment pathway of DEGs and the heat map of important DEGs in roots. (<b>C</b>) KEGG enrichment pathway of DEGs and the heat map of important DEGs in leaves. (<b>D</b>) KEGG enrichment pathway of DEGs and the heat map of important DEGs in roots and leaves.</p> Full article ">Figure 5
<p>Pathways and genes associated with response to Sb stress in tall fescue roots and leaves. (<b>A</b>) The pathway of phenylpropanoid biosynthesis, flavonoid biosynthesis, and phenylalanine metabolism in the roots of tall fescue. (<b>B</b>) The pathway of glutathione metabolism, beta-alanine metabolism, glycine, serine, and threonine metabolism in the leaves of tall fescue.</p> Full article ">
17 pages, 3225 KiB  
Article
The Effect of Drought on Agronomic and Plant Physiological Characteristics of Cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata L.) Cultivars
by Lukas Gaier, Erich M. Poetsch, Wilhelm Graiss, Andreas Klingler, Markus Herndl and Bernhard Krautzer
Agriculture 2024, 14(7), 1116; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14071116 - 10 Jul 2024
Viewed by 702
Abstract
Cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata L.) is becoming increasingly important for grassland farming due to climate change, which alters precipitation and increases droughts. Although it is generally considered to be drought-tolerant, little is known about the differences between cultivars. This study aimed to investigate [...] Read more.
Cocksfoot (Dactylis glomerata L.) is becoming increasingly important for grassland farming due to climate change, which alters precipitation and increases droughts. Although it is generally considered to be drought-tolerant, little is known about the differences between cultivars. This study aimed to investigate the effects of four different field capacity (FC) levels (80%, 60%, 40%, and rewetting to 80% after a period of 40% FC) on the yield, crude protein content, water consumption, water use efficiency (WUE), and drought susceptibility index of five European cocksfoot cultivars (cv). A pot experiment was conducted in a greenhouse subjected to the specified irrigation treatments over three growth periods. The results revealed significant differences in the cultivars’ responses to the irrigation treatments. Dry matter yield decreased under simulated drought conditions, while crude protein content and WUE increased. Prolana cv achieved the highest yield under drought conditions, Tandem cv had the highest WUE, and Laban cv exhibited the highest crude protein content. Rewetting to 80% FC in the last growth period resulted in similar dry matter and crude protein yields for all cultivars compared to full irrigation. These findings highlight the importance of selecting and breeding drought-tolerant cocksfoot cultivars to maintain high yields and quality in perennial grassland farming under future climate conditions. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Responses and Tolerance to Abiotic Stress in Forage and Turf Grasses)
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Figure 1

Figure 1
<p>Experimental design with five cocksfoot cultivars and four irrigation levels: FC<sub>80</sub>, FC<sub>60</sub>, FC<sub>40</sub>, and FC<sub>40rw</sub> in each of six replicates.</p> Full article ">Figure 2
<p>(<b>A</b>) Air temperature, (<b>B</b>) solar radiation, and (<b>C</b>) relative humidity during the experiment.</p> Full article ">Figure 3
<p>Timeline diagram of the experimental course.</p> Full article ">Figure 4
<p>Drought susceptibility index (DSI) of five cocksfoot cultivars over the entire experiment period.</p> Full article ">
19 pages, 13159 KiB  
Article
Transcriptomic Analysis of Melatonin-Mediated Salt Stress Response in Germinating Alfalfa
by Zirui Liu, Xiangling Ren, Wenxuan Zhu, Yingao Li, Guomin Li, Caifeng Liu, Defeng Li, Yinghua Shi, Chengzhang Wang, Xiaoyan Zhu and Hao Sun
Agriculture 2024, 14(5), 661; https://doi.org/10.3390/agriculture14050661 - 24 Apr 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1404
Abstract
Salt stress poses a significant threat to crop yields worldwide. Melatonin (MT), an endogenous hormone synthesized in plants, has emerged as a crucial player in plant responses to various abiotic stresses, including drought, salinity, heat, and cold. However, the precise molecular mechanisms underlying [...] Read more.
Salt stress poses a significant threat to crop yields worldwide. Melatonin (MT), an endogenous hormone synthesized in plants, has emerged as a crucial player in plant responses to various abiotic stresses, including drought, salinity, heat, and cold. However, the precise molecular mechanisms underlying MT-mediated abiotic stress responses remain incompletely understood. To elucidate the key genes and pathways involved in MT-mediated alleviation of salt stress, we conducted physiological, biochemical, and transcriptomic analyses on alfalfa seedlings. Our results demonstrated that alfalfa seedlings treated with melatonin exhibited higher germination rates, longer bud lengths, and greater fresh weights compared to those subjected to salt stress alone. Furthermore, the levels of malondialdehyde (MDA) and superoxide anion (O2−) were reduced, while the activities and contents of antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), and glutathione (GSH) increased in response to melatonin treatment. Transcriptome analysis revealed 2181 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in the salt-treated group, with 780 upregulated and 1401 downregulated genes. In contrast, the MT-treated group exhibited 4422 DEGs, including 1438 upregulated and 2984 downregulated genes. Functional annotation and pathway enrichment analysis indicated that DEGs were primarily involved in the biosynthesis of flavonoids, isoflavones, plant hormones, glutathione (GSH), soluble sugars, and other substances, as well as in ABC transporter and MAPK signaling pathways. Notably, the MT-treated group showed greater enrichment of DEGs in these pathways, suggesting that MT mitigates salt stress by modulating the expression of genes related to phytohormones and antioxidant capacity. Overall, our findings provide valuable insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying MT-mediated salt tolerance in alfalfa, with important implications for breeding salt-tolerant alfalfa and other crops. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Responses and Tolerance to Abiotic Stress in Forage and Turf Grasses)
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Figure 1

Figure 1
<p>Melatonin alleviates the inhibitory effect of salt stress on seed germination, root length, and fresh weight. (<b>A</b>) Alfalfa seedling phenotypes. Bar = 2 cm. (<b>B</b>) Seed germination rate after 7-day treatment. Line chart represents the average of six biological replicates with standard deviation, and each replicate has 30 seeds. (<b>C</b>) Root length; columns with different lowercase letters indicate significant differences among treatments at <span class="html-italic">p</span> &lt; 0.05 using Duncan’s test. Data represent the average of three biological replicates with standard deviation, and each replicate has 10 plants. (<b>D</b>) Fresh weight of alfalfa seedlings; the column represents the mean of the three biological replicates. Different lowercase letters indicate significant differences between treatments by Duncan’s test. CK indicates control.</p> Full article ">Figure 2
<p>Exogenous melatonin can alleviate the oxidative stress caused by NaCl treatment. O<sup>2−</sup> content (<b>A</b>), MDA content (<b>B</b>), SOD activity (<b>C</b>), POD activity (<b>D</b>), and GSH content (<b>E</b>). The columns represent the average of three biological replicates, each with ten individual plants. Using the Duncan test, different lowercase letters indicated significant differences between treatments.</p> Full article ">Figure 3
<p>Comprehensive visualization of control DEGs CK, NaCl, and MT combined with NaCl (MT + NaCl). (<b>A</b>) The Venn diagram shows the unique and shared DEGs. (<b>B</b>) The number of differentially expressed genes and the number of upregulated and downregulated genes. (<b>C</b>) Analysis of variance for multiple groups. * <span class="html-italic">p</span> &lt; 0.05, ** <span class="html-italic">p</span> &lt; 0.01. (<b>D</b>) Hierarchical clustering analysis based on the log<sub>2</sub> RPFK expression trends of DEGs under salt alone or with melatonin treatment.</p> Full article ">Figure 4
<p>Functional annotation and KEGG enrichment analysis of differentially expressed genes. According to the GO classification of DEGs, DEGs are divided into metabolic classes according to biological processes, cell components, and molecular functions, and the three colors from top to bottom represent ZMNMT vs. CK, ZMN vs. CK, and ZMNMT vs. ZMN, respectively.</p> Full article ">Figure 5
<p>Weighted gene co-expression network analysis (WGCNA) revealed the correlation between salt-stress-related physiological indices regulated by melatonin and differentially expressed genes. (<b>A</b>) The heat map shows the correlation between the modules and the physiological parameters. The branches represent a gene, and one color represents a module. (<b>B</b>) Module classification tree using WGCNA hierarchical clustering. (<b>C</b>) Co-expression network of DEGs in MEturquoise. (<b>D</b>) Co-expression network of DEGs in MEblue.</p> Full article ">Figure 6
<p>According to KEGG and the related literature, the log<sub>2</sub>FC of essential genes for the synthesis of important metabolites under three different treatments was plotted for cluster analysis. Italics represent gene IDs of labeled enzymes or transcription factors, including essential genes involved in abscisic acid synthesis and signal transduction (<b>A</b>), gibberellin (<b>B</b>), flavonoid biosynthesis (<b>C</b>), GSH biosynthesis (<b>D</b>), and MAPK signaling pathway (<b>E</b>).</p> Full article ">Figure 7
<p>The results of RT-qPCR involved ten key genes, including genes synthesized by <span class="html-italic">NCED</span> (<b>A</b>), <span class="html-italic">GA20ox</span> (<b>B</b>), <span class="html-italic">CHS</span> (<b>C</b>), <span class="html-italic">proC</span> (<b>D</b>), <span class="html-italic">PRODH</span> (<b>E</b>), <span class="html-italic">ASMT</span> (<b>F</b>), <span class="html-italic">PYL</span> (<b>G</b>), <span class="html-italic">GA2ox</span> (<b>H</b>), <span class="html-italic">G1D1</span> (<b>I</b>), and <span class="html-italic">ACCO</span> (<b>J</b>). To ensure reproducibility and reliability, RT-qPCR analysis was performed on three independent biological replicates. The relative expression level was calculated according to the 2<sup>−∆∆CT</sup> method. The columns represent the average of three biological replicates. Using the Duncan test, different lowercase letters indicated significant differences between treatments.</p> Full article ">
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