pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Molecular Responses of Vegetable, Ornamental Crops, and Model Plants to Salinity Stress - PubMed

  • ️Sun Jan 01 2023

Review

Molecular Responses of Vegetable, Ornamental Crops, and Model Plants to Salinity Stress

Stefania Toscano et al. Int J Mol Sci. 2023.

Abstract

Vegetable and ornamental plants represent a very wide group of heterogeneous plants, both herbaceous and woody, generally without relevant salinity-tolerant mechanisms. The cultivation conditions-almost all are irrigated crops-and characteristics of the products, which must not present visual damage linked to salt stress, determine the necessity for a deep investigation of the response of these crops to salinity stress. Tolerance mechanisms are linked to the capacity of a plant to compartmentalize ions, produce compatible solutes, synthesize specific proteins and metabolites, and induce transcriptional factors. The present review critically evaluates advantages and disadvantages to study the molecular control of salt tolerance mechanisms in vegetable and ornamental plants, with the aim of distinguishing tools for the rapid and effective screening of salt tolerance levels in different plants. This information can not only help in suitable germplasm selection, which is very useful in consideration of the high biodiversity expressed by vegetable and ornamental plants, but also drive the further breeding activities.

Keywords: adaptive mechanisms; antioxidative metabolism; salinity-induced protein; signal transduction.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1

Water balance of crops under normal conditions and under progressive stress conditions (from left to right). The increase in salinity stress induces the accumulation of osmolytes that increase the ability of root cells to uptake water (the cell osmotic potential becomes more negative). The progression of salinity and its severity cannot be counteracted with only osmolytes; the plant does not uptake water and loses its turgor. ΨW = water potential; Ψp = pressure potential; Ψπ = gravimetric potential; and Ψm = matric adsorption force.

Figure 2
Figure 2

At the cellular level, salinity induces osmotic stress, ion imbalance, ROS accumulation, DNA damage, and lipid peroxidation. Crops activate redox signaling that leads to the induction of antioxidant defenses, such as the biosynthesis of antioxidants or the activation of antioxidant enzymatic systems.

Figure 3
Figure 3

Possible Na+ uptake or extrusion in plant cells, including accumulation in the vacuole, for the protection of biochemical processes at the cytoplasm level.

Figure 4
Figure 4

The first crop salinity responses at the molecular level involve the expression of transcription factors that activate the regulatory genes responsible for the activation of secondary genes. These clusters of genes are involved in water and ion uptake, the production of antioxidant enzymes, and plant hormones biosynthesis.

Figure 5
Figure 5

Under salinity stress due to high sodium concentration, the cell activates several protective systems that lead to adaptation. The sodium sensor promotes an increase in calcium in the cytoplasm that regulates the SOS1 and SOS3. These complexes are responsible for sodium accumulation in the vacuole and extrusion of sodium in the apoplast out of the cell. Sodium and calcium regulate the plant hormone network and interact with each other to allow for crop adaptation to high-salinity conditions.

Similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Liang W., Ma X., Wan P., Liu L. Plant salt-tolerance mechanism: A review. Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 2018;495:286–291. doi: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2017.11.043. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Saddhe A.A., Malvankar M.R., Karle S.B., Kumar K. Reactive nitrogen species: Paradigms of cellular signaling and regulation of salt stress in plants. Environ. Exp. Bot. 2019;161:86–97. doi: 10.1016/j.envexpbot.2018.11.010. - DOI
    1. Chen J.-T., Aroca R., Romano D. Molecular aspects of plant salinity stress and tolerance. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2021;22:4918. doi: 10.3390/ijms22094918. - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Agarwal P., Agarwal P.K., Gohil D. Transcription Factor-Based Genetic Engineering for Salinity Tolerance in Crops. In: Kumar V., Wani S., Suprasanna P., Tran L.S., editors. Salinity Responses and Tolerance in Plants. Volume 1. Springer; Cham, Switzerland: 2018. pp. 185–211. - DOI
    1. Etesami H., Glick B.R. Halotolerant plant growth–promoting bacteria: Prospects for alleviating salinity stress in plants. Environ. Exp. Bot. 2020;178:104124. doi: 10.1016/j.envexpbot.2020.104124. - DOI

Publication types

MeSH terms

Grants and funding

This research received no external funding.

LinkOut - more resources