Huaqiao Ding^*, Lihui Mao, Qingcheng Zou, Wei Hu, Xuerui Cao, Qing Dong^*

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.91, No.4, pp. 773-789, 2022, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2022.018075

Abstract Snapdragon (Antirrhinum majus) is one of the most widely cultivated grass flowers in the world. WRKY transcription factors, VQ proteins and their interactions play crucial roles in plant response to abiotic stresses. However, little is known about WRKY and VQ gene families in snapdragon. In the present study, WRKY and VQ genes and their interactions were comprehensively analyzed in snapdragon using bioinformatics approaches, and their expression in response to drought and cold stresses was examined using real-time PCR. A total of 67 AmWRKY genes were identified in snapdragon, which were classified into different groups or subgroups based on phylogenetic analysis.… More >

HAKIM MANGHWAR^1,#,*, AMJAD HUSSAIN^2,#

BIOCELL, Vol.46, No.3, pp. 623-632, 2022, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2022.017316

Abstract Plants are recurrently exposed to myriads of biotic and abiotic stresses leading to several biochemical and physiological variations that cause severe impacts on plant growth and survival. To overcome these challenges, plants activate two primary defense mechanisms, such as structural response (cell wall strengthening and waxy epidermal cuticle development) and metabolic changes, including the synthesis of anti-microbial compounds and proteins, especially the pathogenesis-related (PR) proteins. PR proteins are members of a super large family of defense proteins that exhibit antimicrobial activities. Their over-expression in plants provides tolerance to many abiotic and biotic stresses. PR proteins have been classified into 17… More >

Deka Reine Judesse Soviguidi^1,2, Rui Pan¹, Yi Liu^1,2, Liping Rao^1,2, Wenying Zhang^1,*, Xinsun Yang^2,*

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.91, No.2, pp. 239-255, 2022, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2022.018284

Abstract During the evolution, plants acquired the ability to synthesize different phenylpropanoid compounds like chlorogenic acid (CGA), which plays vital roles in resistance mechanisms to abiotic stresses. These environmental factors, including heavy metal, cold, heat, ultraviolet (UV) light, drought, and salinity affect the plant physiological processes, resulting in massive losses of agriculture production. As plants evolve from green algae to bryophytes, ferns, gymnosperms and angiosperms, phenylpropanoids are produced and accumulated in different tissues, giving the plant the capacity to counteract the harmful effects of the adverse environments. Studies have been performed on the metabolic evolution of rosmarinic acid, flavonoids and lignin,… More >

Svetla P. Gateva^1,*, Gabriele Jovtchev¹, Tsveta V. Angelova¹, Tzvetana P. Nonova², Nikolay Tyutyundzhiev³, Elena G. Geleva², Kostadin Katrandzhiev¹, Nina A. Nikolova², Dimitar Dimitrov⁴, Christo V. Angelov²

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.91, No.2, pp. 293-313, 2022, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2022.016397

Abstract Plants in natural ecosystems are exposed to a combination of UV radiation, ionizing radiation (IR) and other abiotic factors. These factors change with the altitude. We investigated DNA alterations of some wild plants of different plant families in natural ecosystems at three altitudes in Rila Mountain, Bulgaria (1500, 1782, and 2925 m above sea level (a.s.l.) exposed to UV radiation, IR and other abiotic stresses, to assess the tolerance of plant species to the changing environmental conditions in three successive growth seasons. For this purpose, physicochemical, cytogenetic, and molecular methods were applied. DNA damage was assessed by micronucleus test and molecular… More >

XIAOFEN CHENG¹, ABEER HASHEM^2,3, ELSAYED FATHI ABD_ALLAH⁴, QIANGSHENG WU^1,5,*, KAMIL KUČA^5,*

BIOCELL, Vol.45, No.6, pp. 1687-1694, 2021, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2021.017581

Abstract Gibberellins (GAs) are an important hormone in regulating plant growth and development, and DELLA protein is an essential negative regulator of GA signal transduction. The aim of the study was to clone a GA-inhibiting protein DELLA from trifoliate orange (Poncirus trifoliata L. Raf.) and to analyze the bioinformations and expression patterns of the protein gene in tissues and in response to drought stress. A DELLA protein was isolated from trifoliate orange and named as PtGai (Genebank number: MZ170959). The PtGai protein had 1731 bp open reading frames, along with 576 amino acid codes, and also grouped with sweet orange (XM_006430552.4).… More >

Seerat Saleem¹, Naveed Ul Mushtaq¹, Wasifa Hafiz Shah¹, Aadil Rasool¹, Khalid Rehman Hakeem^2,*, Reiaz Ul Rehman^1,*

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.90, No.5, pp. 1363-1385, 2021, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2021.014826

Abstract Abiotic stresses such as drought, heat, cold, nutrient deficiency, excess salt and hazardous metals can hamper plantgrowth and development. Intensive agriculture of only a few major staple food crops that are sensitive and intolerant to environmental stresses has led to an agrarian crisis. On the other hand, nutritionally rich, gluten free and stress tolerant plants like millets are neglected and underutilized. Millets sustain about one-third of the world’s population and show exceptional tolerance to various abiotic and biotic stresses. Millets are C4 plants that are adapted to marginal and dry lands of arid and semi-arid regions, and survive low rainfall… More >

QICHAO WANG¹, WUJING ZENG¹, BASHARAT ALI², XUEMIN ZHANG³, LING XU^1,*, ZONGSUO LIANG^1,*

BIOCELL, Vol.45, No.4, pp. 1107-1119, 2021, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2021.015282

Abstract Andrographis paniculata (A. paniculata) is a Chinese herbal medicine that clears away heat, reduces inflammation, protects the liver, and promotes choleretics. The WRKYs of A. paniculata are still not well characterized, although many WRKYs have been identified in various plant species. In the present study, 59 A. paniculata WRKY (ApWRKY) genes were identified and renamed on the basis of their respective chromosome distribution. These ApWRKYs were divided into three groups via phylogenetic analysis according to their WRKY domains and combined with WRKY of Arabidopsis. The 59 identified ApWRKY transcription factors were nonuniformity distributed on 23 chromosomes of A. paniculata. From… More >

Xiaohang He¹, Minjie Liu², Zhengwu Fang¹, Dongfang Ma^1,2,3,*, Yilin Zhou^1,3,*, Junliang Yin¹

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.90, No.3, pp. 971-986, 2021, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2021.012726

Abstract Plant AT-rich sequence and zinc-binding protein (PLATZ) is a plant transcription factor that has been studied in corn. PLATZ can non-specifically bind to sequences rich in A/T bases to induce transcriptional repression. It is involved in the regulation of dehydration tolerance in seeds. In this study, we performed bioinformatics analysis to identify and characterize wheat PLATZ(TaPLATZ)genes. We identified 49 wheat PLATZ genes by searching the wheat genome by using known PLATZ gene sequences from rice, Arabidopsis, and maize. Phylogenetic analysis on PLATZ gene sequences from different species was performed. We found that PLATZs could be divided into three groups. The… More >

Abdul Awal Chowdhury Masud¹, Md. Fazlul Karim¹, M. H. M. Borhannuddin Bhuyan², Jubayer Al Mahmud³, Kamrun Nahar⁴, Masayuki Fujita⁵, Mirza Hasanuzzaman^1,*

Phyton-International Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol.90, No.2, pp. 353-372, 2021, DOI:10.32604/phyton.2021.013259

Abstract Drought is the most common form of abiotic stress that reduces plant growth and productivity. It causes plant injuries through elevated production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Potassium (K) is a vital plant nutrient that notably ameliorates the detrimental effect of drought stress in the plant. A pot experiment was conducted at the Laboratory of Plant Stress Responses, Faculty of Agriculture, Kagawa University, Japan, under controlled environment of green house to explore the role of K in mitigating drought severity in wheat (Triticum asevitum L.) seedlings. Three days after germination, seedlings were exposed to three water regimes viz., 100, 50,… More >

XIAOLIN ZHU^1,3, XIAOHONG WEI^1,3,*, BAOQIANG WANG^2,3, XIAN WANG², MINGJUN ZHANG⁴

BIOCELL, Vol.44, No.4, pp. 777-803, 2020, DOI:10.32604/biocell.2020.010153

Abstract AP2/ERE-type transcription factors, as a type of plant-specific transcription factors, play a key role in plant biotic and abiotic stress. Meanwhile, they have been studied in many plants, but rarely in tomatoes. In this study, we performed a genome-wide analysis of the SlAP2/ERF gene family of tomato, and finally identified 29 SlAP2/ERF genes and divided them into different subfamilies. At the same time, its basic physical and chemical properties were analyzed. We also constructed phylogenetic trees with 30 Arabidopsis AP2/ERF proteins and 28 potatoes AP2/ERF proteins to ensure conservative homology between them. In addition, we mapped 29 SlAP2/ERF transcription factors… More >