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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Functional and Applied Plant Genomics
Volume 15 - 2024 |
doi: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1533527
This article is part of the Research Topic New Insights into Integrated Environmental Signals and Plant Adaptation View all articles
Title The molecular mechanism by which heat stress during the grain filling period inhibits maize grain filling and reduces yield
Provisionally accepted
Xiaohu Li
1
Shilin Zhuge
2*
Jiyuan Du
2
Peng Zhang
2*
Xingyu Wang
2*
Tianjian Liu
2*
Donghui Li
2*
Haoran Ma
2*
Xinzheng Li
2*
Yongxin Nie
2*
Haiping Ding
2*
Zhiming Zhang
2*- 1 Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, China
- 2 National Key Laboratory of Wheat Breeding, College of Life Sciences,, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, China
High temperature significantly affects plant growth and development by limiting maize grain filling, but the molecular mechanisms behind heat stress are still unclear. This study compared the responses of 350 elite maize inbred lines to high temperature in the field and determined the phenotypes of the heat-tolerant inbred line Zheng58 and the heat-sensitive inbred line Qi319. The two inbred lines were exposed to 30°C/20°C and 42°C/30°C conditions during the grain filling period. Under heat stress, the thousand-kernel weight of grains decreased and the seed setting rate decreased, especially for the heat-sensitive Qi319. The grain filling rate of heat-resistant Zheng58 was about 48% higher than that of Qi319, and the seed setting rate was increased by 57%. Transcriptome analysis showed that heat stress affected grain filling rate and seed setting rate mainly by disrupting starch synthesis and hormone homeostasis, especially abscisic acid and auxin levels. Heat stress reduced the photosynthetic and transpiration rates of panicle leaves, resulting in the downregulation of genes related to light-harvesting complexes, photosystem I subunits, and water transport, which play an important role in stress response and adaptation. The results of this study provide a theoretical basis for further improving the effects of heat stress on grain filling.
Keywords: Heat stress, Maize, grain filling, kernel development, stress response
Received: 24 Nov 2024; Accepted: 26 Dec 2024.
Copyright: © 2024 Li, Zhuge, Du, Zhang, Wang, Liu, Li, Ma, Li, Nie, Ding and Zhang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Shilin Zhuge, National Key Laboratory of Wheat Breeding, College of Life Sciences,, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, China
Peng Zhang, National Key Laboratory of Wheat Breeding, College of Life Sciences,, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, China
Xingyu Wang, National Key Laboratory of Wheat Breeding, College of Life Sciences,, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, China
Tianjian Liu, National Key Laboratory of Wheat Breeding, College of Life Sciences,, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, China
Donghui Li, National Key Laboratory of Wheat Breeding, College of Life Sciences,, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, China
Haoran Ma, National Key Laboratory of Wheat Breeding, College of Life Sciences,, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, China
Xinzheng Li, National Key Laboratory of Wheat Breeding, College of Life Sciences,, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, China
Yongxin Nie, National Key Laboratory of Wheat Breeding, College of Life Sciences,, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, China
Haiping Ding, National Key Laboratory of Wheat Breeding, College of Life Sciences,, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, China
Zhiming Zhang, National Key Laboratory of Wheat Breeding, College of Life Sciences,, Shandong Agricultural University, Taian, China
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