Abstract
Main conclusion
miRNAs control leaf size of maize crop during chilling stress tolerance by regulating developmentally important transcriptional factors and sustaining redox homeostasis of cells.
Abstract
Chilling temperature (0–15 °C) is a major constraint for the cultivation of maize (Zea mays) which inhibits the early growth of maize leading to reduction in leaf size. Growth and development take place in meristem, elongation, and mature zones that are linearly located along the leaf base to tip. To prevent shortening of leaf caused by chilling, this study aims to elucidate the regulatory roles of microRNA (miRNA) genes in the controlling process switching between growth and developmental stages. In this respect, hybrid maize ADA313 seedlings were treated to the chilling temperature which caused 26% and 29% reduction in the final leaf length and a decline in cell production of the fourth leaf. The flow cytometry data integrated with the expression analysis of cell cycle genes indicated that the reason for the decline was a failure proceeding from G2/M rather than G1/S. Through an miRNome analysis of 321 known maize miRNAs, 24, 6, and 20 miRNAs were assigned to putative meristem, elongation, and mature zones, respectively according to their chilling response. To gain deeper insight into decreased cell production, in silico, target prediction analysis was performed for meristem specific miRNAs. Among the miRNAs, miR160, miR319, miR395, miR396, miR408, miR528, and miR1432 were selected for confirming the potential of negative regulation with their predicted targets by qRT-PCR. These findings indicated evidence for improvement of growth and yield under chilling stress of the maize.
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Abbreviations
- LER:
-
Leaf elongation rate
- P:
-
Cell production
- Tc :
-
Cell cycle duration
- CYC :
-
Cyclin
- TCPs :
-
TEOSINTE BRANCHED1, CYCLOIDEA and PCF coding gene like transcription factors
- GAMYB :
-
Gibberellin- And Abscisic Acid-Regulated MYB
- ARFs :
-
Auxin responsive factor transcription factors
- GRFs :
-
growth-regulating factors
- VEP1 :
-
(3-Oxo-Delta(45)-steroid 5-beta-reductase
- SOD :
-
Superoxide dismutase
- WAK3 :
-
Wall-associated kinase 3
- CMT2 :
-
TRNA (cytosine(34)-C(5))-methyltransferase-like isoform X2
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Acknowledgements
This work was supported by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) [Grant number 115Z527]. The author would like to thank Dr. Stuart James Lucas and Dr. Eda Ustaoglu for helping in revising the manuscript.
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Aydinoglu, F. Elucidating the regulatory roles of microRNAs in maize (Zea mays L.) leaf growth response to chilling stress. Planta 251, 38 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-019-03331-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00425-019-03331-y