Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Exogenously applied methyl jasmonate improves the drought tolerance in wheat imposed at early and late developmental stages

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Acta Physiologiae Plantarum Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Drought stress is one of the most detrimental abiotic stresses limiting wheat productivity worldwide. Methyl Jasmonate (MeJA), a stress signaling compound, may be effective in alleviating drought-induced adversities in wheat. Current study examined the role of exogenously applied MeJA in improving drought tolerance in five different wheat cultivars (Yu-Mai-1, Lu-Nong-116, Huai-Mai-19, Yan-Nong-19, Bai-Maizi). Drought stress (35 % field capacity) was imposed either at jointing (DS1), heading (DS2) or grain filling (DS3) stage. A control was maintained at field capacity of 90 % for comparison. The MeJA was applied at 0.5 mM after 1 week after imposition of drought. Data regarding different growth and yield attributes was recorded. Results depicted that drought stress at any growth stage substantially reduced the growth and yield of all wheat cultivars. More severe reductions in plant height, peduncle length, dry biomass (leaves, culm, root), and in yield components were observed in DS1 compared with DS2 or DS3. Exogenous application of MeJA effectively assuaged the damaging effects of drought. Beneficial effects of MeJA on dry biomass, number of grains per spike, and grain weight led to higher grain and biological yield in MeJA–treated plants under drought as well as control conditions. Variations were also apparent among cultivars regarding their response to drought stress. The cultivar Yu-Mai-1 remained superior to rest of cultivars in terms of wheat yield. In summary, our results suggested the involvement of MeJA in improving the drought tolerance of wheat by maintaining growth and yield performance of plants.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3
Fig. 4

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Abdelgawad ZA, Khalafaallah AA, Abdallah MM (2014) Impact of methyl jasmonate on antioxidant activity and some biochemical aspects of maize plant grown under water stress condition. Agr Sci 5:1077

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Agrawal GK, Tamogamib S, Iwahashic H, Agrawala VP, Rakwal R (2003) Transient regulation of jasmonic acid-inducible rice MAP kinase gene (OsBWMK1) by diverse biotic and abiotic stresses. Plant Physiol Biochem 41:355–361

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Alghabari F, Ihsan MZ, Hussain S, Aishia G, Daur I (2015) Effect of Rht alleles on wheat grain yield and quality under high temperature and drought stress during booting and anthesis. Environ Sci Pollut Res. doi:10.1007/s11356-015-4724-z

    Google Scholar 

  • Anjum SA, Farooq M, Wang LC, Xue LL, Wang SG, Wang L, Chen M (2011a) Gas exchange and chlorophyll synthesis of maize cultivars are enhanced by exogenously applied glycine betaine under drought conditions. Plant Soil Environ 57:326–331

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Anjum SA, Xie XY, Farooq M, Wang LC, Xue LL, Shahbaz M, Salhab J (2011b) Effect of exogenous methyl jasmonate on growth, gas exchange and chlorophyll contents of soybean subjected to drought. Afr J Biotech 10:9640–9646

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Anjum SA, Xie XY, Wang LC, Saleem MF, Man C, Lei W (2011c) Morphological, physiological and biochemical responses of plants to drought stress. Afr J Agr Res 6:2026–2032

    Google Scholar 

  • Aslam M, Zamir MSI, Afzal I, Yaseen M (2013) Morphological and physiological response of maize hybrids to potassium application under drought stress. J Agric Res 51:443–450

    Google Scholar 

  • Aslam M, Zamir MSI, Anjum SA, Khan I, Tanveer M (2014) An investigation into morphological and physiological approaches to screen maize (Zea mays L.) hybrids for drought tolerance. Cereals Res Comm. doi:10.1556/CRC.2014.0022

    Google Scholar 

  • Colom MR, Vazzana C (2003) Photosynthesis and PSII functionality of drought-resistant and drought-sensitive weeping lovegrass plants. Environ Exp Bot 49:135–144

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Fahad S, Hussain S, Matloob A, Khan FA, Khaliq A, Saud S et al (2014a) Phytohormones and plant responses to salinity stress: a review. Plant Growth Regul 75:391–404

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fahad S, Hussain S, Bano A, Saud S, Hassan S et al (2014b) Potential role of phytohormones and plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria in abiotic stresses: consequences for changing environment. Environ Sci Pollut Res 22:4907–4921

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Farooq M, Basra SMA, Wahid A, Cheema ZA, Cheema MA, Khaliq A (2008) Physiological role of exogenously applied glycinebetaine in improving drought tolerance of fine grain aromatic rice (Oryza sativa L.). J Agron Crop Sci 194:325–333

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Farooq M, Wahid A, Kobayashi N, Fujita D, Basra SMA (2009) Plant drought stress: effects, mechanisms and management. In Sustainable Agriculture Springer, Netherlands, pp 153–188

    Google Scholar 

  • Farooq M, Aziz T, ur Rehman H, ur Rehman A, Cheema SA (2011) Evaluating surface drying and re-drying for wheat seed priming with polyamines: effects on emergence, early seedling growth and starch metabolism. Acta Physiol Planta 33:1707–1713

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gevrek MN, Atasoy GD (2012) Effect of post anthesis drought on certain agronomical characteristics of wheat under two different nitrogen application conditions. Turk J Field Crops 17:19–23

    Google Scholar 

  • Guoth A, Tari I, Gall A, Csisza J, Pecsvaradi A, Cseuz L, Erdei L (2009) Comparison of the drought stress responses of tolerant and sensitive wheat cultivars during grain filling: changes in flag leaf photosynthetic activity, ABA levels, and grain yield. J Plant Growth Regul 28:167–176

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hassan UA, Ogunlela VB, Sinha TD (1987) Agronomic performance of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) as influenced by moisture stress at various growth stages and seeding rate. J Agron Crop Sci 158:172–180

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hassanein RA, Hassanein AA, El-Din AB, Salama M, Hashem HA (2009) Role of jasmonic acid and abscisic acid treatments in alleviating the adverse effects of drought stress and regulating trypsin inhibitor production in soybean plant. Aust J Basic Appl Sci 3:904–919

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hoekstra FA, Buitink J (2001) Mechanisms of plant desiccation tolerance. Trends Plant Sci 8:431–438

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Huang Y, Zhang G, Wu F, Chen J, Zhou M (2006) Differences in physiological traits among salt-stressed barley genotypes. Comm Soil Sci Plant Ana 37:557–570

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hulme M, Jenkins G, Lu X et al (2002) Climate change scenarios for the United Kingdom: the UKCIP02 Scientific Report Tyndall Centre. University of East Anglia, Norwich

    Google Scholar 

  • Hussain S, Peng S, Fahad S, Khaliq A, Huang J, Cui K, Nie L (2015) Rice management interventions to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions: a review. Environ Sci Pollut Res 22:3342–3360

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Javid MG, Sorooshzadeh A, Moradi F, Modarres Sanavy SAM, Allahdadi I (2011) The role of phytohormones in alleviating salt stress in crop plants. Aus J Crop Sci 5:726–734

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Jubany-Marí T, Prinsen E, Munné-Bosch S, Alegre L (2010) The timing of methyl jasmonate, hydrogen peroxide and ascorbate accumulation during water deficit and subsequent recovery in the Mediterranean shrub Cistus albidus L. Environ Exp Bot 69:47–55

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kim EH, Kim YS, Park SH, Koo YJ, Choi YD, Chung YY, Lee IJ, Kim JK (2009a) Methyl jasmonate reduces grain yield by mediating stress signals to alter spikelet development in rice. Plant Physiol 149:1751–1760

    Article  PubMed Central  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kim EH, Park SH, Kim JK (2009b) Methyl jasmonate triggers loss of grain yield under drought stress. Plant Sign Behav 4:348–349

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lee TM, Lur HS, Lin VH, Chu C (1996) Physiological and biochemical changes related to methyl jasmonate induced chilling tolerance of rice Oryza sativa L. Plant, Cell Environ 19:65–74

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Li DM, Guo YK, Li Q, Zhang J, Wang XJ, Bai JG (2012) The pretreatment of cucumber with methyl jasmonate regulates antioxidant enzyme activities and protects chloroplast and mitochondrial ultrastructure in chilling-stressed leaves. Sci Hort 143:135–143

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Ma C, Wang ZQ, Zhang LT, Sun MM, Lin TB (2014) Photosynthetic responses of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) to combined effects of drought and exogenous methyl jasmonate. Photosynthetica 52:377–385

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Mahmood M, Bidabadi SS, Ghobadi C, Dennis J (2012) Effect of methyl jasmonate treatments on alleviation of polyethylene glycol -mediated water stress in banana (Musa acuminata cv. ‘Berangan’, AAA) shoot tip cultures. Plant Growth Regul 68:161–169

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Muzammil S (2003) Response of durum and bread wheat genotypes to drought stress biomass and yield component. Asian J Plant Sci 2:290–293

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ortiz-Ferrara G (1991) Identification of agronomic traits associated with yield under stress conditions. In: Acevedo E et al (eds) Physiology breeding of winter cereals for stressed Mediterranean environments. INRA, Paris, pp 67–88

    Google Scholar 

  • Ozturk A, Aydin F (2004) Effect of water stress at various stages on some quality parameters of winter wheat. Crop Sci 190:93–99

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Popova L, Ananieva E, Hristova V, Christov K, Georgieva K, Alexieva V, Stoinova ZH (2003) Salicylic acid and methyl jasmonate-induced protection on photosynthesis to paraquat oxidative stress. Bul J Plant Physiol Special Issue, 133–152

  • Prasad PVV, Pisipati SR, Momčilović I, Ristic Z (2011) Independent and combined effects of high temperature and drought stress during grain filling on plant yield and chloroplast EF-Tu expression in spring wheat. J Agron Crop Sci 197:430–441

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Qiu Z, Guo J, Zhu A, Zhang L, Zhang M (2014) Exogenous jasmonic acid can enhance tolerance of wheat seedlings to salt stress. Eco Environ Safety 104:202–208

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Royo C, Villegas D, Rharrabti Y, Blanco R, Martos V, Garcia del Moral LF (2006) Grain growth and yield formation of durum wheat grown at contrasting latitudes and water regimes in a Mediterranean environment. Cereal Res Commun 34:1021–1028

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saidi A, Ookawa T, Motobayashi T, Hirasawa T (2008) Effects of soil moisture conditions before heading on growth of wheat plants under drought conditions in the ripening stage: insufficient soil moisture conditions before heading render wheat plants more resistant to drought during ripening. Plant Prod Sci 11:403–414

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saini HS, Westgate ME (2000) Reproductive development in grain crops during drought. Adv Agron 68:59–96

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Salzman RA, Brady JA, Finlayson SA, Buchanan CD et al (2005) Transcriptional profiling of sorghum induced by methyl jasmonate, salicylic acid, and aminocyclopropane carboxylic acid reveals cooperative regulation and novel gene responses. Plant Physiol 138:352–368

    Article  PubMed Central  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Saud S, Li X, Chen Y, Zhang L, Fahad S, Hussain S, Sadiq A, Chen Y (2014) Silicon application increases drought tolerance of kentucky bluegrass by improving plant water relations and morphophysiological functions. Sci World J. doi:10.1155/2014/368694

    Google Scholar 

  • Seghatoleslami MJ, Kafi M, Majidi E (2008) Effect of drought stress at different growth stages on yield and water use efficiency of five proso millet (Panicum miliaceum L.) genotypes. Pak J Bot 40:1427–1432

    Google Scholar 

  • Shakhatreh Y, Kafawin O, Ceccarelli S, Saoub H (2001) Selection of barley lines for drought tolerance in low-rainfall areas. J Agron Crop Sci 186:119–127

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shamsi K, Kobraee S (2011) Bread wheat production under drought stress conditions. Ann Biol Res 2:352–358

    Google Scholar 

  • Shamsi K, Petrosyan M, Noor-Mohammadi G, Haghparast R (2010) The role of water deficit stress and water use efficiency on bread wheat cultivars. J Appl Biosci 35:2325–2331

    Google Scholar 

  • Shan CJ, Liang ZS (2010) Jasmonic acid regulates ascorbate and glutathione metabolism in Agropyron cristatum leaves under water stress. Plant Sci 178:130–139

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sieling K, Christen O, Richter-Harder H, Hanus H (1994) Effects of temporary water stress after anthesis on grain yield and yield components in different tiller categories of two spring wheat varieties. J Agron Crop Sci 173:32–40

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Taiz L, Zeiger E (1991) Stress physiology: water and drought resistance. In: Taiz L, Zeiger E (eds) Plant physiology, 1st edn. Benjamin-Cummings, Reading, Mass, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Taiz L, Zeiger E (2002) Plant Physiology, 3rd edn. Sinauer Associates Inc., Publishers, Sunderland

    Google Scholar 

  • Ueda J, Saniewski M (2006) Methyl jasmonate–induced Stimulation of chlorophyll formation in the basal part of tulip bulbs kept under natural light conditions. J Fruit Oranam Plant Res. 14:199–210

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Walia H, Wilson C, Condamine P, Liu X, Ismail AM, Close TJ (2007) Large–scale expression profiling and physiological characterization of jasmonic acid-mediated adaptation of barley to salinity stress. Plant, Cell Environ 30:410–421

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wasternack C (2007) Jasmonates: an update on biosynthesis, signal transduction and action in plant stress response, growth and development. Ann Bot 100:681–697

    Article  PubMed Central  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wasternack C (2014) Action of jasmonates in plant stress responses and development—applied aspects. Biotechn Adv 32:31–39

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wu H, Wu X, Li Z, Duan L, Zhang M (2012) Physiological evaluation of drought stress tolerance and recovery in cauliflower (Brassica oleracea L.) seedlings treated with methyl jasmonate and coronatine. J Plant Growth Regul 31:113–123

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Xue Q, Zhu Z, Musick JT, Stewart BA, Dusek DA (2003) Root growth and water uptake in winter wheat under deficit irrigation. Plant Soil 257:151–161

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Yang J, Zhang J, Wang Z, Zhu Q, Liu L (2001) Water deficit–induced senescence and its relationship to the remobilization of pre-stored carbon in wheat during grain filling. Agron J 93:196–206

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zhang H, Wang X, You M, Liu C (1999) Water-yield relations and water-use efficiency of winter wheat in the North China Plain. Irrigation Sci 19:37–45

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zheng M, Tao Y, Hussain S, Jiang Q, Peng S, Huang J, Cui K, Nie L (2015) Seed priming in dry direct-seeded rice: consequences for emergence, seedling growth and associated metabolic events under drought stress. Plant Growth Regul. doi:10.1007/s10725-015-0083-5

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. College of Agronomy and Biotechnology, Southwest University, Chongqing, China

    Shakeel Ahmad Anjum & Longchang Wang

  2. Department of Agronomy, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad, Pakistan

    Shakeel Ahmad Anjum, Mohsin Tanveer, Imran Khan & Babar Shahzad

  3. National Key Lab of Crop Genetic Improvement, College of Plant Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China

    Mohsin Tanveer, Saddam Hussain, Shahbaz Atta Tung, Naveed ur Rehman & Adnan Noor Shah

  4. College of Resource and Environment Management, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China

    Saddam Hussain

  5. Biomass and Bioenergy Research Centre, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, China

    Rana Abdul Samad

Authors
  1. Shakeel Ahmad Anjum
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Mohsin Tanveer
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Saddam Hussain
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Shahbaz Atta Tung
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  5. Rana Abdul Samad
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  6. Longchang Wang
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  7. Imran Khan
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  8. Naveed ur Rehman
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  9. Adnan Noor Shah
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  10. Babar Shahzad
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Longchang Wang.

Additional information

Communicated by H. Li.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Anjum, S.A., Tanveer, M., Hussain, S. et al. Exogenously applied methyl jasmonate improves the drought tolerance in wheat imposed at early and late developmental stages. Acta Physiol Plant 38, 25 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11738-015-2047-9

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11738-015-2047-9

Keywords

Search

Navigation