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Nitrate or NaCl regulates floral induction in Arabidopsis thaliana

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Abstract

Flowering, the transition from the vegetative to reproductive phase in plants, is regulated by both endogenous and environmental signals. Exposure to an extended period of stress (such as low nitrate or NaCl) can also promote flowering in many species, but little is known about how these forms of stress regulate floral induction. In this study, we found that stress induced by low concentrations of nitrate or NaCl activated the biosynthesis of gibberellin (GA) as evidenced by increased expression of the GA biosynthetic enzyme GA1. Expression of CO and SOC1 were also enhanced, leading to an acceleration of flowering. The effects of nitrate and NaCl on the photoperiod pathway were distinct, however. Two genes related to the photoperiod pathway, CCA1 and LHY, were repressed only under low NaCl treatment, while expression was unaltered by nitrate. Therefore, we suggest that the biosynthesis of gibberellin (GA) may play an important role in integrating signals induced by exogenous stress to regulate flowering in Arabidopsis.

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Abbreviations

SOC1 :

suppressor of overexpression of CO 1

VIN3 :

vernalization insensitive 3

GA :

gibberellic acid

FT :

flowering locus T

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Germplasm Enhancement, Key laboratory of Southern Vegetable Crop Genetic Improvement, Ministry of Agriculture, Nanjing Agricultural University, Nanjing, 210095, People’s Republic of China

    Tongkun Liu, Ying Li, Jun Ren, Yu Qian, Xuedong Yang, Weike Duan & Xilin Hou

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  1. Tongkun Liu
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  2. Ying Li
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  3. Jun Ren
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  7. Xilin Hou
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Correspondence to Xilin Hou.

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Liu, T., Li, Y., Ren, J. et al. Nitrate or NaCl regulates floral induction in Arabidopsis thaliana . Biologia 68, 215–222 (2013). https://doi.org/10.2478/s11756-013-0004-x

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