Biology subjects

Pascual, L. S.

Publications and source records attributed to Pascual, L. S..

2 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2023

Integrative phenotypic-transcriptomic analysis of soybean plants subjected to multifactorial stress combination

Global warming, climate change, and industrial pollution are altering our environment subjecting crops to an increasing number and complexity of abiotic stress conditions, concurrently or sequentially. Recent studies revealed that a combination of 3 or more stresses simultaneously impacting a plant (termed multifactorial stress combination; MFSC) can cause a drastic decline in plant growth and survival, even if the level of each stress involved in the MFSC has a negligible effect on plants. However, the impacts of MFSC on crops are largely unknown. We subjected soybean plants to a MFSC of up to five different stresses (water deficit, salinity, low phosphate, acidity, and cadmium), in an increasing level of complexity, and conducted integrative transcriptomic-phenotypic analysis of reproductive and vegetative tissues. We reveal that MFSC has a negative cumulative effect on soybean yield, that each set of MFSC condition elicits a unique transcriptomic response (that is different between flowers and leaves), and that selected genes expressed in leaves or flowers are linked to the effects of MFSC on different vegetative, physiological, and/or reproductive parameters. We further reveal that the transcriptomic response of soybean and Arabidopsis to MFSC shares common features associated with reactive oxygen and iron/copper signaling/metabolism. Our study provides unique phenotypic and transcriptomic datasets for dissecting the mechanistic effects of MFSC on the vegetative, physiological, and reproductive processes of a crop plant.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2022

The effects of multifactorial stress combination on rice and maize

The complexity of environmental factors affecting plants is gradually increasing due to global warming, an increase in the number and intensity of climate change-driven weather events, such as droughts, heat waves, and floods, and the accumulation of different pollutants. The impact of multiple stress conditions on plants was recently termed multifactorial stress combination (MFSC) and defined as the occurrence of three or more stressors that impact plants simultaneously or sequentially. We recently reported that with the increased number and complexity of different stressors, the growth and survival of Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings declines; even if the level of each individual stress is low enough to have no significant effect on plants. This finding is alarming since it reveals that MFSCs of different low-level stressors could impact crops and cause a dramatic reduction in overall growth. However, whether MFSC would impact commercial crop cultivars has not been studied. Here, we reveal that a MFSC of 5 different low level abiotic stresses (salinity, heat, the herbicide paraquat, phosphorus deficiency, and the heavy metal cadmium), applied in an increasing level of complexity, has a significant negative impact on the growth and biomass of a commercial rice (Oryza sativa) cultivar and a maize (Zea mays) hybrid. We further report on the first proteomics analysis of MFSC in plants that identified over 300 proteins common to all 4- and 5-MFSCs. Taken together our findings reveal that the impacts of MFSC on two different crop species are severe, and that MFSC may significantly affect agricultural productivity.

plant biology↗