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bioRxiv · 10.1101/2020.05.26.117101

Underpinning wheat physiological and molecular responses to co-occurring iron and phosphate deficiency stress

Kaur, G.·Shukla, V.·Meena, V.·Kumar, A.·Singh, J.·Kandoth, P. K.·Mantri, S.·Raouched, H.·Pandey, A. K.
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Abstract

Iron (Fe) and phosphorus (P) are the essential mineral nutrient for plant growth and development. However, the molecular interaction of the Fe and P pathways in crops remained largely obscure. In this study, we provide a comprehensive physiological and molecular analysis of hexaploid wheat response to single (Fe, P) and its combinatorial deficiencies. Our data showed that inhibition of the primary root growth occurs in response to Fe deficiency; however, growth was rescued when combinatorial deficiencies occurred. Analysis of RNAseq revealed that distinct molecular rearrangements during combined deficiencies with predominance for genes related to metabolic pathways and secondary metabolite biosynthesis primarily include genes for UDP-glycosyltransferase, cytochrome-P450s, and glutathione metabolism. Interestingly, the Fe-responsive cis-regulatory elements in the roots in Fe stress conditions were enriched compared to the combined stress. Our metabolome data also revealed the accumulation of distinct metabolites such as amino-isobutyric acid, arabinonic acid, and aconitic acid in the combined stress environment. Overall, these results are essential in developing new strategies to improve the resilience of crops in limited nutrients. HIGHLIGHTSO_LIThis study was performed to understand the molecular changes occurring during the interaction of Phosphorus (P) and Iron (Fe) in hexaploid wheat roots. C_LIO_LIP and Fe show cross-talk as Fe deficiency-induced phenotype that was restored by the withdrawal of P. C_LIO_LIA total of 2780 differentially expressed genes were identified in the roots with the combined -Fe-P deficiencies with predominance for UDP-glycosyltransferases, cytochrome-450 and glutathione-S-transferases transcripts. C_LIO_LIThe metabolomic changes identified the importance of amino-isobutyric acid, arabinonic acid and aconitic acid during dual deficiency C_LIO_LIThis work provides a comprehensive insight to understand the molecular rearrangements occurring in wheat roots during Fe and P interaction. C_LI

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Kaur, G., Shukla, V., Meena, V., Kumar, A., Singh, J., Kandoth, P. K., Mantri, S., Raouched, H., Pandey, A. K.. 2020-05-29. Underpinning wheat physiological and molecular responses to co-occurring iron and phosphate deficiency stress. https://doi.org/10.1101/2020.05.26.117101

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