Transient silencing of phytoene desaturase reveals critical roles on plant response to salinity stress

• Published in: Acta physiologiae plantarum 2017-08, Vol.39 (8), p.1-15, Article 161
• Main Authors: Elmi Anaraki, Zohreh, Shariati, Mansour, Hosseini Tafreshi, Sayed Ali
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Agriculture; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Desaturase; Dissipation; Enzymes; Incidence; Infections; Life Sciences; Machinery and equipment; Malondialdehyde; Moisture content; Original Article; Pds gene; Performance indices; Photosynthesis; Photosynthetic pigments; Physiology; Pigments; Plant Anatomy/Development; Plant Biochemistry; Plant Genetics and Genomics; Plant growth; Plant Pathology; Plant Physiology; Plant viruses; Proline; Roots; Saline water; Salinity; Salinity effects; Salts; Shoots; Stress; Stresses; Tobacco; Viruses; Water content
• ISSN: 0137-5881; 1861-1664
• DOI: 10.1007/s11738-017-2460-3

In this work, we investigated the importance of phytoene desaturase ( PDS ) during salt stress in plants. For this aim, we transiently suppressed the corresponding gene of Nicotiana benthamiana using a Tobacco Rattle Virus silencing system. After salinity stress, the silenced plants were assayed for different growth and physiological parameters. The silenced plants were found to be induced more stunted and feeble shoots and roots than the negative controls. The results indicated that the concurrent incidence of salinity stress and viral infection did not have an additive influences on the plant growth and physiological parameters. Importantly, our results showed a more detrimental influence of salinity on plant growth and physiology after PDS silencing. Compared to the control, salt-stressed plants contained more proline, and malondialdehyde, less amount of photosynthetic pigments, higher Na + /K + ratios in shoots and roots and lower relative water content after PDS silencing. The activity of antioxidant enzymes were also decreased in the plants coped with salinity or Tobacco Rattle Virus. It was also represented that simultaneous silencing of the PDS gene and salinity treatment resulted in a significant decrease of the performance index (PI ABS ) and an increase of dissipation per active reaction center (DI o /RC) reflecting severe injuries in photosynthetic machinery under such a condition. Overall results suggested that PDS silencing could increase the sensitivity of plants to salinity.