Analysis of gene co-expression networks of phosphate starvation and aluminium toxicity responses in Populus spp.

Abstract

The adaptation of crops to acid soils is needed for the maintenance of food security in a sustainable way, as decreasing fertilizers use and mechanical interventions in the soil would favor the reduction of agricultural practices’ environmental impact. Phosphate deficiency and the presence of reactive aluminum affect vital processes to the plant in this soil, mostly water and nutrient absorption. From this, the understanding of the molecular response to these stresses can foster strategies for genetic improvement, so the aim was to broadly analyze the transcriptional variations in Poupulus spp. in response to these abiotic stresses, as a plant model for woody crops. A co-expression network was constructed among 3,180 genes differentially expressed in aluminum-stressed plants with 34,988 connections. Of this total, 344 genes presented two-fold transcriptional variation and the group of genes associated with those regulated after 246 hours of stress had higher number of connections per gene, with some already characterized genes related to this stress as main hubs. Another co-expression network was made up of 8,380 connections between 550 genes regulated by aluminum stress and phosphate deficiency, in which 380 genes had similar profile in both stresses and only eight with transcriptional variation higher than 20%. All the transcriptomic data are presented here with functional enrichment and homology comparisons with already characterized genes in another species that are related to the explored stresses, in order to provide a broad analysis of the co-opted responses for both the stresses as well as some specificity. This approach improves our understanding regarding the plants adaptation to acid soils and may contribute to strategies of crop genetic improvement for this condition that is widely present in regions of high agricultural activity.

A literature review of bioactive substances for the treatment of periodontitis: In vitro, in vivo and clinical studies

“…Poplars ( Populus spp.) comprise approximately 100 species and are commonly used in traditional medicine because of their bioactive compounds [ 80 , 108 , 109 ]. In particular, their leaf buds have been used to treat dermatitis in traditional medicine [ 110 ].…”

Dissecting the Roles of Phosphorus Use Efficiency, Organic Acid Anions, and Aluminum-Responsive Genes under Aluminum Toxicity and Phosphorus Deficiency in Ryegrass Plants

“…The increase in tolerance needed by plant genotypes to overcome Al stress under P deficiency has been attributed to the highly efficient acquisition and utilization of P [28,29]. In this sense, a pleiotropy between Al resistance and enhanced P uptake via improved root morphological traits has been suggested by Magalhaes et al (2018) [26].…”

“…Currently, the evidence has suggested that Al resistance can have pleiotropic effects on P efficiency, highlighting the role of Al resistance in crop adaptation to acid soils [26][27][28][29]. Although this co-adapted mechanism could allow plants to tolerate Al 3+ and utilize P more efficiently, little is known about the influence of genes related to Al resistance on the improvement of PAE and PUE in plants [26,29].…”

Strategies of tolerance reflected in two North American maple genomes

“…HBEF NuPert saplings grown in native ecological and environmental conditions within replicated long-term soil treatments provided an opportunity to examine differences in gene expression related to soil acidity, calcium deficiency, and increased aluminum availability. Previous experiments involving aluminum are typically short-term time series measurements of more immediate responses in very young seedlings maintained in controlled environments (Cardoso et al, 2019;Liu et al, 2009). Examination of these trees on the landscape allowed us to study the effects of long-term nutrient stress in conjunction with other life-history processes across seasons.…”