Drought is one of the environmental factors inhibiting plant productivity and growth, leading to oxidative damage. This study aims to identify the role of sodium hydrosulfide (NaHS) as a hydrogen sulfide (H2S) donor in drought stress tolerance in Brassica napus. Drought-induced stress symptoms appeared eight days after treatment, showing wilted leaves and a significant reduction of leaf water potential. Drought-induced increase of lipid peroxidation was significantly reduced by NaHS application. NaHS-treated plants mitigated stress symptoms under drought conditions by reducing hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) content, confirmed with H2O2 localization in situ. Furthermore, NaHS promotes photosynthetic activity by maintaining chlorophyll and carotenoid content, thereby supporting plant growth under drought conditions. Pyrroline-5-carboxylate and proline contents were significantly increased by drought but further enhanced by NaHS treatment, indicating the important roles of proline accumulation in drought stress tolerance. In conclusion, this study provides valuable insight into the roles of NaHS in alleviating drought stress by reducing oxidative stress and promoting proline accumulation. Therefore, NaHS may serve as an effective strategy to enhance crop production under drought-stress conditions.

Ethylene-responsive factors (ERFs) are important plant transcription factors (TFs) that regulate plant responses against various abiotic stresses. However, little information of ERF genes involved in abiotic stress is available in petunia (Petunia ×hybrida). In this study, a petunia ERF gene, PhERF039, was cloned and functional analysis was performed. The quantitative PCR analysis revealed that PhERF039 was induced at the early stage of water deficit stress. Under-expression of PhERF039 (UE) exhibited rosette growth habit, higher number of branches, and delayed flowering compared to the wild type (WT). The UE petunia was evaluated under various volumetric water contents (θ): 0.25, 0.15, 0.10, or 0.05 m3·m-3 using an automated irrigation system. Transgenic plants did not delay plant wilting, but the θ for UE reached to the set point later than that for WT. A lower stomatal conductance was observed in UE than WT under all treatments. These results suggested that PhERF039 could be involved in plant responses under water deficit by regulating stomatal movements as well as branching pattern and flower development.

This study was carried out to establish various physiological changes according to soil water stress and to compare the degree of water stress between two species of grapevines (‘Jinok’ as a new breeding cultivar and ‘Campbell Early’ as a control) using thermography. Soil water potentials were treated at -70, -30, and -5 kPa with waterlogging for 7 days. Regarding the photosynthetic rates (A) of the two cultivars, they showed an order of –30 kPA > -5 kPa > -70 kPa in order. With -70 kPa and waterlogging treatments, a decrease of photosynthetic rate was observed at 3 days after treatment, with a more significant decrease accumulating over time. At 7 days after treatment, photosynthetic rates of ‘Campbell Early’ (33.3, 45.6%) and ‘Jinok’ (56.6, 57.3%) grapes decreased compared to those with -30 kPa treatment. H2O2 and proline synthesis were the highest with the waterlogging treatment. In terms of proline synthesis, ‘Campbell Early’ had a relatively higher rate than ‘Jinok’. Leaf and stem water potential were the lowest with the -70 kPa treatment and the highest with the - 30 kPa treatment f or both cultivars. Crop water stress index (CWSI) showed the following order: waterlogging > -70 kPa > -5 kPa > -30 kPa, which was the opposite result of water vapor transfer (IG). As a result of correlation analysis between factors, photosynthetic rate showed negative correlations with the water potential of leaf and stem and crop water stress index but a positive correlation with the relative water content of leaves. Thus, tolerance to water stress of ‘Campbell Early’ was relatively stronger than that of ‘Jinok’ grape. It is possible to compare water stress using infrared imaging.

Drought stress is a condition that occurs frequently in the field, it reduces of the agricultural yield of field crops. The aim of the study was to screen drought-adapted genotype of Italian rye grass. The experiments were conducted between the two Italian ryegrass (Lolium multiflorum L.) cultivars viz. Hwasan (H) and Kowinearly (KE). The plants were exposed to drought for 14 days. The results suggest that the morphological traits and biomass yield of KE significantly affected by drought stress-induced oxidative stress as the hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) level was induced, while these parameters were unchanged or less affected in H. Furthermore, the cultivar H showed better adaptation by maintaining several physiological parameter including photosystem-II (Fv/Fm), water use efficiency (WUE) and relative water content (RWC%) level in response to drought stress. These results indicate that the cultivar H shows improved drought tolerance by generic variation, improving photosynthetic efficiency and reducing oxidative stress damages under drought stress. These findings can be useful to the breeder and farmer for improving drought tolerance in Italian rye grass through breeding programs.

The objective of this study was to determine effects of phosphorus on lignification and carbohydrate metabolism in Kentucky bluegrass under drought stress. Drought stress was induced by reducing of water to plants in pots. Two types of phosphorus were applied as potassium phosphate (PO4 3-; P) or potassium phosphonate (PO3 3-; PA) in drought-stressed plants. Drought had significant negative effects on plant growth, as revealed by reduced biomass of shoot. Drought-induced increase of lignin content was concomitant with the increase of phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL). Soluble sugar content was highly increased but fructan content was largely decreased by drought stress. However, the application of phosphorus was efficient to ameliorate the adverse effects of drought. PA application improved reduced shoot growth and relative water content, and inhibited lignification synthesis with a reduction of PAL activity. P or PA application maintained soluble sugar and fructan content at similar levels to controls under drought stress. These results indicate that phosphorus application may mitigate the drought stress by inhibiting the lignification and promoting the fructan assimilation.

최근 최소한으로 가공된 안전한 식품에 대한 소비자의 수요가 기하급수적으로 증가하고 있다. 이러한 이유로 많은 식품가공 업체에서는 식품안전을 강화하고 유통기한을 연장하기 위한 최소한의 가공공정 중 허들기술(hurdle technology)을 적용하고 있다. 한편, 연구에 따르면 식품에 함유된 병원균을 비활성화하기 위한 공정 및 방법들은 식중독세균들의 스트레스 적응 메커니즘을 촉발시켜 심지어 후속 치료로부터 교차 보호를 준다. 또한, 항생 제와 제초제 사용과 같은 일상적인 농장 관행은 항생제 내성을 가진 병원균의 생성을 초래할 수 있다. 이러한 항생제 내성 박테리아는 식품 처리과정과 관련된 스트레스에 내성을 가질 수 있고 가공 식품에서 생존 할 수 있는 가능성을 높일 수 있다. 이 리뷰에서는 식품 가공과 관련된 스트레스와 항생제 내성의 상관관계에 대해 논의한다. 또한, 항균성 화합물 및 기타 식품 처리 관련 스트레스에 대한 교차 보호 수단으로서 시그마 인자 (sigma factors), SOS 반응 경로(SOS response pathways) 및 유출 펌프(efflux pumps)의 사용과 같은 분자유전학적 기작에 대해서도 논의한다.

Glutathione S-transferase (GST) is a key gene involved in multiple stress tolerance in all living organisms, though it is still to be disclosed the gene function in teff grass [Eragrostis tef (Zucc.)Trotter].The objectives of this study were to clone and molecular characterization of GST gene in teff grass. We characterized GST1 from teff grass (EtGST1), it composed of a 645-bp open reading frame (ORF) that encoded 195 amino acid residue. Further, we transformed EtGST1 in E.coli BL21 (DE3) cells. This recombinant EtGST1 in E.coli BL21(DE3) induced at 37°C temperature. In addition, Growth of cells overexpressing EtGST1 rapidly increased in the presence of polyethylene glycol (5%), heat (46°C), NaCl (0.6%), and arsenic (1 mM) than that of cells harboring an empty vector. These results suggest that EtGST1 would be suitable candidate for improving tolerance in forages and/or grasses species against multiple abiotic stresses.

The beneficial effect of silicon (Si) in increasing salt stress tolerance has been observed in many plants, including the cereal crops rice, wheat, and barley. In this experiment, we examined the effect of Si on the survival and growth of torenia (Torenia fournieri L inden ex F oum) ‘ Duchess Blue and White’ cultured in vitro in the presence and absence of salt stress. Previous reports had suggested that torenia exhibited low salt tolerance. Shoot buds isolated from 16-day-old seedlings were cultured on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium containing 0, 50, or 100 mM NaCl alone or in combination with 1.8 or 3.6 mM Si supplied as K2SiO3. Plant survival rate was significantly reduced by NaCl supplementation compared with the control. The survival rate significantly increased to 100% when 1.8 or 3.6 mM Si was added to the MS medium containing 50 mM NaCl. However, only 31% of plantlets survived when 1.8 mM Si was added to the culture medium containing 100 mM NaCl. Shoot and root lengths significantly decreased with increasing NaCl concentration in the culture medium, whereas addition of NaCl to the MS medium also significantly reduced fresh and dry weights. However, Si supplementation significantly increased fresh and dry weights under 50 mM NaCl, compared with the control. The greatest fresh and dry weights were recorded when shoot buds were cultured on MS medium containing 50 mM NaCl and 3.6 mM Si. The activities of the antioxidant-scavenging enzymes superoxide dismutase (SOD), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), and catalase (CAT), but not peroxidase (POD), were markedly higher in the presence of 50 mM NaCl than the activity of the control. When Si was added to the medium containing 50 mM NaCl, activities of SOD, POD, APX, and CAT decreased as compared with the 50 mM NaCl treatment. Thus, Si-mediated tolerance to NaCl stress was not due to increased activity of antioxidant enzymes. Although Si was not effective in increasing tolerance to high salt concentrations, such as 100 mM NaCl, the results suggested that Si supplementation could effectively enhance tolerance to 50 mM NaCl stress.

Arabidopsis nucleoside diphosphate kinase 2 (AtNDPK2) is an upstream signaling molecule that has been shown to induce stress tolerance in plants. In this study, the AtNDPK2 gene, under the control of a stress-inducible SWPA2 promoter, was introduced into the genome of tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) plants. The induction of the transgene expression mediated by methyl viologen (MV) and NaCl treatments were confirmed by RT-PCR and northern blot analysis, respectively. Under salt stress treatment, the transgenic tall fescue plants (SN) exhibited lower level of H2O2 and lipid peroxidation accumulations than the non-transgenic (NT) plants. The transgenic tall fescue plants also showed higher level of NDPK enzyme activity compared to NT plants. The SN plants were survived at 300 mM NaCl treatment, whereas the NT plants were severely affected. These results indicate that stress-inducible overexpression of AtNDPK2 might efficiently confer the salt stress tolerance in tall fescue plants.

규산은 작물의 필수원소에는 포함되어있지 않으나, 화본과 작물을 중심으로 내도복성과 병충해 저항성의 향상 , 군락구조 개선에 의한 광합성 능력의 향상 등에서 폭넓게 그 유용성이 알려져 왔으며, 최근에는 원예작물에서도 규산질 비료의 시용이 수량이나 병충해저항성을 향상시키는 효과가 입증되고 있어 친환경농업 관점에서도 주목을 밭고 있다. 본 실험은 배추 육묘 중 규산질 비료의 시용이 묘소질과 저온, 고온, 건조 등 환경내성에 미치는 영향을 검토하기 위하여 수행하였다. 규산염 처리농도를 8, 16, 32, 64 및 128mM로 설계 하여 주 2회 관주 처리 하고, 처리 3주 후에 생육조사 및 스트레스 내성에 대해 평가하였다. 생육조사 결과, 8, 16 및 32m의 농도에서는 대부분의 생육지표가 대조구에 비해 약간 증가하는 경향을 보였으나 8mM처리만 제외하고 통계적 유의차는 나타나지 않았다. 고농도인 128mM의 규산 처리구에서는 모든 생육 지표가 감소하였다. 총 뿌리 면적, 뿌리 길이 및 근단 수는 8, 16 및 32mM의 농도에서 증가했지만 64 및 128mM의 처리구 에서는 감소하였다. 규산 처리 농도가 증가함에 따라 증산 속도는 감소한 반면 기공확산 저항은 증가하는 경향을 보였다. 상대적 이온 누출율도 대조구에 비해 규산염 처리구에서 감소되었으나, 처리 농도간 유의차는 나타나지 않았다. 규산처리에 의해 고온과 저온 장해 지표도 감소되었으며, 농도간에는16과 32mM이 가장 효과적이었다. 규산처리에 따라 건조내성도 증가하여 대조구는 단수 후 3일째부터 위조되기 시작하여 5일째는 전 개체가 위조하였으나, 규산처리구는 4일(8, 64, 128 mM) 또는 5일(16과 32mM) 부터 위조가 시작되어 6일 (8mM)이나 7일(16, 32 ,64및 128 mM)이 지나서야 모든 공시 개체가 위조되었다.

본 실험에서는 염토지대에 조경용 식재로 사용이 가능한지 알아보기 위해 여러 과에 속하는 자생식물의 염 스트레스에 대한 내염성 정도를 조사하였다. NaCl의 처리에 따른 식물의 생육반응과 이온흡수 특성도 파악하여, 여러 식물에 대한 내성 정도를 구명하고자 하였다. 실험재료로 노랑꽃창포, 밀사초, 여우꼬리사초, 줄사초, 홍노줄사초, 애기부들, 바위 및 땅채송화 등을 이용하였다. 염농도는 0, 100, 200, 300mM로 처리해 주었다. 처리 4주 후 지상부 및 뿌리의 생체중 건물중, 엽내 무기이온 함량 등을 조사하였다. 줄사초, 왕밀사초, 여우꼬리사초, 노랑꽃창포 등은 NaCl 200mM의 고농도에서도 잘 견디는 초종으로 판단되었다. 홍노줄사초, 애기부들 등은 지하부 생육이 NaCl 100mM의 농도에서 저하되어, 지상부다 뿌리가 민감하게 반응하는 것으로 나타났다. 홍노줄사초는 K의 흡수량이 감소되었고, Na/K의 비율은 300mM의 농도에서 3으로 다른 종보다 높은 경향을 보였다. 애기부들은 NaCl의 농도가 증가됨에 따라 K, Ca, Mg의 흡수량이 일시 증가하다가 200mM의 농도부터 감소하는 경향을 보였고, Na/K의 비율은 300mM의 농도에서 0.8로 조사되었다. 땅채송화 및 바위채송화 등도 NaCl 100~200mM의 범위에서 지상부 및 지하부의 생육이 영향을 받는 것으로 나타났다. 바위채송화는 NaCl의 농도가 증가됨에 따라 K, Ca, Mg의 흡수량이 일시 증가하다가 200mM의 농도부터 감소하는 경향을 보였고, 땅채송화는 염농도에 따라 흡수량이 영향을 받지 않는 것으로 나타났다. Na/K의 비율은 300mM의 농도에서 모두 1로 조사되었다. 그러므로, 여우꼬리사초, 왕밀사초, 줄사초, 노랑꽃창포 등은 식물의 생육 및 이온흡수 특성을 고려할 때 NaCl 200mM의 고농도에서도 잘 견디는 초종으로 판단되었고, 특히 사초과 식물들의 내염성이 검증되어 앞으로 많이 활용될 수 있으리라 사료되었다. 홍노줄사초, 애기부들, 바위채송화, 땅채송화 등은 NaCl 100mM의 농도에서도 뿌리의 생육이 저하되었으며, 염처리에 따른 잎의 이온흡수특성은 뚜렷한 경향을 보이지 않았다.