Lopes Tiago, Costa Pedro, Cardoso Paulo, Figueira Etelvina
Department of Biology, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
CESAM-Centre for Environmental and Marine Studies, University of Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal.
Plants (Basel). 2024 Sep 2;13(17):2456. doi: 10.3390/plants13172456.
Maize is highly susceptible to drought, which affects growth and yield. This study investigated how bacterial volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) affect maize drought tolerance. Drought reduced shoot size but increased root length, an adaptation for accessing deeper soil moisture. BVOCs from strain D12 significantly increased root length and shoot growth under drought conditions. Drought also altered root biochemistry, decreasing enzyme activity, and increased osmolyte levels. BVOCs from strains F11 and FS4-14 further increased osmolyte levels but did not protect membranes from oxidative damage, while BVOCs from strains D12 and D7 strains reduced osmolyte levels and cell damage. In shoots, drought increased the levels of osmolytes and oxidative stress markers. BVOCs from FS4-14 had minimal effects on shoot biochemistry. BVOCs from D12 and F11 partially restored metabolic activity but did not reduce cell damage. BVOCs from D7 reduced metabolic activity and cell damage. These results suggest that BVOCs can modulate the biochemical response of maize to drought, with some strains evidencing the potential to enhance drought tolerance.
玉米对干旱高度敏感，干旱会影响其生长和产量。本研究调查了细菌挥发性有机化合物（BVOCs）如何影响玉米的耐旱性。干旱会减小地上部大小，但会增加根长，这是一种获取更深层土壤水分的适应性变化。来自菌株D12的BVOCs在干旱条件下显著增加了根长和地上部生长。干旱还改变了根的生物化学性质，降低了酶活性，并增加了渗透溶质水平。来自菌株F11和FS4 - 14的BVOCs进一步增加了渗透溶质水平，但并未保护细胞膜免受氧化损伤，而来自菌株D12和D7的BVOCs降低了渗透溶质水平和细胞损伤。在地上部，干旱增加了渗透溶质和氧化应激标志物的水平。来自FS4 - 14的BVOCs对地上部生物化学性质影响最小。来自D12和F11的BVOCs部分恢复了代谢活性，但并未减少细胞损伤。来自D7的BVOCs降低了代谢活性和细胞损伤。这些结果表明，BVOCs可以调节玉米对干旱的生化反应，一些菌株显示出增强耐旱性的潜力。
