He Jingyi, Tang Hongliang
School of Life Sciences, Hebei University, Baoding 071002, China.
Plants (Basel). 2024 Dec 16;13(24):3506. doi: 10.3390/plants13243506.
Soil salinization severely affects the quality and yield of maize. As a C4 plant with high efficiency in utilizing light and carbon dioxide, maize ( L.) is one of the most important crops worldwide. This study aims to investigate the pathways and mechanisms by which trehalose mediates the improvement of salt tolerance in maize through a combined analysis of physiology and transcriptomics. The results indicate that foliar application of trehalose treatment significantly increased maize biomass and antioxidant enzyme activity while reducing the HO and Na/K ratios in both the aerial and underground parts of the plant. Additionally, trehalose enhanced the total secretion of organic acids from maize roots, improving the soil microenvironment for maize growth under salt stress and alleviating Na toxicity. Transcriptomic data revealed that under salt stress, most differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were enriched in pathways related to photosynthesis, abscisic acid signaling, and sugar metabolism, and trehalose application increased the expression levels of these pathways, thereby mitigating the growth inhibition caused by salinity. This study elucidates mechanisms for enhancing salt tolerance in maize, providing theoretical support for improving its resilience and offering innovative strategies for utilizing a wide range of saline-alkali land.
土壤盐渍化严重影响玉米的品质和产量。玉米（L.）作为一种高效利用光和二氧化碳的C4植物，是全球最重要的作物之一。本研究旨在通过生理学和转录组学的综合分析，探究海藻糖介导提高玉米耐盐性的途径和机制。结果表明，叶面喷施海藻糖处理显著增加了玉米生物量和抗氧化酶活性，同时降低了植株地上和地下部分的过氧化氢含量及钠/钾比值。此外，海藻糖增强了玉米根系有机酸的总分泌量，改善了盐胁迫下玉米生长的土壤微环境，减轻了钠毒害。转录组数据显示，在盐胁迫下，大多数差异表达基因（DEGs）富集在与光合作用、脱落酸信号传导和糖代谢相关的途径中，施用海藻糖提高了这些途径的表达水平，从而减轻了盐度对生长的抑制作用。本研究阐明了增强玉米耐盐性的机制，为提高其抗逆性提供了理论支持，并为利用广泛的盐碱地提供了创新策略。
