Thabet Samar G, Safhi Fatmah Ahmed, Börner Andreas, Alqudah Ahmad M
Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, Fayoum University, Fayoum, 63514, Egypt.
Department of Biology, College of Science, Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, P.O. Box 84428, Riyadh, 11671, Saudi Arabia.
Plant Cell Rep. 2025 Jan 9;44(1):25. doi: 10.1007/s00299-024-03404-7.
Enhancing salt tolerance genetically through defining the genetic and physiological mechanisms intergenerational and transgenerational stress memory that contributes to sustainable agriculture by reducing the reliance on external inputs such as irrigation and improving the adaptability of barley to changing climate conditions. Salinity stress poses a substantial challenge to barley production worldwide, adversely affecting crop yield, quality, and agricultural sustainability. To address this, the present study utilized a genome-wide association san (GWAS) to identify genetic associations underlying intergenerational and transgenerational stress memory in response to salinity in a diverse panel of 138 barley accessions. We compared seeds from a second-generation group without salinity exposure (C1C2) to seeds from groups that experienced single-generation salt stress two generations ago (S1C2; transgenerational memory) or one generation ago (C1S2; intergenerational memory), as well as seeds from a group exposed to salinity across both generations (S1S2; combined memory effects). Our results revealed that historical salt stress, irrespective of the number of prior generations affected, induced significant changes in traits such as spike length, spikelets per spike, grains per spike, grain weight, thousand-kernel weight, and markedly increment in antioxidant components levels of enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidants. These findings indicate that prior exposure to salinity leaves lasting physiological and biochemical effects that enhance the plant's ability to respond to subsequent stress. Notably, the GWAS analysis identified highly significant genetic associations and candidate genes such as HORVU.MOREX.r3.4HG0383450 linked to most of these traits under salinity exposure histories. In conclusion, intergenerational and transgenerational stress memory plays a pivotal role in enhancing barley's salt tolerance, offering valuable insights for breeding programs aimed at developing resilient barley cultivars.
通过确定遗传和生理机制来增强大麦的耐盐性，这些机制涉及代际和跨代胁迫记忆，通过减少对灌溉等外部投入的依赖以及提高大麦对不断变化的气候条件的适应性，从而促进可持续农业发展。盐胁迫对全球大麦生产构成重大挑战，对作物产量、品质和农业可持续性产生不利影响。为应对这一问题，本研究利用全基因组关联研究（GWAS）来识别138份不同大麦种质在盐胁迫下代际和跨代胁迫记忆背后的遗传关联。我们将未受盐胁迫的第二代群体（C1C2）的种子与两代前经历过单代盐胁迫的群体（S1C2；跨代记忆）或一代前经历过单代盐胁迫的群体（C1S2；代际记忆）的种子进行比较，以及与两代都受盐胁迫的群体（S1S2；联合记忆效应）的种子进行比较。我们的结果表明，无论之前受影响的代数如何，历史盐胁迫都会导致穗长、每穗小穗数、每穗粒数、粒重、千粒重等性状发生显著变化，以及酶促和非酶促抗氧化剂等抗氧化成分水平显著增加。这些发现表明，先前的盐胁迫暴露会留下持久的生理和生化影响，从而增强植物对后续胁迫的响应能力。值得注意的是，GWAS分析确定了与盐胁迫暴露历史下的大多数这些性状相关的高度显著的遗传关联和候选基因，如HORVU.MOREX.r3.4HG0383450。总之，代际和跨代胁迫记忆在增强大麦耐盐性方面起着关键作用，为旨在培育抗逆性大麦品种的育种计划提供了有价值的见解。
