Li Xuebo, Wang Lei, Wang Heyi, Hao Rui, Gao Lunkai, Cui Hongbo, Wu Hai, Wu Xiaodong, Qiao Tong, Bai Weijie, Zhang Liming
Forestry College, Inner Mongolia Agricultural University, Hohhot, China.
Office of the People's Government of Haibowan District, District People's Government of Haibowan District, Wuhai, Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, China.
Front Plant Sci. 2025 Jan 21;15:1486436. doi: 10.3389/fpls.2024.1486436. eCollection 2024.
, a pivotal salt-tolerant plant species in Central Asian salt desert ecosystems, has garnered significant attention due to its resilience under harsh environmental conditions. This study investigates the response mechanisms of melatonin on the dynamic physiology and transcriptomics of , a critical salt-tolerant plant species in Central Asian salt desert ecosystems. Despite significant progress in understanding plant salt tolerance, research on the positive effects of melatonin on , particularly its impact on seed germination and the underlying physiological and molecular mechanisms, remains limited.
In this study, we evaluated the physiological responses of under continuous alkaline salt stress and examined the effect of melatonin on seed germination.
Our results demonstrate that melatonin at concentrations of 300μmol/L significantly enhances plant growth and promotes the accumulation of osmotic regulators. Notably, melatonin treatment increased the germination rate by 35.48% compared to the alkaline salt stress group, which exhibited a 52.15% lower germination rate than the untreated control. The key mechanism identified involves melatonin's ability to increase antioxidant enzyme activity, reduce reactive oxygen species and hydrogen peroxide levels, and alter gene expression patterns.
Transcriptomic analysis revealed significant changes in gene expression, particularly in photosynthetic signal transduction, phytohormone signaling, MAPK signaling, and the peroxisome pathway, which are crucial for the plant's response to alkaline salt stress. Our findings provide new insights into how melatonin affects plant growth, salt tolerance, seed germination, and gene expression in under continuous alkaline salt stress. These results address a significant gap in current scientific knowledge and offer valuable theoretical support and practical guidance for cultivating salt-resistant crops and the ecological restoration of salt-affected desert environments.
作为中亚盐碱荒漠生态系统中一种关键的耐盐植物物种，因其在恶劣环境条件下的适应能力而备受关注。本研究调查了褪黑素对中亚盐碱荒漠生态系统中一种关键耐盐植物物种动态生理和转录组学的响应机制。尽管在理解植物耐盐性方面取得了显著进展，但关于褪黑素对该植物的积极影响，特别是其对种子萌发的影响以及潜在的生理和分子机制的研究仍然有限。
在本研究中，我们评估了该植物在持续碱性盐胁迫下的生理反应，并研究了褪黑素对种子萌发的影响。
我们的结果表明，浓度为300μmol/L的褪黑素显著促进植物生长并促进渗透调节物质的积累。值得注意的是，与碱性盐胁迫组相比，褪黑素处理使发芽率提高了35.48%，而碱性盐胁迫组的发芽率比未处理的对照组低52.15%。确定的关键机制包括褪黑素增加抗氧化酶活性、降低活性氧和过氧化氢水平以及改变基因表达模式的能力。
转录组分析揭示了基因表达的显著变化，特别是在光合信号转导、植物激素信号转导、MAPK信号转导和过氧化物酶体途径中，这些对于植物对碱性盐胁迫的反应至关重要。我们的研究结果为褪黑素在持续碱性盐胁迫下如何影响该植物的生长、耐盐性、种子萌发和基因表达提供了新的见解。这些结果填补了当前科学知识的重大空白，并为培育耐盐作物和盐碱荒漠环境的生态恢复提供了有价值的理论支持和实践指导。
