Elevated CO2 mitigates the impact of drought stress by upregulating glucosinolate metabolism in Arabidopsis thaliana

authored by
Hamada AbdElgawad, Gaurav Zinta, Johann Hornbacher, Jutta Papenbrock, Marios N. Markakis, Han Asard, Gerrit T.S. Beemster
Abstract

Elevated CO2 (eCO2) reduces the impact of drought, but the mechanisms underlying this effect remain unclear. Therefore, we used a multidisciplinary approach to investigate the interaction of drought and eCO2 in Arabidopsis thaliana leaves. Transcriptome and subsequent metabolite analyses identified a strong induction of the aliphatic glucosinolate (GL) biosynthesis as a main effect of eCO2 in drought-stressed leaves. Transcriptome results highlighted the upregulation of ABI5 and downregulation of WRKY63 transcription factors (TF), known to enhance and inhibit the expression of genes regulating aliphatic GL biosynthesis (e.g., MYB28 and 29 TFs), respectively. In addition, eCO2 positively regulated aliphatic GL biosynthesis by MYB28/29 and increasing the accumulation of GL precursors. To test the role of GLs in the stress-mitigating effect of eCO2, we investigated the effect of genetic perturbations of the GL biosynthesis. Overexpression of MYB28, 29 and 76 improved drought tolerance by inducing stomatal closure and maintaining plant turgor, whereas loss of cyp79f genes reduced the stress-mitigating effect of eCO2 and decreased drought tolerance. Overall, the crucial role of GL metabolism in drought stress mitigation by eCO2 could be a beneficial trait to overcome future climate challenges.

Organisation(s)
Institute of Botany
External Organisation(s)
University of Antwerp (UAntwerpen)
University of Beni Suef
CSIR - Biomedicine and Agriculture
Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR)
Type
Article
Journal
Plant Cell and Environment
Volume
46
Pages
812-830
No. of pages
19
ISSN
0140-7791
Publication date
01.02.2023
Publication status
Published
Peer reviewed
Yes
ASJC Scopus subject areas
Physiology, Plant Science
Sustainable Development Goals
SDG 13 - Climate Action
Electronic version(s)
https://doi.org/10.1111/pce.14521 (Access: Closed)