Publikationen - Molekulare Signalverarbeitung

Salinity is a constraint limiting plant growth and productivity of crops throughout the world. Understanding the mechanism underlying plant response to salinity provides new insights into the improvement of salt tolerance-crops of importance. In the present study, we report on the responses of twenty cultivars of tomato. We have clustered genotypes into scale classes according to their response to increased NaCl levels. Three local tomato genotypes, representative of different saline scale classes, were selected for further investigation. During early (0 h, 6 h and 12 h) and later (7 days) stages of the response to salt treatment, ion concentrations (Na + , K +  and Ca 2+ ), proline content, enzyme activities (catalase, ascorbate peroxidase and guiacol peroxidase) were recorded. qPCR analysis of candidate genes WRKY (8, 31and 39), ERF (9, 16 and 80), LeNHX (1, 3 and 4) and HKT (class I) were performed. A high K + , Ca 2 + and proline accumulation as well as a decrease of Na +  concentration-mediated salt tolerance. Concomitant with a pattern of high-antioxidant enzyme activities, tolerant genotypes also displayed differential patterns of gene expression during the response to salt stress.

The most abundant jasmonate-induced protein (JIP) in barley leaves is a 23 kDa protein (JIP23). Its function, however, is unknown. In order to analyze its function by homologous transformation, new plasmid vectors have been constructed. They carry the cDNA coding for JIP23 in sense or antisense orientation under the control of the Ubi-1-promoter as well as the pat resistance gene under the control of the 35S promoter. Barley mesophyll protoplasts were transiently transformed with the sense constructs. PAT activity and immunological detection of JIP23 could be achieved in transformed protoplasts but not in untransformed protoplasts indicating that the construct was active. Thus, these new vectors are suitable for stable transformation of barley. Carrying a multiple cloning site (MCS), these vectors can be used now in a wide range of transformation of barley.

In the present paper we study the possible biological relevance of endogenous jasmonic acid (JA) and exogenous salicylic acid (SA) in a plant-microbial system maize-virus. The virus disease "Mal de Río Cuarto" is caused by the maize rough dwarf virus - Río Cuarto. The characteristic symptoms are the appearance of galls or "enations" in leaves, shortening of the stem internodes, poor radical system and general stunting. Changes in JA and protein pattern in maize control and infected plants of a virus-tolerant cultivar were investigated. Healthy and infected-leaf discs were collected for JA measurement at different post-infection times (20, 40, 60 and 68 days). JA was also measured in roots on day 60 after infection. For SDS-PAGE protein analysis, leaf discs were also harvested on day 60 after infection. Infected leaves showed higher levels of JA than healthy leaves, and the rise in endogenous JA coincided with the enation formation. The soluble protein amount did not show differences between infected and healthy leaves; moreover, no difference in the expression of soluble protein was revealed by SDS-PAGE. Our results show that the octadecanoid pathway was stimulated in leaves and roots of the tolerant maize cultivar when infected by this virus. This finding, together with fewer plants with the disease symptoms, suggest that higher foliar and roots JA content may be related to disease tolerance. SA exogenous treatment caused the reversion of the dwarfism symptom.