Marilena Ronzan
Sapienza University of Rome, Italy
Title: Arsenic and cadmium affect the crosstalk between auxin and jasmonate in Oryza sativa L.
Biography
Biography: Marilena Ronzan
Abstract
Cadmium (Cd) and arsenic (As) soil and water contamination is a frequent cause of stress for plants, especially for the cereal crop Oryza sativa. The root is the first organ to respond to the presence of these toxic elements and often to be severely damaged. In general, plant response to abiotic stress involves phytohormones which in turn coordinate arrays of plant growth and developmental programs (1). Indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) is a key regulator of many aspects of plant growth and development, especially for the maintenance of the quiescent centre (QC) cells in the root apex (2). Jasmonic acid (JA), a lipid derived phytohormone, is an important plant growth regulator with versatile functions in the development and in the response to environmental stress (3). Sun and coworkers reported in Arabidopsis thaliana plants a relation between IAA and Jasmonates (JAs), methyl-jasmonate (MeJA) in particular. (4). IAA and JA have been suggested to interact in the presence of abiotic stress, but the effects of this interaction needs further investigation. The aim of this research was to understand the crosstalk between auxin and JAs in the presence of As and Cd. For this purpose, we carried out different experiments using the JA biosynthetic mutant coleoptile photomorphogenesis 2 (Cpm2) (3). Morphological and histological analyses of wild type (ssp. japonica, cv. Nihonmasari) and Cpm2 plants were carried out after exposure to As and/or Cd. Furthermore, IAA-sensitive OsDR5::GUS plants (5), treated with As and/or Cd and different MeJA concentrations, were analyzed. qRT-