Journal Articles

Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/7915

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    Comparison of leaf senescence regulation between distantly related plant species uncovers knowledge gaps and opportunities for plant improvement strategies
    (Elsevier B.V., 2023-10-01) Aloryi KD; Jing H-C; Dijkwel PP
    Leaf senescence is a destructive process that allows the efficient recycling of nutrients from dying leaves to growing parts of the plant. It is the final stage of leaf development that can be induced in response to stress. This makes leaf senescence an adaptive process that is highly beneficial for whole plant survival under unpredictable environmental conditions. Thus, the manipulation of this process has the potential to improve crop plants to become more climate resilient. In this review we compare leaf senescence processes between distantly related species to identify knowledge gaps and opportunities for plant improvement strategies. We describe that main signalling pathways controlled by carbohydrates, reactive oxygen species and hormones are conserved. However, the role of ethylene in age-induced leaf senescence in cereals is obscure. Moreover, downstream senescence regulatory signalling events are largely unknown, and these may be considerably different between members of annual dicots and cereals. Because leaf senescence regulation is so intricately connected to basic metabolic and developmental processes, we propose to increase research efforts to discover natural variation in senescence regulation and pinpoint gene variants that are tried and tested in nature.
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    Developmentally controlled changes during Arabidopsis leaf development indicate causes for loss of stress tolerance with age
    (Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Experimental Biology, 2020-10-22) Kanojia A; Gupta S; Benina M; Fernie AR; Mueller-Roeber B; Gechev T; Dijkwel PP; Foyer C
    Leaf senescence is the final stage of leaf development and is induced by the gradual occurrence of age-related changes (ARCs). The process of leaf senescence has been well described, but the cellular events leading to this process are still poorly understood. By analysis of progressively ageing, but not yet senescing, Arabidopsis thaliana rosette leaves, we aimed to better understand processes occurring prior to the onset of senescence. Using gene expression analysis, we found that as leaves mature, genes responding to oxidative stress and genes involved in stress hormone biosynthesis and signalling were up-regulated. A decrease in primary metabolites that provide protection against oxidative stress was a possible explanation for the increased stress signature. The gene expression and metabolomics changes occurred concomitantly to a decrease in drought, salinity, and dark stress tolerance of individual leaves. Importantly, stress-related genes showed elevated expression in the early ageing mutant old5 and decreased expression in the delayed ageing mutant ore9. We propose that the decreased stress tolerance with age results from the occurrence of senescence-inducing ARCs that is integrated into the leaf developmental programme, and that this ensures a timely and certain death.