Melatonin delays leaf senescence and enhances salt stress tolerance in rice.
Melatonin, an antioxidant in both animals and plants, has been reported to have beneficial effects on the aging process. It was also suggested to play a role in extending longevity and enhancing abiotic stress resistance in plant. In this study, we demonstrate that melatonin acts as a potent agent to delay leaf senescence and cell death in rice. Treatments with melatonin significantly reduced chlorophyll degradation, suppressed the transcripts of senescence-associated genes, delayed the leaf senescence, and enhanced salt stress tolerance. Genome-wide expression profiling by RNA sequencing reveals that melatonin is a potent free radical scavenger, and its exogenous application results in enhanced antioxidant protection. Leaf cell death in noe1, a mutant with over-produced H2O2, can be relieved by exogenous application of melatonin. These data demonstrate that melatonin delays the leaf senescence and cell death and also enhances abiotic stress tolerance via directly or indirectly counteracting the cellular accumulation of H2O2.
State Key Laboratory of Plant Genomics and National Center for Plant Gene Research (Beijing), Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology (IGDB), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing, China.
Chengzhen
C
Liang
CAS Key Laboratory for Computational Biology, CAS-MPG Partner Institute for Computational Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Shanghai, China.
Guangyong
G
Zheng
State Key Laboratory of Plant Genomics and National Center for Plant Gene Research (Beijing), Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology (IGDB), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing, China.
Wenzhen
W
Li
State Key Laboratory of Plant Genomics and National Center for Plant Gene Research (Beijing), Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology (IGDB), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing, China.
Yiqin
Y
Wang
State Key Laboratory of Plant Genomics and National Center for Plant Gene Research (Beijing), Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology (IGDB), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing, China.
Bin
B
Hu
State Key Laboratory of Plant Genomics and National Center for Plant Gene Research (Beijing), Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology (IGDB), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing, China.
Hongru
H
Wang
School of Agriculture and Food Science, Zhejiang A & F University, Hangzhou, China.
Hongkai
H
Wu
Biogle Genome Editing Research Center, Hangzhou, China.
Yangwen
Y
Qian
CAS Key Laboratory for Computational Biology, CAS-MPG Partner Institute for Computational Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Shanghai, China.
Xin-Guang
XG
Zhu
Department of Cellular and Structural Biology, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX, USA.
Dun-Xian
DX
Tan
State Key Laboratory of Plant Genomics and National Center for Plant Gene Research (Beijing), Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology (IGDB), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing, China.
Shou-Yi
SY
Chen
State Key Laboratory of Plant Genomics and National Center for Plant Gene Research (Beijing), Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology (IGDB), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), Beijing, China.
Chengcai
C
Chu
D000375:Aging / Q000187:drug effects*; D018506:Gene Expression Regulation, Plant / Q000187:drug effects; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide / Q000378:metabolism; D008550:Melatonin / Q000494:pharmacology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D012275:Oryza / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism*; D018515:Plant Leaves / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000378:metabolism*; D012965:Sodium Chloride / Q000494:pharmacology*
D012965:Sodium Chloride; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide; D008550:Melatonin
cell death; hydrogen peroxide; leaf senescence; melatonin; rice; transcriptome