title: Irradiation with low-dose gamma ray enhances tolerance to heat stress in Arabidopsis seedlings.
abstract: Gamma irradiation at low doses can stimulate the tolerance to environmental stress in plants. However, the knowledge regarding the mechanisms underlying the enhanced tolerance induced by low-dose gamma irradiation is far from fully understood. In this study, to investigate the physiological and molecular mechanisms of heat stress alleviated by low-dose gamma irradiation, the Arabidopsis seeds were exposed to a range of doses before subjected to heat treatment. Our results showed that 50-Gy gamma irradiation maximally promoted seedling growth in response to heat stress. The production rate of superoxide radical and contents of hydrogen peroxide and malondialdehyde in the seedlings irradiated with 50-Gy dose under heat stress were significantly lower than those of controls. The activities of antioxidant enzymes, glutathione (GSH) content and proline level in the gamma-irradiated seedlings were significantly increased compared with the controls. Furthermore, transcriptional expression analysis of selected genes revealed that some components related to heat tolerance were stimulated by low-dose gamma irradiation under heat shock. Our results suggest that low-dose gamma irradiation can modulate the physiological responses as well as gene expression related to heat tolerance, thus alleviating the stress damage in Arabidopsis seedlings.
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science, Henan Normal University, Xinxiang 453007, China; Engineering Laboratory of Green Medicinal Material Biotechnology, Xinxiang 453007, Henan Province, China.
authors.forename: Liang
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science, Henan Normal University, Xinxiang 453007, China.
authors.forename: Fengxia
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Zheng
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science, Henan Normal University, Xinxiang 453007, China.
authors.forename: Wencai
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Qi
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science, Henan Normal University, Xinxiang 453007, China.
authors.forename: Tianqi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science, Henan Normal University, Xinxiang 453007, China.
authors.forename: Lingyu
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science, Henan Normal University, Xinxiang 453007, China.
authors.forename: Zongbo
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Qiu
authors.affiliation: College of Life Science, Henan Normal University, Xinxiang 453007, China; Engineering Laboratory of Green Medicinal Material Biotechnology, Xinxiang 453007, Henan Province, China. Electronic address: ljy041026@htu.cn.
authors.forename: Jingyuan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D000975:Antioxidants / Q000378:metabolism*; D017360:Arabidopsis / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism / Q000528:radiation effects*; D004307:Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; D005720:Gamma Rays; D005978:Glutathione / Q000378:metabolism; D006358:Hot Temperature; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide / Q000378:metabolism; D008315:Malondialdehyde / Q000378:metabolism; D011392:Proline / Q000378:metabolism; D036226:Seedlings / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism / Q000528:radiation effects*; D012639:Seeds / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism / Q000528:radiation effects; D013312:Stress, Physiological / Q000528:radiation effects*
chemical_list: D000975:Antioxidants; D008315:Malondialdehyde; D011392:Proline; D006861:Hydrogen Peroxide; D005978:Glutathione
keywords: Arabidopsis; Heat stress; Heat tolerance; Low-dose gamma irradiation; Physiological response