Dynamics of metabolic responses to periods of combined heat and drought in Arabidopsis thaliana under ambient and elevated atmospheric CO2. (15th February 2018)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Zinta, Gaurav; AbdElgawad, Hamada; Peshev, Darin; Weedon, James T; Van den Ende, Wim; Nijs, Ivan; Janssens, Ivan A; Beemster, Gerrit T S; Asard, Han
• Is Part Of: Journal of experimental botany. Volume 69:Number 8(2018)
• Page Start: 2159
• Page End: 2170
• Publication Date: 2018-02-15
• Subjects: Amino acids -- carbohydrates -- climate change -- extreme events -- gene expression -- lipids -- membrane composition -- primary metabolism; Botany -- Periodicals; Botany, Experimental -- Periodicals; Plant physiology -- Periodicals; 580
• DOI: 10.1093/jxb/ery055
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0022-0957

Abstract

Abstract : Metabolic changes in Arabidopsis induced by periods of elevated heat and drought stress under ambient and elevated CO2, are dynamic and specific to different classes of molecules. Abstract: As a consequence of global change processes, plants will increasingly be challenged by extreme climatic events, against a background of elevated atmospheric CO2 . We analysed responses of Arabidopsis thaliana to periods of a combination of elevated heat and water deficit at ambient and elevated CO2 in order to gain mechanistic insights regarding changes in primary metabolism. Metabolic changes induced by extremes of climate are dynamic and specific to different classes of molecules. Concentrations of soluble sugars and amino acids increased transiently after short (4-d) exposure to heat and drought, and readjusted to control levels under prolonged (8-d) stress. In contrast, fatty acids showed persistent changes during the stress period. Elevated CO2 reduced the impact of stress on sugar and amino acid metabolism, but not on fatty acids. Integrating metabolite data with transcriptome results revealed that some of the metabolic changes were regulated at the transcriptional level. Multivariate analyses grouped metabolites on the basis of stress exposure time, indicating specificity in metabolic responses to short and prolonged stress. Taken together, the results indicate that dynamic metabolic reprograming plays an important role in plant acclimation to climatic extremes. The extent of such metabolic adjustments is less under high CO2, further pointing towards the role of high CO2 in stress mitigation.