Abstract
Low temperatures represent a crucial environmental factor determining winter survival (WS) of barley and wheat winter-type varieties. In laboratory experiments, low temperatures induce an active plant acclimation response, which is associated with an enhanced accumulation of several stress-inducible proteins including dehydrins. Here, dehydrin accumulations in sampled wheat (WCS120 protein family, or WCS120 and WDHN13 transcripts) and barley (DHN5 protein) varieties grown in two locations for two winters were compared with the variety WS evaluated by a provocation wooden-box test. A high correlation between dehydrin transcripts or protein relative accumulation and variety WS score was found only in samples taken prior vernalization fulfillment, when high tolerant varieties accumulated dehydrins earlier and to higher level than less tolerant varieties, and the plants have not yet been vernalized. After vernalization fulfillment, the correlation was weak, and the apical development indicated that plants reached double ridge (DR) in barley or stayed before DR in wheat. Dehydrin proteins and transcripts can be thus used as reliable markers of wheat or barley variety winter hardiness in the field conditions; however, only at the beginning of winter, when the plants have not yet finished vernalization. In wheat, a higher correlation was obtained for the total amount of dehydrins than for the individual dehydrin proteins.HIGHLIGHTS-More tolerant winter-type wheat and barley plants reveal higher threshold induction temperatures for dehydrin accumulation in comparison to less tolerant varieties. Thus, more tolerant winter cereals have higher dehydrin levels than the less tolerant ones upon the same ambient temperature in November samplings.-A significant correlation between dehydrin transcript/protein accumulation and winter survival was found in both winter wheat and winter barley plants in the field conditions, but only prior to vernalization fulfillment.
Highlights
Low temperatures, such as cold and frost, significantly affect overwintering of winter cereals
The aim of our study was to evaluate dehydrin relative accumulation at both transcript and protein levels in wheat and barley varieties grown under field conditions at Crop Research Institute (CRI), Prague, and at Selgen, Lužany, during winters in 2013/14 and 2014/15
During winters 2013/14 and 2014/15, the longer periods of higher temperature above 5◦C were experienced by winter wheat and barley plants on both field locations during December and January (Figure 1)
Summary
Low temperatures, such as cold and frost, significantly affect overwintering of winter cereals. Winter cereals respond to low temperatures via two processes: cold acclimation and vernalization. Cold acclimation means a complex of processes aimed at enhancement freezing tolerance to enhance plant survival under adverse low temperatures. Vernalization means a developmental adaptation to regular long-term periods of low temperatures in temperate climates. Epigenetic modifications of the genes involved in flowering pathway prevent a premature transition from vegetative into reproductive stage before the periods of long-term low temperatures during winter. Vernalization means an acquisition or an acceleration of flowering via a long-term chilling treatment (Chouard, 1960) and this process is associated with complex developmental (epigenetic) modifications enabling activation of flowering pathways genes. It is well known that vernalization fulfillment in winter cereals leads to decreased ability of the plants to induce enhanced freezing tolerance during cold reacclimation treatment; molecular mechanisms underlying this phenomenon still remain largely unknown (Kosová et al, 2008; Vitámvás and Prášil, 2008; Dhillon et al, 2010)
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