Abstract
Main conclusionThe changes in the expression of key sugar metabolism enzymes (SPS and SUS), sucrose content and arrangement of chloroplast starch may play a significant role in the cold response in M. giganteus and maize plants.To understand the mechanism of the chilling-response of two closely-related C4 plants, we investigated the changes in the expression of sucrose phosphate synthase (SPS) and sucrose synthase (SUS) as well as changes in their potential products: sucrose, cellulose and starch in the leaves of Miscanthus × giganteus and Zea mays. Low temperature (12–14 °C) increased SPS content in Miscanthus (MG) and chilling-sensitive maize line (Zm-S), but not in chilling-tolerant one (Zm-T). In Zm-S line, chilling also caused the higher intensity of labelling of SPS in the cytoplasm of mesophyll cells, as demonstrated by electron microscopy. SUS labelling was also increased by cold stress only in MG plants what was observed in the secondary wall between mesophyll and bundle sheath cells, as well as in the vacuoles of companion cells. Cold led to a marked increase in total starch grain area in the chloroplasts of Zm-S line. In turn, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) showed a slight shift in the cellulose band position, which may indicate the formation of more compact cellulose arrangement in Zm-T maize line. In conclusion, this work presents new findings supporting diversified cold-response, not only between two C4 plant species but also within one species of maize.
Highlights
Sucrose phosphate synthase (SPS, EC.2.4.1.14) and sucrose synthase (SUS, EC.2.4.1.13) are key enzymes in the sugar metabolic pathways in the plants
sucrose phosphate synthase (SPS) visualized by gold particles was localized in the cytoplasm of mesophyll and bundle sheath cells of the leaves of both tested plant species (Fig. 2)
In Miscanthus × giganteus (MG) plants, SPS was predominantly found in the mesophyll cells where single gold particles as well as clusters of grains were observed (Fig. 2a, b), whereas in both maize lines SPS epitopes were evenly distributed in the mesophyll and bundle sheath cells (Fig. 2d, e, g, h)
Summary
Sucrose phosphate synthase (SPS, EC.2.4.1.14) and sucrose synthase (SUS, EC.2.4.1.13) are key enzymes in the sugar metabolic pathways in the plants. Knowledge about the relationship of localization of individual forms of these enzymes and their role in plant responses to various stresses is highly desirable. It has been demonstrated for instance, that several maize SPS sequences were most strongly expressed in the leaves and less intensively in pollen and kernel, what was related to the reaction to different abiotic factors (Lutfiyya et al 2007). Four SPS isoforms localized in source leaves of Arabidopsis thaliana plants can play a role in dark respiration via enhancement of starch turnover (Bahaji et al 2015)
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