IMR Press / FBL / Volume 29 / Issue 2 / DOI: 10.31083/j.fbl2902057
Open Access Original Research
Drought Stress Inhibits Starch Accumulation in Taro (Colocasia esculenta L. Schott)
Erjin Zhang1,2,3,†Weijie Jiang1,2,3,†Wenlong Li1,2,3Ebenezer Ottopah Ansah1,2,3Xunrun Yu1,2,3Yunfei Wu1,2,3,*Fei Xiong1,2,3,*
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1 Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Crop Genetics and Physiology, Yangzhou University, 225009 Yangzhou, Jiangsu, China
2 Co-Innovation Center for Modern Production Technology of Grain Crops, Yangzhou University, 225009 Yangzhou, Jiangsu, China
3 Joint International Research Laboratory of Agriculture & Agri-Product Safety, Yangzhou University, 225009 Yangzhou, Jiangsu, China
*Correspondence: 006949@yzu.edu.cn (Yunfei Wu); feixiong@yzu.edu.cn (Fei Xiong)
These authors contributed equally.
Front. Biosci. (Landmark Ed) 2024, 29(2), 57; https://doi.org/10.31083/j.fbl2902057
Submitted: 18 July 2023 | Revised: 7 October 2023 | Accepted: 20 October 2023 | Published: 5 February 2024
Copyright: © 2024 The Author(s). Published by IMR Press.
This is an open access article under the CC BY 4.0 license.
Abstract

Background: Colocasia esculenta L. Schott is a main traditional root crop in China, serving as an important vegetable and staple food. Drought stress plays vital role on the growth and development of taro corm. Methods: Two different varieties of taro in Jiangsu were selected: Xiangsha taro and Longxiang taro. The accumulation characteristics, morphological structure, and physicochemical properties of taro corm starch were studied by microscopic observation, particle size analysis, and X-ray diffractometer (XRD) analysis. Transcriptome analyses were used to identify the related genes of taro corm under drought stress. Results: During the growth of taro, the number of amyloplasts showed an obvious increasing trend and shifted from being dispersed throughout the cells to being gathered on one side of the cells, and morphological observations showed that smaller granular distribution gradually changed to a larger lumpy distribution. The particle size of Longxiang taro is smaller than that of Xiangsha taro. Under drought stress conditions, the occurrence of starch grains and corm size were inhibited in Xiangsha taro. Transcriptome sequencing of drought-stressed taro corms showed that the enzymes related to starch synthesis were differentially expressed. Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) enrichment analysis of drought-stressed taro corms showed that drought affected hormone signal transduction, material metabolism, drought stress tolerance, plant growth and development, and stress resistance, which triggered the plant drought adaptive response. Conclusions: Drought stress inhibits starch accumulation in taro.

Keywords
drought stress
starch
gene expression
corm
taro
Funding
2019M660130/China Postdoctoral Science Foundation
Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions (PAPD)
Figures
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