Carbon Monoxide Enhances Plant Tolerance to Iron Starvation
December 11, 2009 |
Carbon monoxide (CO) has been shown to regulate some biological processes in animals such as vasomotion, respiratory regulation and thermoregulation. It has also been implicated as a messenger molecule involved in intercellular neuronal communications. CO shares some biological properties of nitric oxide (NO), which has been shown to regulate a wide array of plant physiological responses including regulation of nutrient metabolism. The roles played by CO in nutrient stress responses in plants, however, remain largely unknown. Now, researchers at the Nanjing Agricultural University in China showed that CO can regulate iron-homeostasis in iron-starved Arabidopsis.
The researchers found that exogenous application of CO prevented chlorosis in iron-deficient Arabidopsis and Chlamydomonas. Endogenous level of CO was increased in Arabidopsis under iron deficiency. The compound was also found to regulate the expression of genes related to iron acquisition, specifically IRT1, FRO2, FIT1 and FER1. FRO2 and FER1 respectively codes for ferric reductase, which is required for plant acquisition of iron at low level in soils, and ferritin, a protein that stores iron.
CO treatment of maize mutants with defective iron intake resulted to restoration of greening in leaves. In addition, the team found evidences suggesting cross-talks between CO and NO in low iron conditions.
The paper published by the Plant Biotechnology Journal is available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-7652.2009.00469.x
|
Biotech Updates is a weekly newsletter of ISAAA, a not-for-profit organization. It is distributed for free to over 22,000 subscribers worldwide to inform them about the key developments in biosciences, especially in biotechnology. Your support will help us in our mission to feed the world with knowledge. You can help by donating as little as $10.
-
See more articles:
-
News from Around the World
- Agriculture and Rural Development Day in Copenhagen
- FAO Sees Banana Trade Weathering Economic Slump
- Food Prices on the Rise Again, Reports UN Agency
- IRRI and Bayer Team up to Improve Rice Productivity
- Challenges and Opportunities for Biotechnology in Africa
- Ghana Identifies Need for Biotech in Agriculture
- Fungal Biocontrol for the Ascochyta Blight
- Canada to Increase Canola Oil Export to China
- Farm Groups File Brief Against Biotech Alfalfa Ban
- APHIS Deregulates Herbicide-Tolerant Corn
- BASF and Monsanto Ink Corn Development Pact
- Taiwan, South Korea Approve Eight-Trait GM Corn for Import
- China Launches Project on GMO Security Assessment and Testing
- India's ICAR Professor Honored with Ernesto Illy Trieste Science Prize
- Biotech Tools Improve Biomass Quality of Sorghum
- Press Conference for 4th China Bioindustry Convention 2010
- Bt Brinjal is a Safe Breakthrough: Indian Minister of S&T
- China to Develop Third-Generation Genome Sequencing Instrument
- Bangladeshi Agric Minister Bats for Biotech
- The Blooming Orchid Industry in Malaysia
- Discussion on the Regulation of Biotech-Derived Food Products in Indonesia
- Amylopectin Potatoes by Precision Breeding
-
Research Highlights
- Carbon Monoxide Enhances Plant Tolerance to Iron Starvation
- Transgenic Cassava Plants Resist Pathogen and Insect Attacks
- New Relationship Between Gene Duplication and Alternative Splicing in Plants
-
Announcements
- International Conference on Biotechnology Based Sustainable Agriculture
- International Conference on Agribiotech in Uganda
- Pan Arab Biodiversity Conference
-
Read the latest: - Biotech Updates (March 27, 2024)
- Gene Editing Supplement (March 27, 2024)
- Gene Drive Supplement (February 22, 2023)
-
Subscribe to BU: - Share
- Tweet