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Effect of antisense L-Δ1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate reductase transgenic soybean plants subjected to osmotic and drought stress

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Abstract

The potential value of proline accumulation during environmental stressreveals a collection of controversial statements. Some argue that prolineaccumulation is beneficial to the plant, while others suggest the oppositeto be true. It is thus still unknown whether or not a constitutive higherlevel of proline accumulation enhances plant tolerance to environmentalstress. Since proline in plants is synthesised from both glutamic acid andornithine, we generated antisense soybean plants with an L-Δ1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate reductase (P5CR)gene, as it controls thecommon step of both pathways. The gene expression and consequentlyproline production was manipulated, with the use of an inducible heat shockpromoter (IHSP). The activation of the IHSP resulted in the inactivation ofthe P5CR gene, which resulted in decreased proline synthesis. Theantisense plants have provided us with insight into the correlation betweenproline accumulation, drought and osmotic stress. A mannitol stress at 32and 42 °C enhanced the accumulation of proline in control plants, incontrast to a significant decrease observed in the transformants. Theproline accumulation documented in this paper provides additional evidencethat the increase in proline levels during osmotic stress constitute anadaptive response by the plant. It was confirmed that there is anassociation between P5CR translation and proline accumulation, as theproline accumulation was markedly decreased by the activation of the heatinducible promoter and thus the antisense construct in transformed plants.A woodenbox screening indicated that proline plays a definite role insurvival of soybean plants under a drought stress, the transformantsfailed to survive a 6 day drought stress at 37 °C. This was in contrastwith the control plants which experienced the treatment only as a mildstress.

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Author notes

  1. W.A. Cress

    Present address: Departamento de Bioquimica, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Autonoma de San Luis Potosi, Av. V. Carranza 2405, San Luis Potosi, S.L.P., C.P, 78210, Mexico

Authors and Affiliations

  1. ARC – Roodeplaat Vegetable and Ornamental Plant Institute, Private bag X293, Pretoria, South Africa, 0001

    J.A. de Ronde & M.H. Spreeth

  2. Department of Botany, University of Natal, Private Bag X01, Scottsville, South Africa, 3209

    W.A. Cress

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  1. J.A. de Ronde
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  2. M.H. Spreeth
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  3. W.A. Cress
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de Ronde, J., Spreeth, M. & Cress, W. Effect of antisense L-Δ1-pyrroline-5-carboxylate reductase transgenic soybean plants subjected to osmotic and drought stress. Plant Growth Regulation 32, 13–26 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1006338911617

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