Abstract
Zinc (Zn) is an important element in plants, but over-accumulation of Zn is harmful. The phytohormone brassinosteroids (BRs) play a key role in regulating plant growth, development, and response to stress. However, the role of BRs in watermelon (Citrullus lanatus L.) under Zn stress, one of the most important horticultural crops, remains largely unknown. In this study, we revealed that 24-epibrassinolide (EBR), a bioactive BR enhanced Zn tolerance in watermelon plants, which was related to the EBR-induced increase in the fresh weight, chlorophyll content, and net photosynthetic rate (Pn) and decrease in the content of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), malondialdehyde (MDA), and Zn in watermelon leaves. Through RNA deep sequencing (RNA-seq), 350 different expressed genes (DEG) were found to be involved in the response to Zn stress after EBR treatment, including 175 up-regulated DEGs and 175 down-regulated DEGs. The up-regulated DEGs were significantly enriched in ‘phenylpropanoid biosynthesis’ pathway (map00940) using KEGG enrichment analysis. The gene expression levels of PAL, 4CL, CCR, and CCoAOMT, key genes involved in phenylpropanoid pathway, were significantly induced after EBR treatment. In addition, compared with Zn stress alone, EBR treatment significantly promoted the activities of PAL, 4CL, and POD by 30.90%, 20.69%, and 47.28%, respectively, and increased the content of total phenolic compounds, total flavonoids, and lignin by 23.02%, 40.37%, and 29.26%, respectively. The present research indicates that EBR plays an active role in strengthening Zn tolerance, thus providing new insights into the mechanism of BRs enhancing heavy metal tolerance.
Abstract from the paper’s OpenAlex record; open copy licensed cc-by. Read at the source ↗
The text the model read, with the source record’s inline markup (italics, sub- and superscripts) rendered and its character entities decoded; quote offsets refer to the raw text.
Claims 12
Claim · model-written summary
EBR enhanced zinc tolerance in watermelon.
- Taxon
- watermelon plants
Citrullus lanatuse0 - Treatment
- 24-epibrassinolide (EBR)e0
- Outcome
- Zn tolerancee0
- Direction
- enhancede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“24-epibrassinolide (EBR), a bioactive BR enhanced Zn tolerance in watermelon plants”
Claim · model-written summary
EBR increased fresh weight, chlorophyll content, and net photosynthetic rate in zinc-stressed watermelon.
- Taxon
- Citrullus lanatus LCitrullus lanatust0
- Treatment
- EBRe0
- Outcome
- fresh weight, chlorophyll content, and net photosynthetic rate (Pn)e0
- Direction
- increasee0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“EBR-induced increase in the fresh weight, chlorophyll content, and net photosynthetic rate (Pn)”
t0“Citrullus lanatus L”
Claim · model-written summary
EBR decreased hydrogen peroxide, malondialdehyde, and zinc content in watermelon leaves.
- Taxon
- watermelonCitrullus lanatuse0
- Organ / stage
- leavese0
- Treatment
- EBRe1
- Outcome
- content of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), malondialdehyde (MDA), and Zne0
- Direction
- decreasee0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“decrease in the content of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), malondialdehyde (MDA), and Zn in watermelon leaves”
e1“EBR-induced increase”
Claim · model-written summary
RNA sequencing identified 350 genes differentially expressed after EBR treatment under zinc stress, with 175 upregulated and 175 downregulated.
- Taxon
- Citrullus lanatus LCitrullus lanatust0
- Treatment
- EBR treatmente0
- Outcome
- different expressed genes (DEG)e0
- Value
- 350e0
- Qualifier
- including 175 up-regulated DEGs and 175 down-regulated DEGse0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“350 different expressed genes (DEG) were found to be involved in the response to Zn stress after EBR treatment, including 175 up-regulated DEGs and 175 down-regulated DEGs”
t0“Citrullus lanatus L”
Claim · model-written summary
Upregulated genes were significantly enriched in phenylpropanoid biosynthesis.
- Taxon
- Citrullus lanatus LCitrullus lanatust0
- Gene
- up-regulated DEGse0
- Outcome
- ‘phenylpropanoid biosynthesis’ pathway (map00940)e0
- Direction
- enrichede0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“The up-regulated DEGs were significantly enriched in ‘phenylpropanoid biosynthesis’ pathway (map00940)”
t0“Citrullus lanatus L”
Claim · model-written summary
EBR significantly induced expression of PAL, 4CL, CCR, and CCoAOMT.
- Taxon
- Citrullus lanatus LCitrullus lanatust0
- Treatment
- EBR treatmente0
- Gene
- PAL, 4CL, CCR, and CCoAOMTe0
- Outcome
- gene expression levelse0
- Direction
- inducede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“The gene expression levels of PAL, 4CL, CCR, and CCoAOMT, key genes involved in phenylpropanoid pathway, were significantly induced after EBR treatment”
t0“Citrullus lanatus L”
Claim · model-written summary
EBR raised PAL activity by 30.90% relative to zinc stress alone.
- Taxon
- Citrullus lanatus LCitrullus lanatust0
- Treatment
- EBR treatmente0
- Gene
- PALe0
- Outcome
- activities of PALe0
- Direction
- promotede0
- Value
- 30.90%e0
- Comparator
- Zn stress alonee0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“compared with Zn stress alone, EBR treatment significantly promoted the activities of PAL, 4CL, and POD by 30.90%, 20.69%, and 47.28%, respectively”
t0“Citrullus lanatus L”
Claim · model-written summary
EBR raised 4CL activity by 20.69% relative to zinc stress alone.
- Taxon
- Citrullus lanatus LCitrullus lanatust0
- Treatment
- EBR treatmente0
- Gene
- 4CLe0
- Outcome
- activities of PAL, 4CLe0
- Direction
- promotede0
- Value
- 20.69%e0
- Comparator
- Zn stress alonee0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“compared with Zn stress alone, EBR treatment significantly promoted the activities of PAL, 4CL, and POD by 30.90%, 20.69%, and 47.28%, respectively”
t0“Citrullus lanatus L”
Claim · model-written summary
EBR raised POD activity by 47.28% relative to zinc stress alone.
- Taxon
- Citrullus lanatus LCitrullus lanatust0
- Treatment
- EBR treatmente0
- Gene
- PODe0
- Outcome
- activities of PAL, 4CL, and PODe0
- Direction
- promotede0
- Value
- 47.28%e0
- Comparator
- Zn stress alonee0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“compared with Zn stress alone, EBR treatment significantly promoted the activities of PAL, 4CL, and POD by 30.90%, 20.69%, and 47.28%, respectively”
t0“Citrullus lanatus L”
Claim · model-written summary
EBR increased total phenolic compounds by 23.02%.
- Taxon
- Citrullus lanatus LCitrullus lanatust0
- Treatment
- EBR treatmente0
- Outcome
- content of total phenolic compoundse0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Value
- 23.02%e0
- Comparator
- Zn stress alonee0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“compared with Zn stress alone, EBR treatment significantly promoted the activities of PAL, 4CL, and POD by 30.90%, 20.69%, and 47.28%, respectively, and increased the content of total phenolic compounds, total flavonoids, and lignin by 23.02%, 40.37%, and 29.26%, respectively”
t0“Citrullus lanatus L”
Claim · model-written summary
EBR increased total flavonoids by 40.37%.
- Taxon
- Citrullus lanatus LCitrullus lanatust0
- Treatment
- EBR treatmente0
- Outcome
- total flavonoidse0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Value
- 40.37%e0
- Comparator
- Zn stress alonee0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“compared with Zn stress alone, EBR treatment significantly promoted the activities of PAL, 4CL, and POD by 30.90%, 20.69%, and 47.28%, respectively, and increased the content of total phenolic compounds, total flavonoids, and lignin by 23.02%, 40.37%, and 29.26%, respectively”
t0“Citrullus lanatus L”
Claim · model-written summary
EBR increased lignin by 29.26%.
- Taxon
- Citrullus lanatus LCitrullus lanatust0
- Treatment
- EBR treatmente0
- Outcome
- lignine0
- Direction
- increasede0
- Value
- 29.26%e0
- Comparator
- Zn stress alonee0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“compared with Zn stress alone, EBR treatment significantly promoted the activities of PAL, 4CL, and POD by 30.90%, 20.69%, and 47.28%, respectively, and increased the content of total phenolic compounds, total flavonoids, and lignin by 23.02%, 40.37%, and 29.26%, respectively”
t0“Citrullus lanatus L”
The same questions in other papers
24-epi-brassinolide · disease · Citrullus lanatus (watermelon)Results agree
1 paper in the same direction as this paper
- positive
24-epi-brassinolide · quality: phytochemicals · Citrullus lanatus (watermelon)Results agree
1 paper in the same direction as this paper
- positive
24-epi-brassinolide · physiology: photosynthesis · Citrullus lanatus (watermelon)Results agree
1 paper in the same direction as this paper
- positive
24-epi-brassinolide · molecular: expression · Citrullus lanatus (watermelon)Results agree
1 paper in the same direction as this paper
- positive
24-epi-brassinolide · molecular: metabolites · Citrullus lanatus (watermelon)Results agree
1 paper in the same direction as this paper
- positive
24-epi-brassinolide · physiology: oxidative · Citrullus lanatus (watermelon)Results agree
2 papers in the same direction as this paper
- positive
- positive
Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.