Abstract
To defend against damage from environmental stress, plants have evolved strategies to respond to stress efficiently. One such strategy includes forming mutualist relationships with endophytes which confer stress-alleviating plant defensive and growth promoting effects. Metarhizium robertsii is an entomopathogen and plant-protective and growth-promoting endophyte. To determine the context dependency of the relationship between M. robertsii and maize, we conducted a greenhouse experiment that imposed stress as deficit and excess soil moisture on maize plants which were inoculated or not inoculated with M. robertsii and measured plant growth and defense indicators. Maize height and endophytic root colonization by M. robertsii were positively correlated in the deficit water treatment, but not in the adequate or excess water treatments. The relative expression of ZmLOX1 in the jasmonic acid (JA) biosynthesis pathway was significantly greater in M. robertsii-inoculated than in non-inoculated plants, but water treatment had no effect. There was significant interaction between M. robertsii and water treatments on foliar concentrations of JA and jasmonoyl isoleucine (JA-ILE), suggesting that water stress impacts M. robertsii as a modulator of plant defense. Water stress, but not inoculation with M. robertsii, had a significant effect on the expression of MYB (p = 0.021) and foliar concentrations of abscisic acid (p<0.001), two signaling molecules associated with abiotic stress response. This study contributes toward understanding the highly sophisticated stress response signaling network and context dependency of endophytic mutualisms in crops.
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Claims 10
Claim · model-written summary
Maize height was positively correlated with endophytic root colonization under deficit water.
- Treatment
- deficit water treatmente0
- Interactor
- M. robertsiiMetarhizium robertsiie0symbiont
- Outcome
- heighte0
- Direction
- positively correlatede0
Zea maysOrganisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Maize height and endophytic root colonization by M. robertsii were positively correlated in the deficit water treatment”
Claim · model-written summary
The correlation was absent under adequate or excess water.
- Treatment
- adequate or excess water treatmentse0
- Interactor
- M. robertsiiMetarhizium robertsiie1symbiont
- Outcome
- height and endophytic root colonizatione1
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“but not in the adequate or excess water treatments”
e1“Maize height and endophytic root colonization by M. robertsii were positively correlated”
Claim · model-written summary
M. robertsii inoculation significantly increased relative ZmLOX1 expression.
- Treatment
- M. robertsii-inoculatede0
- Interactor
- M. robertsiiMetarhizium robertsiie0symbiont
- Gene
- ZmLOX1e0
- Outcome
- relative expression of ZmLOX1e0
- Direction
- greatere0
- Comparator
- non-inoculated plantse0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“The relative expression of ZmLOX1 in the jasmonic acid (JA) biosynthesis pathway was significantly greater in M. robertsii-inoculated than in non-inoculated plants”
t0“Maize”
Claim · model-written summary
Water treatment had no effect on ZmLOX1 expression.
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“but water treatment had no effect”
e1“relative expression of ZmLOX1”
t0“Maize”
Claim · model-written summary
Endophyte and water treatments interacted significantly for foliar JA concentration.
- Treatment
- water treatmentse0
- Interactor
- M. robertsiiMetarhizium robertsiie0symbiont
- Outcome
- foliar concentrations of JAe0
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“There was significant interaction between M. robertsii and water treatments on foliar concentrations of JA and jasmonoyl isoleucine (JA-ILE)”
t0“Maize”
Claim · model-written summary
Endophyte and water treatments interacted significantly for foliar JA-ILE concentration.
- Treatment
- water treatmentse0
- Interactor
- M. robertsiiMetarhizium robertsiie0symbiont
- Outcome
- jasmonoyl isoleucine (JA-ILE)e0
Not reportedDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“There was significant interaction between M. robertsii and water treatments on foliar concentrations of JA and jasmonoyl isoleucine (JA-ILE)”
t0“Maize”
Claim · model-written summary
Water stress significantly affected MYB expression.
Not reportedComparatorDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Water stress, but not inoculation with M. robertsii, had a significant effect on the expression of MYB (p = 0.021) and foliar concentrations of abscisic acid (p<0.001)”
t0“Maize”
Claim · model-written summary
Water stress significantly affected foliar abscisic acid concentration.
Not reportedComparatorDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Water stress, but not inoculation with M. robertsii, had a significant effect on the expression of MYB (p = 0.021) and foliar concentrations of abscisic acid (p<0.001)”
t0“Maize”
Claim · model-written summary
M. robertsii inoculation did not significantly affect MYB expression.
- Treatment
- inoculation with M. robertsiie0
- Interactor
- M. robertsiiMetarhizium robertsiie0symbiont
- Outcome
- expression of MYBe0
Not reportedComparatorDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Water stress, but not inoculation with M. robertsii, had a significant effect on the expression of MYB (p = 0.021) and foliar concentrations of abscisic acid (p<0.001)”
t0“Maize”
Claim · model-written summary
M. robertsii inoculation did not significantly affect foliar abscisic acid concentration.
- Treatment
- inoculation with M. robertsiie0
- Interactor
- M. robertsiiMetarhizium robertsiie0symbiont
- Outcome
- foliar concentrations of abscisic acide0
Not reportedComparatorDirection
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Water stress, but not inoculation with M. robertsii, had a significant effect on the expression of MYB (p = 0.021) and foliar concentrations of abscisic acid (p<0.001)”
t0“Maize”
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