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Metabolomic analysis of wild and transgenic Nicotiana langsdorffii plants exposed to abiotic stresses: unraveling metabolic responses

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Abstract

Nicotiana langsdorffii plants, wild and transgenic for the Agrobacterium rhizogenes rol C gene and the rat glucocorticoid receptor (GR) gene, were exposed to different abiotic stresses (high temperature, water deficit, and high chromium concentrations). An untargeted metabolomic analysis was carried out in order to investigate the metabolic effects of the inserted genes in response to the applied stresses and to obtain a comprehensive profiling of metabolites induced during abiotic stresses. High-performance liquid chromatography separation (HPLC) coupled to high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) enabled the identification of more than 200 metabolites, and statistical analysis highlighted the most relevant compounds for each plant treatment. The plants exposed to heat stress showed a unique set of induced secondary metabolites, some of which were known while others were not previously reported for this kind of stress; significant changes were observed especially in lipid composition. The role of trichome, as a protection against heat stress, is here suggested by the induction of both acylsugars and glykoalkaloids. Water deficit and Cr(VI) stresses resulted mainly in enhanced antioxidant (HCAs, polyamine) levels and in the damage of lipids, probably as a consequence of reactive oxygen species (ROS) production. Moreover, the ability of rol C expression to prevent oxidative burst was confirmed. The results highlighted a clear influence of GR modification on plant stress response, especially to water deficiency—a phenomenon whose applications should be further investigated. This study provides new insights into the field of system biology and demonstrates the importance of metabolomics in the study of plant functioning.

Untargeted metabolomic analysis was applied to wild type, GR and RolC modified Nicotiana Langsdorffii plants exposed to heat, water and Cr(VI) stresses. The key metabolites, highly affected by stress application, were identified, allowing to outline the main metabolic responses to stress in each plant genotype.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the PRIN grant number 20098TN4CY from the Italian Ministry of Education, University and Research (MIUR). The authors thank Dr. Daniela Almansi for improving English language.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Environmental Sciences, Informatics and Statistics, University of Venice, Ca’ Foscari, 30123, Venice, Italy

    Elisa Scalabrin, Giovanni Rizzato, Andrea Gambaro & Gabriele Capodaglio

  2. Institute for the Dynamics of Environmental Processes-CNR, University of Venice, 30123, Venice, Italy

    Marta Radaelli, Andrea Gambaro & Gabriele Capodaglio

  3. Department of Evolutionary Biology, Florence University, 50127, Florence, Italy

    Patrizia Bogani & Marcello Buiatti

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  1. Elisa Scalabrin
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  2. Marta Radaelli
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  5. Marcello Buiatti
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Correspondence to Elisa Scalabrin.

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Published in the topical collection High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry in Food and Environmental Analysis with guest editor Aldo Laganà.

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Scalabrin, E., Radaelli, M., Rizzato, G. et al. Metabolomic analysis of wild and transgenic Nicotiana langsdorffii plants exposed to abiotic stresses: unraveling metabolic responses. Anal Bioanal Chem 407, 6357–6368 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-015-8770-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00216-015-8770-7

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