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Melatonin‐rich transgenic rice plants exhibit resistance to herbicide‐induced oxidative stress
Author(s) -
Park Sangkyu,
Lee DaEun,
Jang Hyunki,
Byeon Yeong,
Kim YoungSoon,
Back Kyoungwhan
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
journal of pineal research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.881
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1600-079X
pISSN - 0742-3098
DOI - 10.1111/j.1600-079x.2012.01029.x
Subject(s) - melatonin , catalase , superoxide dismutase , oxidative stress , reactive oxygen species , malondialdehyde , biology , hydrogen peroxide , transgene , genetically modified crops , germination , botany , genetically modified rice , horticulture , biochemistry , gene , endocrinology
To examine whether melatonin‐rich plants can defend against oxidative stress, we subjected melatonin‐rich transgenic ( MRT ) rice plants to the singlet‐oxygen‐generating herbicide butafenacil. Both MRT and transgenic control ( TC ; expressing the vector only) rice seeds germinated and grew equally well in continuous dark on half‐strength M urashige and S koog ( MS ) medium containing 0.1 μ m butafenacil. However, after transferring the seedlings to light, the TC s rapidly necrotized, whereas the MRT seedlings showed resistant phenotypes. Seven‐day‐old MRT seedlings treated with 0.1 μ m butafenacil were resistant to the herbicide and contained high chlorophyll levels and low malondialdehyde and hydrogen peroxide contents compared with the TC s. As they did before the herbicide treatment, the MRT plants also produced much more melatonin after the herbicide treatment than the TC s. In addition, the MRT plants exhibited higher superoxide dismutase and catalase activities before and after the herbicide treatment compared with the TC s. This is the first report showing that MRT plants exhibit resistance against a peroxidizing herbicide that acts by generating reactive oxygen species ( ROS ) that kill plants. This result indicates that melatonin scavenges ROS efficiently in vivo in the transgenic plants, leading to oxidative stress resistance.