Skip to main content
PMC home page
Plant Physiology logoLink to Plant Physiology
. 1991 Sep;97(1):154–164. doi: 10.1104/pp.97.1.154

Influence of Water Deficit on Maize Endosperm Development 1

Enzyme Activities and RNA Transcripts of Starch and Zein Synthesis, Abscisic Acid, and Cell Division

Eric S Ober 1,2, Tim L Setter 1,2, James T Madison 1,2, John F Thompson 1,2, Paul S Shapiro 1,2
PMCID: PMC1080977  PMID: 16668363

Abstract

In maize (Zea mays L.), drought during the post-pollination stage decreases kernel growth and often leads to grain yield losses. Kernels in the apical region of the ear are more severely affected than basally positioned kernels. We hypothesized that water deficit during early endosperm development might inhibit kernel growth by decreasing endosperm cell division, and that this response might be mediated by changes in endosperm abscisic acid (ABA) levels. Greenhouse-grown maize, cultivar Pioneer 3925, was subjected to water limitation from 1 to 15 days after pollination (DAP), spanning the period of endosperm cell division and induction of storage product accumulation. Water deficit decreased the number of endosperm nuclei during the treatment period; the most substantial effect was in the apical region of ears. Correspondingly, endosperm fresh weight, starch accumulation and dry mass at maturity were decreased by water limitation. Abscisic acid concentrations in endosperm were quantified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Water deficit increased ABA concentration in apical-region endosperm by four-fold compared to controls. ABA concentrations were also increased in middle and basal regions of the ear, but to a lesser extent. Two key enzymes in the starch synthesis pathway, sucrose synthase and granule-bound ADP-glucose starch synthase, and zein, the major storage protein in maize endosperm, were studied as markers of storage product synthesis. Water deficit did not affect sucrose synthase enzyme activity or RNA transcript abundance relative to total RNA. However, ADP-glucose starch synthase activity and RNA transcript abundance decreased slightly in apical-region endosperm of water-limited plants by 15 DAP, compared with well-watered controls. In contrast to starch, there was no treatment effect on the accumulation of zein, evaluated at either the polypeptide or RNA level. We conclude that under the conditions tested, the establishment of starch and zein synthetic potential in endosperm was only slightly affected by plant water deficit during the early phase of kernel growth, and that capacity for growth and starch accumulation was affected by the extent to which cell division was inhibited. Based on correlative changes in ABA concentration and cell division we suggest that ABA may play a role in inhibiting endosperm cell division during water limitation.

Full text

PDF
154

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Burr B., Burr F. A. Ds controlling elements of maize at the shrunken locus are large and dissimilar insertions. Cell. 1982 Jul;29(3):977–986. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(82)90461-5. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Burr B., Burr F. A., St John T. P., Thomas M., Davis R. W. Zein storage protein gene family of maize. An assessment of heterogeneity with cloned messenger RNA sequences. J Mol Biol. 1982 Jan 5;154(1):33–49. doi: 10.1016/0022-2836(82)90415-6. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Dale E. M., Housley T. L. Sucrose synthase activity in developing wheat endosperms differing in maximum weight. Plant Physiol. 1986 Sep;82(1):7–10. doi: 10.1104/pp.82.1.7. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Esen A. Separation of alcohol-soluble proteins (zeins) from maize into three fractions by differential solubility. Plant Physiol. 1986 Mar;80(3):623–627. doi: 10.1104/pp.80.3.623. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Kitano M., Eguchi H. Quantitative analysis of transpiration stream dynamics in an intact cucumber stem by a heat flux control method. Plant Physiol. 1989 Feb;89(2):643–647. doi: 10.1104/pp.89.2.643. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Lending C. R., Larkins B. A. Changes in the zein composition of protein bodies during maize endosperm development. Plant Cell. 1989 Oct;1(10):1011–1023. doi: 10.1105/tpc.1.10.1011. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Logemann J., Schell J., Willmitzer L. Improved method for the isolation of RNA from plant tissues. Anal Biochem. 1987 May 15;163(1):16–20. doi: 10.1016/0003-2697(87)90086-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Marks M. D., Lindell J. S., Larkins B. A. Quantitative analysis of the accumulation of Zein mRNA during maize endosperm development. J Biol Chem. 1985 Dec 25;260(30):16445–16450. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. McElfresh K. C., Chourey P. S. Anaerobiosis induces transcription but not translation of sucrose synthase in maize. Plant Physiol. 1988 Jun;87(2):542–546. doi: 10.1104/pp.87.2.542. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Myers P. N., Setter T. L., Madison J. T., Thompson J. F. Abscisic Acid inhibition of endosperm cell division in cultured maize kernels. Plant Physiol. 1990 Nov;94(3):1330–1336. doi: 10.1104/pp.94.3.1330. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Ou-Lee T. M., Setter T. L. Effect of increased temperature in apical regions of maize ears on starch-synthesis enzymes and accumulation of sugars and starch. Plant Physiol. 1985 Nov;79(3):852–855. doi: 10.1104/pp.79.3.852. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Ou-Lee T. M., Setter T. L. Enzyme activities of starch and sucrose pathways and growth of apical and Basal maize kernels. Plant Physiol. 1985 Nov;79(3):848–851. doi: 10.1104/pp.79.3.848. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Shure M., Wessler S., Fedoroff N. Molecular identification and isolation of the Waxy locus in maize. Cell. 1983 Nov;35(1):225–233. doi: 10.1016/0092-8674(83)90225-8. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Skriver K., Mundy J. Gene expression in response to abscisic acid and osmotic stress. Plant Cell. 1990 Jun;2(6):503–512. doi: 10.1105/tpc.2.6.503. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Walker-Simmons M. ABA Levels and Sensitivity in Developing Wheat Embryos of Sprouting Resistant and Susceptible Cultivars. Plant Physiol. 1987 May;84(1):61–66. doi: 10.1104/pp.84.1.61. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Westgate M. E., Grant D. L. Water deficits and reproduction in maize : response of the reproductive tissue to water deficits at anthesis and mid-grain fill. Plant Physiol. 1989 Nov;91(3):862–867. doi: 10.1104/pp.91.3.862. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Plant Physiology are provided here courtesy of Oxford University Press

RESOURCES