TRANSCRIPTIONAL RESPONSES OF WILD ROCKET AS AFFECTED BY SALT STRESS

17 June 202017 June 2020 Domenico Ditto

Wild rocket (Diplotaxis tenuifolia L.) is a leafy vegetable particularly appreciated as ready-to-eat salad. As with other vegetables, stressful environmental conditions due to non-optimal growing condition can lead to significant losses of yield and product quality. Among abiotic stresses, high salinity due to poor irrigation water quality or the proximity to the coast, is one of the most dangerous. Several approaches and agronomic strategies are currently implemented to counteract stress situation, including the application of biostimulants. These products are characterised by a high variety in terms of both chemical composition and mode of action. One of the authors of this paper, published on PLANTS, is Giulia Franzoni, a DISAA research fellow. She works with Antonio Ferrante and Giacomo Cocetta, Associate Professor and Researchers, respectively, in horticulture in the same department. The experimental work was focused on the study of physiological and molecular responses of wild rocket plants subjected to salt stress. In particular, the focus was pointed on the expression analyses of 25 transcription factors involved in some of the most important metabolic pathways activated in stress responses. Furthermore, the efficacy of a flower extract from borage (Borago officinalis L.), previously prepared by the same research group, has been evaluated. Results obtained highlighted that transcription factors involved in the regulation of cuticular wax biosynthesis, phospholipids and brassinosteroids, were the most stimulated by the salt stress. Moreover, the carbohydrate metabolism and the intracellular transport system were also involved in stress responses. The application of borage extract induced several variations in gene expression, at specific time points, suggesting a considerable complexity to individuate the exact mechanism of action of that product in combination with the stress.

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Franzoni, G., Cocetta, G., Trivellini, A., & Ferrante, A. (2020). Transcriptional Regulation in Rocket Leaves as Affected by Salinity. Plants, 9(1), 20 [ https://doi.org/10.3390/plants9010020 ].

**Figure:** Heatmap showing temporal expression (2-ΔΔCt) of selected transcription factors associated with salt stress responses in rocket plants grown under salt stress condition and treated with a borage extract. The rows represent the transcription factors and within each row, the blue shaded areas indicate downregulated gene expression, whereas the red shaded areas indicate upregulated gene expression.

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