Screening of rice (Oryza sativa. L) genotypes under drought stress at the germination stage and identification of key genes involved in the response to stress

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Ph. D. Candidate, Dept. of Agricultural Biotechnology, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Guilan, Rasht, Iran

2 Associate Professor, Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Guilan, Rasht, Iran

3 Ph. D. Graduated, Dept. of Agricultural Biotechnology, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Guilan, Rasht, Iran,

4 Professor, Department of Agricultural Biotechnology, Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of Guilan, Rasht. Iran

10.22124/jms.2025.8931

Abstract

Environmental stresses such as drought, salinity, and heat pose significant threats to agriculture. Drought stress is one of the most critical abiotic stresses affecting rice, leading to reduced crop yield. In this study, 12 native rice (Oryza sativa L.) genotypes were evaluated for drought tolerance during the germination stage. Osmotic stress was induced using polyethylene glycol (PEG6000) at four levels (0%, 10%, 15%, and 20%). The experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design with a factorial arrangement and three replications, assessing morphological traits including rootlet length, shoot length, fresh and dry weight, germination percentage, seed vigor index, and allometric coefficient. The results indicated that the effects of genotype, stress level, and their interaction were significant for most traits. The ‘Sepidrud’ genotype was identified as the most tolerant, while the ‘Ali Kazemi’ genotype was the most sensitive to drought stress at the germination stage. Bioinformatics analyses of available transcriptomic data from databases, including two drought-resistant and sensitive genotypes, were performed, identifying key genes such as DREB2A, CSD2, ANNAT, and AOC2. Gene enrichment analysis revealed that metabolic processes and pathways related to oxidative stress and osmotic regulation were activated in response to drought stress. The findings of this study could be valuable for selecting resistant genotypes and informing future breeding strategies.

Keywords

References

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Iranian Journal of Seed Sciences and Research
Volume 12, Issue 1
June 2025
Pages 77-89

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