PhD defence by Xuefei Chen
Unraveling drought and osmotic stress tolerance in Root-inducing (Ri) oilseed rape and Arabidopsis
Transformation of plants using wild strains of Rhizobium rhizogenes is referred to as natural transformation and is not covered by GMO legislation in e.g. European Union and Japan. There is growing evidence that R. rhizogenes-mediated transformation holds the potential of improving stress resistance in plants since individual Root-inducing (Ri)-genes can increase abiotic stress defense (e.g. oxidative stress). This opens for application of natural transformation in breeding drought-resistant plants. However, the effects of Ri-genes on stress resistance of Ri plants remain largely unknown due to the limited knowledge available on how naturally transformed plants cope with environmental challenges, such as drought. The main purpose of this Ph.D. project was to investigate the resilience of osmotic and soil drought stress of Ri-genes transformed oilseed rape (Brassica napus) and to reveal the roles of rolB and rolC, the most well-characterized Ri-genes, in osmotic stress resistance in the model plants Arabidopsis.
This project demonstrated that the application of wild-type strains of R. rhizogenes (natural transformation) enhanced the root systems, and increased tolerance to short-term osmotic stress and soil drought stress in Ri oilseed rape. Supported by the data obtained in Arabidopsis, it highlights a vast potential for natural transformation to provide pre-breeding lines of Ri oilseed rape for a climate-proof agricultural future.
Assessment Committee
Torben Bo Toldam-Andersen, Associate Professor, Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Renato Paiva, Professor, Department of Biology, Federal University of Lavras, Brazil
Hedayat Zakizadeh, Assistant Professor, Department of Horticultural Sciences, University of Guilan, Iran
Supervisors
Henrik Vlk Lütken, Associate Professor
Fulai Liu, Professor
Bruno Trevenzoli Favero, Assistant Professor
Department of Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Copenhagen
Time & venue
Wednesday 15 January 2025 at 13:00
A8-18.02, Højbakkegård Allé 13, 2630 Taastrup and Hybrid/Teams:
Meeting ID: 360 730 505 110
Passcode: ec633So6
The defence is followed by a reception