TY - JOUR

T1 - Metabolic Responses of Amaranthus caudatus Roots and Leaves to Zinc Stress

AU - Осмоловская, Наталия Глебовна

AU - Билова, Татьяна Евгеньевна

AU - Гурина, Анастасия Кирилловна

AU - Орлова, Анастасия Андреевна

AU - Vu, V.D.

AU - Sukhikh, Stanislav

AU - Zhilkina, Tatiana

AU - Фролова, Надежда Владимировна

AU - Тараховская, Елена Роллановна

AU - Kamionskaya, Anastasia

AU - Фролов, Андрей Александрович

PY - 2025/7/9

Y1 - 2025/7/9

N2 - In recent decades, heavy metal pollution has become a significant environmental stress factor. Plants are characterized by high biochemical plasticity and can adjust their metabolism to ensure survival under a changing environment. Here we report, to our knowledge, the first gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS)-based metabolomics study of Zn-induced stress responses in Amaranthus caudatus plants. The study was performed with root and leaf aqueous methanolic extracts after their lyophilization and sequential derivatization with methoxylamine hydrochloride and N-methyl- N-(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide. In total, 419 derivatives were detected in the samples, and 144 of them could be putatively annotated. The metabolic shifts in seven-week-old A. caudatus plants in response to a seven-day treatment with 300 µmol/L ZnSO 4·7H 2O in nutrient solution were organ-specific and more pronounced in roots. Most of the responsive metabolites were up-regulated and dominated by sugars and sugar acids. The revealed effects could be attributed to the involvement of these metabolites in osmotic regulation, antioxidant protection and Zn 2+ complexation. A 59-fold up-regulation of gluconic acid in roots distinctly indicated enhanced glucose oxidation due to oxidative stress upon the Zn treatment. Gluconic acid might be further employed in Zn 2+ complexation. Pronounced Zn-induced up-regulation of salicylic acid in roots and shoots suggested a key role of this hormone in stress signaling and activation of Zn stress tolerance mechanisms. Overall, our study provides the first insight into the general trends of Zn-induced biochemical rearrangements and main adaptive metabolic shifts in A. caudatus.

AB - In recent decades, heavy metal pollution has become a significant environmental stress factor. Plants are characterized by high biochemical plasticity and can adjust their metabolism to ensure survival under a changing environment. Here we report, to our knowledge, the first gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS)-based metabolomics study of Zn-induced stress responses in Amaranthus caudatus plants. The study was performed with root and leaf aqueous methanolic extracts after their lyophilization and sequential derivatization with methoxylamine hydrochloride and N-methyl- N-(trimethylsilyl)trifluoroacetamide. In total, 419 derivatives were detected in the samples, and 144 of them could be putatively annotated. The metabolic shifts in seven-week-old A. caudatus plants in response to a seven-day treatment with 300 µmol/L ZnSO 4·7H 2O in nutrient solution were organ-specific and more pronounced in roots. Most of the responsive metabolites were up-regulated and dominated by sugars and sugar acids. The revealed effects could be attributed to the involvement of these metabolites in osmotic regulation, antioxidant protection and Zn 2+ complexation. A 59-fold up-regulation of gluconic acid in roots distinctly indicated enhanced glucose oxidation due to oxidative stress upon the Zn treatment. Gluconic acid might be further employed in Zn 2+ complexation. Pronounced Zn-induced up-regulation of salicylic acid in roots and shoots suggested a key role of this hormone in stress signaling and activation of Zn stress tolerance mechanisms. Overall, our study provides the first insight into the general trends of Zn-induced biochemical rearrangements and main adaptive metabolic shifts in A. caudatus.

KW - Amaranthus caudatus

KW - GC-MS-based metabolomics

KW - ROS scavenging

KW - Zn stress

KW - complexation of Zn2+ ions

KW - gluconate

KW - heavy metals

KW - metabolic adjustment

KW - osmotic regulation

KW - salicylate

UR - https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/050a7cbd-38bf-3a9d-a251-3e9a69ab7492/

U2 - 10.3390/plants14142119

DO - 10.3390/plants14142119

M3 - Article

C2 - 40733356

VL - 14

JO - Plants

JF - Plants

SN - 2223-7747

IS - 14

M1 - 2119

ER -