Heat stress during male meiosis impairs cytoskeletal organization, spindle assembly and tapetum degeneration in wheat.

The significance of heat stress in agriculture is ever-increasing with the progress of global climate changes. Due to a negative effect on the yield of staple crops, including wheat, the impairment of plant reproductive development triggered by high ambient temperature became a restraint in food production. Although the heat sensitivity of male meiosis and the following gamete development in wheat has long been recognized, a detailed structural characterization combined with a comprehensive gene expression analysis has not been done about this phenomenon.

Morpho-Anatomical, Physiological and Biochemical Adjustments in Response to Heat and Drought Co-Stress in Winter Barley.

This study aimed to investigate the combined effect of high temperatures 10 °C above the optimum and water withholding during microgametogenesis on vegetative processes and determine the response of winter barley genotypes with contrasting tolerance. For this purpose, two barley varieties were analyzed to compare the effect of heat and drought co-stress on their phenology, morpho-anatomy, physiological and biochemical responses and yield constituents. Genotypic variation was observed in response to heat and drought co-stress, which was attributed to differences in anatomy, ultrastructure and physiological and metabolic processes.