A Seed Storage Protocol to Determine Longevity.

The longevity of seeds, also known as storability, is the period of time for which a seed lot maintains its viability during storage. The method aims to determine longevity of a seed lot during storage in a controlled environment. Seeds are first rehydrated to a preset water content (or relative humidity, RH) and then incubated under controlled conditions for various periods of time to allow for deterioration to occur.

BASIC PENTACYSTEINE1 regulates by modification of two histone marks H3K27me3 and H3ac during early seed development of .

Introduction: The production of highly vigorous seeds with high longevity is an important lever to increase crop production efficiency, but its acquisition during seed maturation is strongly influenced by the growth environment.

Methods: An association rule learning approach discovered MtABI4, a known longevity regulator, as a gene with transcript levels associated with the environmentally-induced change in longevity. To understand the environmental sensitivity of transcription, Yeast One-Hybrid identified a class I BASIC PENTACYSTEINE (MtBPC1) transcription factor as a putative upstream regulator.

Sleeping but not defenceless: seed dormancy and protection.

To ensure their vital role in disseminating the species, dormant seeds have developed adaptive strategies to protect themselves against pathogens and predators. This is orchestrated through the synthesis of an array of constitutive defences that are put in place in a developmentally regulated manner, which are the focus of this review. We summarize the defence activity and the nature of the molecules coming from the exudate of imbibing seeds that leak into their vicinity, also referred to as the spermosphere.

A method to determine antifungal activity in seed exudates by nephelometry.

Background: One of the levers towards alternative solutions to pesticides is to improve seed defenses against pathogens, but a better understanding is needed on the type and regulation of existing pathways during germination. Dormant seeds are able to defend themselves against microorganisms during cycles of rehydration and dehydration in the soil. During imbibition, seeds leak copious amounts of exudates.

Genetic Variability in Seed Longevity and Germination Traits in a Tomato MAGIC Population in Contrasting Environments.

The stable production of high vigorous seeds is pivotal to crop yield. Also, a high longevity is essential to avoid progressive loss of seed vigour during storage. Both seed traits are strongly influenced by the environment during seed development.

ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE 4 coordinates eoplast formation to ensure acquisition of seed longevity during maturation in Medicago truncatula.

Seed longevity, the capacity to remain alive during dry storage, is pivotal to germination performance and is essential for preserving genetic diversity. It is acquired during late maturation concomitantly with seed degreening and the de-differentiation of chloroplasts into colorless, non-photosynthetic plastids, called eoplasts. As chlorophyll retention leads to poor seed performance upon sowing, these processes are important for seed vigor.

Splicing Isoforms Regulate the Expression of Different Gene Clusters to Orchestrate Seed Maturation.

Seed maturation comprises important developmental processes, such as seed filling and the acquisition of seed germination capacity, desiccation tolerance, longevity, and dormancy. The molecular regulation of these processes is tightly controlled by the LAFL transcription factors, among which was shown to be involved in most of these seed maturation processes. Here, we studied the gene from a model legume plant for seed studies.

Genome-Wide Association Studies of Seed Performance Traits in Response to Heat Stress in Uncover as a Regulator of Seed Germination Plasticity.

Legume seeds are an important source of proteins, minerals, and vitamins for human and animal diets and represent a keystone for food security. With climate change and global warming, the production of grain legumes faces new challenges concerning seed vigor traits that allow the fast and homogenous establishment of the crop in a wide range of environments. These seed performance traits are regulated during seed maturation and are under the strong influence of the maternal environment.

Gene co-expression analysis of tomato seed maturation reveals tissue-specific regulatory networks and hubs associated with the acquisition of desiccation tolerance and seed vigour.

Background: During maturation seeds acquire several physiological traits to enable them to survive drying and disseminate the species. Few studies have addressed the regulatory networks controlling acquisition of these traits at the tissue level particularly in endospermic seeds such as tomato, which matures in a fully hydrated environment and does not undergo maturation drying. Using temporal RNA-seq analyses of the different seed tissues during maturation, gene network and trait-based correlations were used to explore the transcriptome signatures associated with desiccation tolerance, longevity, germination under water stress and dormancy.

RNA sequencing data for heat stress response in isolated seed tissues.

Legumes are important crop species as they produce highly nutritious seeds for human food and animal feed. In grain legumes, sub-optimal conditions affect seed developmental timing leading to impairment of seed quality traits acquired during seed maturation. To understand the molecular mechanisms of heat stress response in legume seeds, we analysed transcriptome changes of three seed tissues (i.

Dataset for transcriptome and physiological response of mature tomato seed tissues to light and heat during fruit ripening.

Seed vigor is an estimate of how successfully a seed lot will establish seedlings under a wide range of environmental conditions, with both the embryo and the surrounding endosperm playing distinct roles in the germination behaviour. Germination and seedling establishment are essential for crop production to be both sustainable and profitable. Seed vigor traits are sequentially acquired during development via genetic programs that are poorly understood, but known to be under the strong influence of environmental conditions.

The seed-specific heat shock factor A9 regulates the depth of dormancy in Medicago truncatula seeds via ABA signalling.

During the later stages of seed maturation, two key adaptive traits are acquired that contribute to seed lifespan and dispersal, longevity and dormancy. The seed-specific heat shock transcription factor A9 is an important hub gene in the transcriptional network of late seed maturation. Here, we demonstrate that HSFA9 plays a role in thermotolerance rather than in ex situ seed conservation.

Molecular and environmental factors regulating seed longevity.

Seed longevity is a central pivot of the preservation of biodiversity, being of main importance to face the challenges linked to global climate change and population growth. This complex, quantitative seed quality trait is acquired on the mother plant during the second part of seed development. Understanding what factors contribute to lifespan is one of the oldest and most challenging questions in plant biology.

A role for auxin signaling in the acquisition of longevity during seed maturation.

Seed longevity, the maintenance of viability during dry storage, is a crucial factor to preserve plant genetic resources and seed vigor. Inference of a temporal gene-regulatory network of seed maturation identified auxin signaling as a putative mechanism to induce longevity-related genes. Using auxin-response sensors and tryptophan-dependent auxin biosynthesis mutants of Arabidopsis thaliana L.

Molecular characterization of the acquisition of longevity during seed maturation in soybean.

Seed longevity, defined as the ability to remain alive during storage, is an important agronomic factor. Poor longevity negatively impacts seedling establishment and consequently crop yield. This is particularly problematic for soybean as seeds have a short lifespan.

Late seed maturation: drying without dying.

Besides the deposition of storage reserves, seed maturation is characterized by the acquisition of functional traits including germination, desiccation tolerance, dormancy, and longevity. After seed filling, seed longevity increases up to 30-fold, concomitant with desiccation that brings the embryo to a quiescent state. The period that we define as late maturation phase can represent 10-78% of total seed development time, yet it remains overlooked.

Genome-wide association studies with proteomics data reveal genes important for synthesis, transport and packaging of globulins in legume seeds.

Improving nutritional seed quality is an important challenge in grain legume breeding. However, the genes controlling the differential accumulation of globulins, which are major contributors to seed nutritional value in legumes, remain largely unknown. We combined a search for protein quantity loci with genome-wide association studies on the abundance of 7S and 11S globulins in seeds of the model legume species Medicago truncatula.

ABI5 Is a Regulator of Seed Maturation and Longevity in Legumes.

The preservation of our genetic resources and production of high-quality seeds depends on their ability to remain viable and vigorous during storage. In a quantitative trait locus analysis on seed longevity in Medicago truncatula, we identified the bZIP transcription factor ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE5 (ABI5). Characterization of Mt-abi5 insertion mutant seeds revealed that both the acquisition of longevity and dormancy were severely impaired.

Inference of Longevity-Related Genes from a Robust Coexpression Network of Seed Maturation Identifies Regulators Linking Seed Storability to Biotic Defense-Related Pathways.

Seed longevity, the maintenance of viability during storage, is a crucial factor for preservation of genetic resources and ensuring proper seedling establishment and high crop yield. We used a systems biology approach to identify key genes regulating the acquisition of longevity during seed maturation of Medicago truncatula. Using 104 transcriptomes from seed developmental time courses obtained in five growth environments, we generated a robust, stable coexpression network (MatNet), thereby capturing the conserved backbone of maturation.

Introduction to desiccation biology: from old borders to new frontiers.

A special issue reviews the recent progress made in our understanding of desiccation tolerance across various plant and animal kingdoms. It has been known for a long time that seeds can survive near absolute protoplasmic dehydration through air drying and complete germination upon rehydration because of their desiccation tolerance. This property is present both in prokaryotes and eukaryotes across all life kingdoms.

Identification of a molecular dialogue between developing seeds of Medicago truncatula and seedborne xanthomonads.

Plant pathogenic bacteria disseminate and survive mainly in association with seeds. This study addresses whether seeds are passive carriers or engage a molecular dialogue with pathogens during their development. We developed two pathosystems using Medicago truncatula with Xanthomonas alfalfae subsp.

An emerging picture of the seed desiccome: confirmed regulators and newcomers identified using transcriptome comparison.

Desiccation tolerance (DT) is the capacity to withstand total loss of cellular water. It is acquired during seed filling and lost just after germination. However, in many species, a germinated seed can regain DT under adverse conditions such as osmotic stress.

LEA polypeptide profiling of recalcitrant and orthodox legume seeds reveals ABI3-regulated LEA protein abundance linked to desiccation tolerance.

In contrast to orthodox seeds that acquire desiccation tolerance during maturation, recalcitrant seeds are unable to survive drying. These desiccation-sensitive seeds constitute an interesting model for comparative analysis with phylogenetically close species that are desiccation tolerant. Considering the importance of LEA (late embryogenesis abundant) proteins as protective molecules both in drought and in desiccation tolerance, the heat-stable proteome was characterized in cotyledons of the legume Castanospermum australe and it was compared with that of the orthodox model legume Medicago truncatula.

A regulatory network-based approach dissects late maturation processes related to the acquisition of desiccation tolerance and longevity of Medicago truncatula seeds.

In seeds, desiccation tolerance (DT) and the ability to survive the dry state for prolonged periods of time (longevity) are two essential traits for seed quality that are consecutively acquired during maturation. Using transcriptomic and metabolomic profiling together with a conditional-dependent network of global transcription interactions, we dissected the maturation events from the end of seed filling to final maturation drying during the last 3 weeks of seed development in Medicago truncatula. The network revealed distinct coexpression modules related to the acquisition of DT, longevity, and pod abscission.