Biology subjects

Pascual, L. S.

Publications and source records attributed to Pascual, L. S..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

RAP2.3 is required for MYB51 and SIGMA3 expression during the response of Arabidopsis thaliana to multifactorial stress combination

In nature, plants are subjected to multiple environmental stress factors simultaneously or sequentially. Recent studies revealed that when three or more stress factors impact a plant simultaneously (termed multifactorial stress combination; MFSC), plant survival declines, even if the intensity of each individual stress involved in the MFSC is low. We previously identified RAP2.3 as a key transcription factor (TF) required for Arabidopsis thaliana survival, specifically under a MFSC of salt+excess light+heat stress (i.e., S+EL+HS). Here we report that RAP2.3 is required for the expression of SIGMA3, a nuclear-encoded factor that directs plastid RNA polymerase to specific plastid promoters, and MYB51, a key stress response TF involved in glucosinolate metabolism and oxidative stress responses, specifically during a MFSC of S+EL+HS. Like rap2.3 mutants, myb51 and sig3 mutants display significantly low survival rate specifically under the MFSC of S+EL+HS. Based on MYB51 gene regulatory network analysis and characterization of jasmonic acid (JA) mutants, we further reveal that suppression of JA signaling could play an important role in promoting plant survival under conditions of S+EL+HS. Our findings uncover an additional layer of the response of plants to MFSC, as well as identify potential targets for breeding crops with enhanced tolerance to climate change.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2025

Enhanced cell aggregation in the Chlamydomonas reinhardtii rbo1 mutant in response to multifactorial stress combination

Global change factors associated with climate change and increased pollution are subjecting plants, microbes, and different ecosystems to conditions of multifactorial stress combination (MFSC). While recent studies centered on the effects of MFSC on different plants and ecosystems, much less is known about how these conditions impact unicellular organisms. Here, we report on the physiological and proteomic responses of wild type and respiratory burst oxidase homolog 1 (rbo1) mutant cells of Chlamydomonas reinhardtii to a MFSC of 5 different abiotic stresses. While several similarities were found between plant and C. reinhardtii responses to MFSC, our work revealed that MFSC induces aggregation in the unicellular organism C. reinhardtii. We further show that MFSC induced aggregation is enhanced in the rbo1 mutant and can be triggered by H2O2. As aggregation typically leads to reduced growth, respiration and/or photosynthesis, enhanced aggregation of unicellular organisms in different ecosystems subjected to MFSC could explain part of the negative impacts of MFSC on the services they provide. Our findings shed new light on the response of unicellular organisms to MFSC and suggest that one of the main drivers leading to multicellularity during evolution was early conditions of MFSC under an oxygenated environment.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2023

Integrative phenotypic-transcriptomic analysis of soybean plants subjected to multifactorial stress combination

Global warming, climate change, and industrial pollution are altering our environment subjecting crops to an increasing number and complexity of abiotic stress conditions, concurrently or sequentially. Recent studies revealed that a combination of 3 or more stresses simultaneously impacting a plant (termed multifactorial stress combination; MFSC) can cause a drastic decline in plant growth and survival, even if the level of each stress involved in the MFSC has a negligible effect on plants. However, the impacts of MFSC on crops are largely unknown. We subjected soybean plants to a MFSC of up to five different stresses (water deficit, salinity, low phosphate, acidity, and cadmium), in an increasing level of complexity, and conducted integrative transcriptomic-phenotypic analysis of reproductive and vegetative tissues. We reveal that MFSC has a negative cumulative effect on soybean yield, that each set of MFSC condition elicits a unique transcriptomic response (that is different between flowers and leaves), and that selected genes expressed in leaves or flowers are linked to the effects of MFSC on different vegetative, physiological, and/or reproductive parameters. We further reveal that the transcriptomic response of soybean and Arabidopsis to MFSC shares common features associated with reactive oxygen and iron/copper signaling/metabolism. Our study provides unique phenotypic and transcriptomic datasets for dissecting the mechanistic effects of MFSC on the vegetative, physiological, and reproductive processes of a crop plant.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2022

The effects of multifactorial stress combination on rice and maize

The complexity of environmental factors affecting plants is gradually increasing due to global warming, an increase in the number and intensity of climate change-driven weather events, such as droughts, heat waves, and floods, and the accumulation of different pollutants. The impact of multiple stress conditions on plants was recently termed multifactorial stress combination (MFSC) and defined as the occurrence of three or more stressors that impact plants simultaneously or sequentially. We recently reported that with the increased number and complexity of different stressors, the growth and survival of Arabidopsis thaliana seedlings declines; even if the level of each individual stress is low enough to have no significant effect on plants. This finding is alarming since it reveals that MFSCs of different low-level stressors could impact crops and cause a dramatic reduction in overall growth. However, whether MFSC would impact commercial crop cultivars has not been studied. Here, we reveal that a MFSC of 5 different low level abiotic stresses (salinity, heat, the herbicide paraquat, phosphorus deficiency, and the heavy metal cadmium), applied in an increasing level of complexity, has a significant negative impact on the growth and biomass of a commercial rice (Oryza sativa) cultivar and a maize (Zea mays) hybrid. We further report on the first proteomics analysis of MFSC in plants that identified over 300 proteins common to all 4- and 5-MFSCs. Taken together our findings reveal that the impacts of MFSC on two different crop species are severe, and that MFSC may significantly affect agricultural productivity.

plant biology↗