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<p>Under drought stress, maize growth is severely inhibited or even arrested. Melatonin (MT), a pleiotropic signaling molecule, has been shown to play important roles in abiotic stress responses; however, its underlying mechanisms in maize drought resistance remain incompletely understood. Here, we investigated the physiological and molecular responses caused by exogenous MT treatment in maize seedlings under drought stress. Root irrigation with 50 µM MT significantly alleviated drought-induced growth inhibition, as evidenced by improved plant architecture, increased biomass accumulation, and enhanced relative water content. MT treatment markedly suppressed malondialdehyde (MDA) accumulation, indicating reduced membrane lipid peroxidation. Photosynthetic parameters, including chlorophyll content and PSII maximum photochemical efficiency (Fv/Fm), were significantly preserved under drought stress following MT application. MT treatment was associated with lower stomatal density, reduced leaf water loss, enhanced antioxidative enzyme activities, and decreased ROS accumulation under drought stress. RNA-seq analysis identified 4,720 up regulated and 3,099 down regulated genes in MT-treated plants under drought conditions, with these genes mainly enriched in RNA modification, photosynthesis, protein phosphorylation, and stress-related processes. Nine candidate genes were further validated by qRT-PCR as MT-responsive genes in drought-treated samples, including <i>ZmSLAH3</i>, <i>ZmPRX2</i>, <i>ZmNAC127</i>, <i>ZmMYB41</i>, <i>ZmWRKY43</i>, and <i>ZmbHLH20</i>. These findings suggest that MT alleviated drought stress-induced growth inhibition in maize, enhanced antioxidative enzyme activities and activated drought stress-responsive gene expression, thereby improving drought resistance and providing novel insights into the underlying mechanisms of MT-mediated stress resistance.</p>

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Melatonin enhances drought resistance in maize via modulation of stomatal behavior, antioxidant system, and stress-responsive gene expression

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年7月2日

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  • Yuan Zhang,
  • Yizhuo Zhang,
  • Miao Wang,
  • Tengao Xu,
  • Hao Yang,
  • Hui Liu,
  • Wei Wang,
  • Hui Zhang

摘要

Under drought stress, maize growth is severely inhibited or even arrested. Melatonin (MT), a pleiotropic signaling molecule, has been shown to play important roles in abiotic stress responses; however, its underlying mechanisms in maize drought resistance remain incompletely understood. Here, we investigated the physiological and molecular responses caused by exogenous MT treatment in maize seedlings under drought stress. Root irrigation with 50 µM MT significantly alleviated drought-induced growth inhibition, as evidenced by improved plant architecture, increased biomass accumulation, and enhanced relative water content. MT treatment markedly suppressed malondialdehyde (MDA) accumulation, indicating reduced membrane lipid peroxidation. Photosynthetic parameters, including chlorophyll content and PSII maximum photochemical efficiency (Fv/Fm), were significantly preserved under drought stress following MT application. MT treatment was associated with lower stomatal density, reduced leaf water loss, enhanced antioxidative enzyme activities, and decreased ROS accumulation under drought stress. RNA-seq analysis identified 4,720 up regulated and 3,099 down regulated genes in MT-treated plants under drought conditions, with these genes mainly enriched in RNA modification, photosynthesis, protein phosphorylation, and stress-related processes. Nine candidate genes were further validated by qRT-PCR as MT-responsive genes in drought-treated samples, including ZmSLAH3, ZmPRX2, ZmNAC127, ZmMYB41, ZmWRKY43, and ZmbHLH20. These findings suggest that MT alleviated drought stress-induced growth inhibition in maize, enhanced antioxidative enzyme activities and activated drought stress-responsive gene expression, thereby improving drought resistance and providing novel insights into the underlying mechanisms of MT-mediated stress resistance.