Abstract
Melatonin is a well-known agent that plays multiple roles in animals. Its possible function in plants is less clear. In the present study, we tested the effect of melatonin (N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine) on soybean growth and development. Coating seeds with melatonin significantly promoted soybean growth as judged from leaf size and plant height. This enhancement was also observed in soybean production and their fatty acid content. Melatonin increased pod number and seed number, but not 100-seed weight. Melatonin also improved soybean tolerance to salt and drought stresses. Transcriptome analysis revealed that salt stress inhibited expressions of genes related to binding, oxidoreductase activity/process, and secondary metabolic processes. Melatonin up-regulated expressions of the genes inhibited by salt stress, and hence alleviated the inhibitory effects of salt stress on gene expressions. Further detailed analysis of the affected pathways documents that melatonin probably achieved its promotional roles in soybean through enhancement of genes involved in cell division, photosynthesis, carbohydrate metabolism, fatty acid biosynthesis, and ascorbate metabolism. Our results demonstrate that melatonin has significant potential for improvement of soybean growth and seed production. Further study should uncover more about the molecular mechanisms of melatonin's function in soybeans and other crops.
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Claims 8
Claim · model-written summary
Coating soybean seeds with melatonin significantly promoted growth, as judged from leaf size and plant height.
- Taxon
- soybean
Glycine maxe1 - Treatment
- Coating seeds with melatonine1
- Outcome
- leaf size and plant heighte1
- Direction
- promotede1
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“Coating seeds with melatonin significantly promoted soybean growth as judged from leaf size and plant height”
Claim · model-written summary
The melatonin-induced enhancement was also observed in soybean production and fatty acid content.
- Taxon
- soybeanGlycine maxe2
- Treatment
- melatonine1
- Outcome
- soybean production and their fatty acid contente2
- Direction
- enhancemente2
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“Coating seeds with melatonin significantly promoted soybean growth as judged from leaf size and plant height”
e2“This enhancement was also observed in soybean production and their fatty acid content”
Claim · model-written summary
Melatonin increased pod number and seed number in soybean.
- Taxon
- soybeanGlycine maxt0
- Treatment
- Melatonine1
- Outcome
- pod number and seed numbere1
- Direction
- increasede1
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“soybean”
e1“Melatonin increased pod number and seed number”
Claim · model-written summary
Melatonin did not increase 100-seed weight in soybean.
- Taxon
- soybeanGlycine maxt0
- Treatment
- Melatonine1
- Outcome
- 100-seed weighte1
- Direction
- no_changeinferrede1
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“soybean”
e1“Melatonin increased pod number and seed number, but not 100-seed weight”
Claim · model-written summary
Melatonin improved soybean tolerance to salt and drought stresses.
- Taxon
- soybeanGlycine maxe1
- Treatment
- Melatonine1
- Outcome
- tolerance to salt and drought stressese1
- Direction
- improvede1
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“Melatonin also improved soybean tolerance to salt and drought stresses”
Claim · model-written summary
Salt stress inhibited the expression of genes related to binding, oxidoreductase activity/process and secondary metabolic processes in soybean.
- Taxon
- soybeanGlycine maxt0
- Treatment
- salt stresse1
- Outcome
- expressions of genes related to binding, oxidoreductase activity/process, and secondary metabolic processese1
- Direction
- inhibitede1
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“soybean”
e1“salt stress inhibited expressions of genes related to binding, oxidoreductase activity/process, and secondary metabolic processes”
Claim · model-written summary
Melatonin up-regulated the expression of genes that salt stress had inhibited in soybean, alleviating the inhibitory effect of salt stress on gene expression.
- Taxon
- soybeanGlycine maxt0
- Treatment
- Melatonine1
- Outcome
- expressions of the genes inhibited by salt stresse1
- Direction
- up-regulatede1
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
t0“soybean”
e1“Melatonin up-regulated expressions of the genes inhibited by salt stress”
Claim · model-written summary
Melatonin probably promoted soybean growth through enhanced expression of genes involved in cell division, photosynthesis, carbohydrate metabolism, fatty acid biosynthesis and ascorbate metabolism.
- Taxon
- soybeanGlycine maxe1
- Treatment
- melatonine1
- Gene
- genes involved in cell division, photosynthesis, carbohydrate metabolism, fatty acid biosynthesis, and ascorbate metabolisme1
- Outcome
- promotional rolese1
- Qualifier
- probablye1
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“melatonin probably achieved its promotional roles in soybean through enhancement of genes involved in cell division, photosynthesis, carbohydrate metabolism, fatty acid biosynthesis, and ascorbate metabolism”
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