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Updated: Oct 17, 2025

Imaging and Analysis for Quantifying Maize (Zea mays) Abiotic Stress Phenotypes
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A vegetative storage protein improves drought tolerance in maize.

Hari K R Abbaraju1,2, Rajeev Gupta1,3, Laura M Appenzeller1

  • 1Corteva Agriscience, Johnston, IA, USA.

Plant Biotechnology Journal
|October 6, 2021
PubMed
Summary

Researchers discovered a novel vegetative storage protein (VSP) in maize, a crucial grass crop. Overexpressing this VSP in maize leaves enhanced drought tolerance and improved grain yield under water-stressed conditions.

Keywords:
chloroplast targetingdrought tolerancegrain yieldmaizemesophyllnitrogenremobilizationtransgenic expressionvegetative storage protein

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Area of Science:

  • Plant Biology
  • Crop Science
  • Molecular Biology

Background:

  • Vegetative storage proteins (VSPs) are vital nitrogen reserves in dicots but have not been identified in grasses, a major global crop group.
  • Understanding nitrogen storage mechanisms in grasses like maize is crucial for improving crop resilience and yield.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To identify and characterize a novel VSP in maize.
  • To investigate the role of this VSP in nitrogen storage and drought tolerance.
  • To assess the potential of VSP overexpression for enhancing maize crop performance.

Main Methods:

  • Identification and characterization of a maize lipoxygenase (ZmLOX6) as a VSP.
  • Ectopic expression of ZmLOX6 in maize using tissue-specific promoters, focusing on mesophyll cells.
  • Field trials evaluating transgenic maize hybrids under managed drought stress.

Main Results:

  • Overexpression of ZmLOX6 in maize mesophyll cells led to a fivefold increase in VSP accumulation.
  • Transgenic maize hybrids overexpressing ZmLOX6 exhibited significantly improved grain yield under drought stress.
  • The identified VSP was effectively remobilized from leaves during grain development, similar to other major proteins.

Conclusions:

  • Maize possesses a functional VSP (ZmLOX6) that can be targeted to chloroplasts and accumulated in mesophyll cells.
  • Overexpressing ZmLOX6 enhances maize drought tolerance and grain yield, offering a new strategy for crop improvement.
  • This discovery opens avenues for engineering nitrogen storage in grasses to mitigate climate change impacts on agriculture.