Under the supervision of Minnie Leong (minnie.leong@wur.nl)

Aim: Characterising the role of salicylic acid in root salt stress response

Salicylic acid (SA) is a well-known phytohormone for biotic stress resilience, but it has also been suggested to regulate ion homeostasis when plants are under salt stress [1-5] . Ion homeostasis, especially the ratio between sodium and potassium, is crucial for many growth and developmental processes in plants. Therefore, in this project, we would like to study the role of key SA biosynthesis and signalling genes in regulating ion content in Arabidopsis roots and what are the phenotypic output in terms of root system architecture. You will get a chance to mine genes of interest by analysing available RNA-seq data sets and implementing a range of physiological and molecular assays to verify their roles in root salt stress response.

It is preferred that you have an interest in plant physiology, plant cell and molecular biology, as well as relative wet-lab techniques (experiences are a plus but not necessary).y).  If you have no prior experience, you should preferably take one of the following courses: PPH30306 Molecular Concepts of Plant Resilience, PPH30806 Plant Plasticity and Adaptation, or another pre-requisite for a thesis.

Further reading:

[1] Yang, W., Zhou, Z. & Chu, Z. Emerging Roles of Salicylic Acid in Plant Saline Stress Tolerance. International Journal of Molecular Sciences vol. 24 Preprint at https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms24043388 (2023).

[2] Tester, M. & Davenport, R. Na+ Tolerance and Na+ Transport in Higher Plants. Ann Bot 91, 503–527 (2003).

[3] Assaha, D. V. M., Ueda, A., Saneoka, H., Al-Yahyai, R. & Yaish, M. W. The Role of Na+ and K+ Transporters in Salt Stress Adaptation in Glycophytes. Front Physiol 8, 509 (2017).

[4] Jayakannan, M., Bose, J., Babourina, O., Rengel, Z. & Shabala, S. Salicylic acid improves salinity tolerance in Arabidopsis by restoring membrane potential and preventing salt-induced K+ loss via a GORK channel. J Exp Bot 64, (2013).

[5] Jayakannan, M. et al. The NPR1-dependent salicylic acid signalling pathway is pivotal for enhanced salt and oxidative stress tolerance in Arabidopsis. J Exp Bot 66, 1865 (2015).