biologia plantarum

International journal on Plant Life established by Bohumil Němec in 1959

Biologia plantarum 69:1-11, 2025 | DOI: 10.32615/bp.2025.001

Moderate drought stress increases resistance of Brassica napus to subsequent infection by Leptosphaeria maculans

Barbora JINDŘICHOVÁ1, Marzieh MOHRI1, 2, Tetiana KALACHOVA1, Romana POSPÍCHALOVÁ1, Pavel RY©ÁNEK2, Lenka BURKETOVÁ1, *
1 Institute of Experimental Botany, Czech Academy of Sciences, Rozvojová 313, 165 00, Prague, Czech Republic
2 Department of Plant Protection, Faculty of Agrobiology, Food and Natural Resources, Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, Kamýcká 129, 165 00, Prague, Czech Republic

Plants have developed adaptive strategies to cope with environmental stresses, but mechanisms effective under one stress may be counterproductive under others. This study investigates the effect of moderate drought stress pretreatment on the resistance of Brassica napus to Leptosphaeria maculans, the pathogen causing blackleg disease. B. napus plants were exposed to varying durations of drought stress, followed by a 24-h recovery period before inoculation with L. maculans. The results demonstrate a priming effect of the drought pretreatment, with a reduction in necrotic lesions in cotyledons compared to non-stressed controls. The most pronounced effect was observed in plants that underwent a 68-h drought pretreatment, resulting in a 45% reduction in disease symptoms. The transcriptions of 17 genes involved in B. napus defence against pathogen infection and drought stress were monitored. This revealed the involvement of the salicylic acid signaling pathway, indicated by increased expression of PR1 and PR2 marker genes. Additionally, drought stress marker genes were upregulated. These findings provide insight into the mechanisms of plant adaptation to combined biotic and abiotic stresses, which is essential for sustainable agriculture in a changing environment.

Keywords: biotic stress, Brassica napus, defence genes, drought stress, Leptosphaeria maculans.

Received: October 10, 2024; Revised: December 13, 2024; Accepted: February 6, 2025; Published online: February 22, 2025  Show citation

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JINDŘICHOVÁ, B., MOHRI, M., KALACHOVA, T., POSPÍCHALOVÁ, R., RY©ÁNEK, P., & BURKETOVÁ, L. (2025). Moderate drought stress increases resistance of Brassica napus to subsequent infection by Leptosphaeria maculans. Biologia plantarum, 69, Article 1-11. https://doi.org/10.32615/bp.2025.001
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