Oral Presentation AUS-oMicS 2025

Multi-omics data integration of the pan wheat cultivars reveal plasticity in drought response (#52)

Angela Juhasz 1 , Utpal Bose 1 2 , Jana Barbro Winkler 3 , Shahida Mitu 1 , Gregor Huber 4 , Robert Koller 4 , David Beale 5 , Amanda Dawson 2 , Sophia Escobar-Correas 5 , Sally Stockwell 2 , Keren Byrne 2 , Bhabananda Biswas 6 , Mohammad M Rahman 6 , Manjusha Neerukonda 7 , Detlef Schuppan 7 , Klaus FX Mayer 8 , Michelle L Colgrave 1 2 , Manuel Spannagl 8 9 , Jörg-Peter Schnitzler 3
  1. Australian Research Council Centre of Excellence for Innovations in Peptide and Protein Science, School of Science, Edith Cowan University, Joondalup, WA, Australia
  2. CSIRO Agriculture and Food, St Lucia, Queensland, Australia
  3. Research Unit Environmental Simulation, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
  4. Research Center Jülich, Julich, Germany
  5. CSIRO Ecosciences Precinct, Dutton Park
  6. College of Engineering, Science and Environment, The University of Newcastle, Callaghan Campus
  7. Institute of Translational Immunology, University Medical Center Mainz, Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany
  8. Research Unit Plant Genome and Systems Biology, German Research Center for Environmental Health, Helmholtz Zentrum München, Neuherberg, Germany
  9. Centre for Crop & Food Innovation, Food Futures Institute, Murdoch University, Murdoch

In recent years, more than 15 high-resolution wheat genome sequences have been made available to the wheat community by the International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium and the 10+ Wheat Genomes Project. The wealth of genomic resources coupled with extensive phenotypic information and in-depth multi-omics analyses allows us to understand the intricate relationships between yield potential, seed nutritive and anti-nutritive component accumulation and broad adaptation to abiotic stresses such as drought. Using high-throughput phenomics, proteomics, metabolomics profiling and micronutrient composition analysis, we monitored cultivar-specific variation in the grain composition of nine cultivars from the pan-wheat collection and the underlying mechanism for their ability to cope with moderate drought applied at the stem elongation stage. We showed that significant variations in phenotypic traits in the vegetative and reproductive tissues were primarily manifested in significant changes at metabolome and micronutrient levels in the grain. However, less than 10% of the quantified grain proteome was affected, suggesting a minimal impact of moderate vegetative stress on grain macromolecular composition. Integrated analysis of the multiple -omics datasets revealed that each cultivar employs a mixture of coping mechanisms. These mechanisms are related to stress escape, avoidance and tolerance by plants increasing intrinsic water use efficiency, controlling respiration and increasing photosynthetic activity, which together maintain grain yield and protein composition under water deficit conditions.Detailed analysis of proteins associated with nutrient reservoir activity reveals a potentially novel function of sulphur-rich proteins in abiotic stress adaptation. Our analysis reveals cultivar-specific variations and the impact of moderate vegetative phase drought stress on grain quality, providing insights into bread wheat’s -omics dynamics, including protein accumulations and sub-genome distributions, and valuable resources for wheat improvement beyond the reference genome.