ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Plant Sci.
Sec. Crop and Product Physiology
The Influence of Exogenous Methyl Jasmonate on the Structure and Physicochemical Properties of Wheat Starch under Cadmium Stress
Provisionally accepted
Hairong Wang1
Dazhong Zhang2Liwen Meng1Fujing Yang1Zhiwei Sun1Yilong Li1Qin Ding1
Na Niu1*
Lingjian Ma1*- 1Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China
- 2Henan Institute of Science and Technology, Xinxiang, China
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MeJA enhances Cd stress resistance and reduces Cd accumulation in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.). Our previous study demonstrated that exogenous MeJA regulated wheat responses to Cd stress in a concentration-dependent manner: low-concentration MeJA (1 μM) enhanced stomatal conductance and photosynthesis, promoting assimilate transport to grains, whereas high-concentration MeJA (10 μM) had little or even inhibitory effects. Building on this, the present study investigated the effects of MeJA spraying on grain weight and starch physicochemical properties in wheat under Cd stress. Wheat plants were subjected to different soil Cd levels with foliar application of varying MeJA concentrations. Cd stress significantly reduced grain weight, inhibited starch synthesis, and impaired starch physicochemical properties by decreasing crystallinity, gelatinization enthalpy, and freeze-thaw stability. In contrast, low-concentration MeJA significantly increased thousand-grain weight, total starch content, and B-type starch granule content, while improving starch crystalline structure, thermal stability, and functional properties, thereby alleviating Cd-induced damage. Genotypic variation revealed a MeJA-mediated trade-off between stress defense and developmental metabolism, with the Cd-tolerant cultivar exhibiting a more efficient jasmonate signaling and metabolic compensation mechanism. Overall, this study extends previous physiological findings to the starch quality level and provides new mechanistic insight into MeJA-mediated regulation of grain quality and stress adaptation in wheat grown under Cd-contaminated conditions.
Keywords: wheat, grain, Cadmium stress, Methyl Jasmonate, Starch
Received: 15 Oct 2025; Accepted: 17 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Wang, Zhang, Meng, Yang, Sun, Li, Ding, Niu and Ma. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Na Niu, niuna@nwsuaf.edu.cn
Lingjian Ma, 2008116048@nwafu.edu.cn
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