Translation:
Phyllostachys edulis (maozhu) is a large woody bamboo species that has become one of the world's most important non-timber forest resources (HUANG L, et al., 2018). It is a promising biological resource for renewable forestry products, with high ecological and economic value, and a wide range of applications. P. edulis possesses excellent ecological functions, such as soil and water conservation, climate regulation, and windbreak and sand fixation, which contribute to environmental improvement and water source protection (LINDSAY W L, 1991). As sessile organisms, plants have evolved various mechanisms to cope with inevitable environmental challenges, such as changes in nutrient status, abiotic stress, and pathogen attacks. These adaptive mechanisms are regulated through the expression of stress-responsive genes (CHI G, et al., 2021). Therefore, identifying key genes involved in stress responses is crucial for elucidating the complex mechanisms underlying stress tolerance, providing guidance for plant genetic improvement to meet ongoing economic demands and enhance environmental resilience.
P. edulis is widely distributed in East Asia and Southeast Asia, covering 4.43 million hectares in China (Song XZ, et al., 2020), with most of its habitats being acidic soils where iron solubility is generally high, leading to higher available iron content. However, some areas have lower available iron content. Iron is a critical nutrient element for plant growth and development, and it is also essential for the growth and development of P. edulis. However, most studies on the mechanisms of iron's impact on plants have focused on model plants such as Arabidopsis thaliana and rice (Buckhout TJ, et al., 2009; Kobayashi T, et al., 2005), while research on P. edulis remains limited. Therefore, studying the response mechanisms of P. edulis under iron stress conditions can provide a deeper understanding of the effects of iron on P. edulis, identify key iron-responsive genes, and offer a theoretical foundation for optimizing the growth conditions of P. edulis.
