Comparing the Mechanical Properties of Rice Cells and Proto-plasts under PEG6000 Drought Stress Using Double Resonator Piezoelectric Cytometry

Abstract

Plant cells' ability to withstand abiotic stress is strongly linked to modifications in their mechanical characteristics. Nevertheless, the lack of a workable method for consistently tracking plant cell mechanical properties severely restricts our comprehension of the mechanical alterations in plant cells under stress. With Polyethylene Glycol (PEG6000), we created a drought-like environment, and we used the Double Resonator Piezoelectric Cytometry (DRPC) method to dynamically and non-invasively track changes in the stress (ΔS) created and viscoelasticity (storage modulus G' and loss modulus G") of protoplasts and suspension cells of rice during drought stress. The findings demonstrate that, rice suspension cells and protoplasts react mechanically differently to 5%–15% PEG6000 stress, implying distinct resistance mechanisms. However, neither of them can withstand 25% PEG6000 stress, they respond mechanically similarly to 25% PEG6000 stress. The results of DRPC are further corroborated by the morphological alterations of rice cells and protoplasts observed under an optical microscope. To sum up, the DRPC technique functions as a precise cellular mechanical sensor and offers novel research tools for the evaluation of plant cell adversity and differentiating between the mechanical reactions of cells and protoplasts under abiotic stress.

Plant phenotyping relevance

DRPCによる植物細胞の機械特性（応力・粘弾性）の動的かつ非侵襲的測定法を開発・評価しており、植物ストレス表現型の取得が中心である。

Code and data availability

The preprint reports DRPC measurements of rice cell/protoplast mechanics under PEG6000 stress, but its Data Availability Statement says data are available only within the article. No public phenotype datasets, images, code, models, or supplements with URLs are mentioned, and no allowed URLs are provided.

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