Integrated physiological, transcriptomic and metabolomic analyses reveal the mechanism of UV-B radiation enhancement to alleviate drought stress damage in Tibetan hulless barley (qingke).
- Open access
UV-B radiation at 10–13 kJ/m²/day significantly alleviates drought-induced damage in Tibetan hulless barley, improving biomass, yield, and photosynthesis under combined stress.
- Why it matters: Drought and UV-B often co-occur in high-altitude regions, severely limiting crop productivity, yet the molecular mechanisms of their interaction remain unclear, hindering development of resilient crops.
- What they did: Using integrated physiological, transcriptomic, and metabolomic analyses, the study examined barley responses to drought alone and combined with UV-B, identifying key molecular and metabolic changes.
- The result: UV-B mitigates drought effects by reducing oxidative damage, restoring photosynthesis, reconfiguring metabolism toward protective compounds, and modulating hormone signaling, revealing targets for breeding resilient crops.