Nowadays, calcium (Ca²⁺) and methylglyoxal (MG) are all deemed to be second messengers in plants, which participate in various physiological processes, such as seed germination, seedling establishment, plant growth and development, as well as response to environmental stress. However, the Ca²⁺-MG interaction in the development of thermotolerance in maize seedlings remains unclear. Here, using maize seedlings as materials, the crosstalk between Ca²⁺ and MG signaling in the acquisition of thermotolerance was explored. The results showed that root-irrigation with Ca²⁺ and MG alone or in combination increased the survival rate of maize seedlings under heat stress, mitigated the decrease in the tissue vitality, and reduced the membrane lipid peroxidation (in term of the content of malondialdehyde), indicating that Ca²⁺ and MG could improve the thermotolerance in maize seedlings. In addition, MG-improved thermotolerance was impaired by ethylene glycol-bis(b-aminoethylether)-N,N,N΄,N΄-tetraacetic acid (a Ca²⁺ chelator), La³⁺ (plasma membrane Ca²⁺ channel blocker), ruthenium red (a mitochondrial Ca²⁺ channel blocker), neomycin (vacuole Ca²⁺ channel blocker), caffeine (an endoplasmic reticulum Ca²⁺ channel blocker), and calmodulin antagonists (chlorpromazine and trifluoperazine), respectively. Also, MG scavengers (N-acetyl-cysteine, aminoguanidine, and vitamin B6) had no significant effect on Ca²⁺-triggered thermotolerance (in terms of survival rate, malondialdehyde, and tissue vitality) of maize seedlings. The data illustrated that calcium signaling regulated MG-improved thermotolerance in maize seedlings by mobilizing intracellular and extracellular Ca²⁺ pools.

如今，钙（Ca ²⁺）和甲基乙二醛（MG）均被视为植物的第二信使，它们参与各种生理过程，例如种子发芽，幼苗生长，植物生长和发育以及对环境胁迫的响应。然而，Ca ²⁺ -MG在玉米幼苗耐热性发展中的相互作用仍然不清楚。在此，以玉米幼苗为材料，探讨了耐热性获得过程中Ca ²⁺与MG信号之间的串扰。结果表明，Ca ²⁺根系灌溉单独或联合施用MG可以提高热胁迫下玉米幼苗的存活率，减轻组织活力的下降，并减少膜脂过氧化（以丙二醛的含量计），表明Ca ²⁺和MG可以改善玉米幼苗的耐热性。此外，乙二醇-双（b-氨基乙基醚）-N，N，N΄，N΄-四乙酸（Ca ²⁺螯合剂），La ³⁺（质膜Ca ²⁺通道）会损害MG改善的耐热性阻滞剂），钌红（线粒体Ca ²⁺通道阻滞剂），新霉素（真空Ca ²⁺通道阻滞剂），咖啡因（内质网Ca ²⁺通道阻滞剂）和钙调蛋白拮抗剂（氯丙嗪和三氟拉嗪）​​。同样，MG清除剂（N-乙酰基半胱氨酸，氨基胍和维生素B6）对Ca ²⁺触发的玉米幼苗的耐热性（存活率，丙二醛和组织活力）没有显着影响。数据表明，钙信号传导通过调动细胞内和细胞外Ca ²⁺池，调节了MG玉米幼苗的耐热性。