The kernel water concentration (KWC) varies more intensely during the physiological dehydration phase, and the dehydration process during this phase has been demonstrated to be closely associated with internal physiological processes in maize kernels. To better illustrate the physiological dehydration process (PDP) of maize kernels, moisture characteristic parameters were consecutively recorded after pollination, and the timing of the occurrence of net water loss was confirmed. Additionally, a tandem mass tag (TMT) based proteomic analysis was performed to identify the significantly differentially expressed proteins during the critical period of the PDP (PDP_cp). The results showed that maize varieties presented significant variance in the KWC, kernel water content, dry‐down rate (DR) and absolute DR; nevertheless, the KWC was similar (below 65%) when net water loss occurred. In addition, 20–28 days after pollination was indicated to be the PDP_cp in this study. Based on proteome analysis, Yuyu 30 and Suyu 41 showed 163 and 132 differentially expressed proteins (DEPs), respectively during the PDP_cp and 99 DEPs overlapped between the varieties. During the PDP_cp, the desiccation tolerance, antioxidation capability, detoxification and other stress response abilities of maize kernels were significantly increased. The increased defense abilities enabled the maize kernels to establish coordinated, diverse, stable defense mechanisms that accelerated water loss from maize kernels during the PDP_cp.

中文翻译：

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增强的防御能力促进了玉米在生理脱水过程中的水分流失

在生理脱水阶段，籽粒水浓度（KWC）变化更大，并且已经证明该阶段的脱水过程与玉米籽粒的内部生理过程密切相关。为了更好地说明玉米籽粒的生理脱水过程（PDP），在授粉后连续记录水分特征参数，并确定发生净水分流失的时间。此外，进行了基于串联质量标签（TMT）的蛋白质组学分析，以鉴定PDP（PDP _cp）。结果表明，玉米品种的KWC，籽粒含水量，干枯率（DR）和绝对DR差异显着。但是，当发生净失水时，KWC相似（低于65％）。另外，本研究表明授粉后20-28天是PDP _cp。根据蛋白质组学分析，于玉30和苏玉41在PDP _cp期间分别显示163和132差异表达蛋白（DEP），而两个品种之间有99 DEP重叠。在PDP _cp期间，玉米籽粒的耐干性，抗氧化能力，解毒能力和其他胁迫响应能力显着提高。增强的防御能力使玉米粒能够建立协调一致，多样，稳定的防御机制，从而在PDP _cp期间加速了玉米粒的水分流失。