Silicon restrains drought-induced ROS accumulation by promoting energy dissipation in leaves of tomato.

Energy dissipation plays a crucial role in mediating responses to oxidative stress in plants. Although the beneficial effects of silicon on plant resistance to drought stress have been well documented, the potential interactions between energy dissipation and Si in response to drought stress have not been examined. Here, a project was initiated that focused on the relationship between energy dissipation and the functions of Si. In this study, silicon-mediated proteins promoted the consumption of light energy capture and NPQ in chloroplasts. Additionally, we confirmed that the role of silicon-mediated energy dissipation in mitochondria was important for photosynthetic optimization. The energy dissipation in mitochondria was improved, which further optimized the energy dissipation in chloroplasts via Si-mediated alternative oxidase and the malate/oxaloacetate shuttle. ROS accumulation decreased because of the silicon-mediated energy dissipation.