Transcriptomic and metabolomic profiles of Zea mays fed with urea and ammonium

The simultaneous presence of different N-forms in the rhizosphere leads to beneficial effects on nitrogen (N) nutrition in plants. Although widely used as fertilizers, the occurrence of cross connection between urea and ammonium nutrition has been scarcely studied in plants. Maize fed with a mixture of urea and ammonium displayed a better N-uptake efficiency than ammonium- or urea-fed plants (Buoso et al., Plant Physiol Biochem, 2021a; 162: 613–623). Through multiomic approaches, we provide the molecular characterization of maize response to urea and ammonium nutrition. Several transporters and enzymes involved in N-nutrition were upregulated by all three N-treatments (urea, ammonium, or urea and ammonium). Already after 1 day of treatment, the availability of different N-forms induced specific transcriptomic and metabolomic responses. The combination of urea and ammonium induced a prompt assimilation of N, characterized by high levels of some amino acids in shoots. Moreover, ZmAMT1.1a, ZmGLN1;2, ZmGLN1;5, ZmGOT1, and ZmGOT3, as well transcripts involved in glycolysis-TCA cycle were induced in roots by urea and ammonium mixture. Depending on N-form, even changes in the composition of phytohormones were observed in maize. This study paves the way to formulate guidelines for the optimization of N fertilization to improve N-use efficiency in maize and therefore limit N-losses in the environment.