Which one of the following statements related to components/features of senescence in plants is incorrect?
Programmed cell death in plants may generate functional cells or tissues.
Senescence can be induced by application of cytokinins and delayed by overexpression of salicylic acid.
Plants defective in autophagy demonstrate accelerated plant senescence
Leaf senescence is regulated by NAC and WRKY gene families.
Autophagy is a cellular process involved in recycling and degradation of cellular components to maintain cellular homeostasis. It is known to play a crucial role in regulating senescence by removing damaged or unwanted cellular components. Therefore, plants defective in autophagy would typically show impaired or delayed senescence rather than accelerated senescence.
The correct statement is that plants defective in autophagy demonstrate impaired or delayed plant senescence. Hence, the correct answer is option 3.