Insights into Alhagi sparsifolia Seedlings Adaptations to Drought Stress under Nitrogen Addition: Regulation of Sugar Metabolism, Hormones, and Anti-Oxidant Potential
Abd Ullah, Akash Tariq, Fanjiang Zeng, Muhammad Ahsan Asghar, Jordi Sardans, Josep Peñuelas
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
Mature xerophytes access groundwater and minimize the risk of water and nutrient deficits in arid environments. However, how their young seedlings respond to the availability of water and nutrients before they reach groundwater is largely unknown. We investigated the effects of different drought regimes (controlled, medium-drought (MD), and severe-drought (SD)] and nitrogen (N; with or without) addition on biomass and physio-biochemical responses in Alhagi sparsifolia seedlings. Both drought stresses significantly increased superoxide dismutase (O2•−), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), malondialdehyde, and oxidized-glutathione in leaves and roots, thereby impairing growth and metabolism. Furthermore, there is a significant accumulation of fructose and glucose, but lower sucrose and starch, possibly due to higher sucrose synthase, α-amylase, β-amylase and hexokinase but lower sucrose phosphate synthase and fructokinase. Drought-stressed seedlings also displayed higher abscisic and, jasmonic acids, strigolactones, glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G-6-PDH), phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase, O2•−-H2O2-scavenging enzymes, but lower gibberellin, cytokinin, and indole-acetic acid. However, N-addition quantifies the productivity of drought-stressed seedlings by improving the leaf relative water content (LRWC), biomass, chlorophyll-a, sucrose-synthesizing enzymes (SPP and SPS), and hormones. It also increased the G-6-PDH in stressed seedlings to satisfy the need for NADPH and reduced the sucrose and starch degrading enzymes, leading to higher starch and sucrose levels. Upregulation of O2•−-H2O2 -scavenging enzymes under N-supply reduced lipid peroxidation and improved the ascorbate–glutathione redox states. N addition might be an effective strategy to improve drought resistance in A. sparsifolia seedlings to manage and conserve its vegetation in hyper-arid conditions in the face of future climate change.
期刊介绍:
The Journal of Soil Science and Plant Nutrition is an international, peer reviewed journal devoted to publishing original research findings in the areas of soil science, plant nutrition, agriculture and environmental science.
Soil sciences submissions may cover physics, chemistry, biology, microbiology, mineralogy, ecology, pedology, soil classification and amelioration.
Plant nutrition and agriculture submissions may include plant production, physiology and metabolism of plants, plant ecology, diversity and sustainability of agricultural systems, organic and inorganic fertilization in relation to their impact on yields, quality of plants and ecological systems, and agroecosystems studies.
Submissions covering soil degradation, environmental pollution, nature conservation, and environmental protection are also welcome.
The journal considers for publication original research articles, technical notes, short communication, and reviews (both voluntary and by invitation), and letters to the editor.