Salt tolerance in plants is a complex trait involving multiple mechanisms. Understanding these mechanisms and their regulation will assist in developing novel strategies to engineer salt-tolerant crops. In the current study, we investigated salt-tolerant mechanisms in soybean (Glycine max) cultivar WF-7 in comparison to salt-sensitive Union. In vivo and in vitro salt assays demonstrated the salt tolerance of WF-7 at the seedling stage and during germination. After a 10-day 200 mM NaCl treatment, chlorophyll content in Union was reduced by 50 % compared to a 17 % reduction in WF-7. WF-7 was also less affected by abscisic acid (ABA) and NaCl during germination than Union. Upon ABA and NaCl treatment, the ABA-responsive genes SCOF1, ASN1, bZIP44, and AAPK1 are differentially expressed in WF-7 and Union seedlings. These results suggest that salt tolerance in WF-7 is in part regulated through an ABA-dependent pathway. In addition, following a 4-day 200 mM NaCl treatment, WF-7 produced more H₂O₂ than Union indicating the involvement of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in regulating salt tolerance in WF-7. Yet another mechanism WF-7 employs is withholding toxic chloride (Cl⁻) ions from aerial tissues. Following 200 mM NaCl treatment, Cl⁻ accumulation was mostly localized to the roots of WF-7. In contrast, most of the Cl⁻ in Union was transported into the stems and leaves. Taken together, our results demonstrated a role of ABA and ROS in regulating salt tolerance in WF-7, and the critical role of Cl⁻ in NaCl-induced mortality in soybean. Key message Withholding toxic Cl⁻ ions from leaves and, to a lesser extent, stems, confers salt tolerance to soybean WF-7. In addition, ABA and ROS may be involved in salt-stress signal transduction.

The hard shell of a hazelnut is a major waste of the hazelnut industry. The chemical composition, phenolic compounds (total phenolics, tannins and condensed tannins), antioxidant activity (DPPH and ABTS freeradical scavenging assays), and the relationships between phenolic compounds and antioxidant activities of the hazelnut shells from twelve US grown cultivars were investigated to for potential commercial development. Crude fibre accounted for over 85% of total carbohydrate. The shells contained high concentrations of phenolic compounds. Concentrations of phenolic constituents and ABTS •+ -scavenging capacities were significantly higher (P > 0.05) in the Oregon cultivars than their Nebraska counterparts. There were significant positive correlations between ABTS •+ scavenging capacities and the phenolic compounds, whereas DPPH • -scavenging capacity demonstrated a weak negative correlation with ABTS •+ scavenging capacity and the phenolics. The results suggest that hazelnut hard shell may serve as a potential source of natural antioxidants for food applications.

In view of the harsh environment in the dry-hot valley of Sichuan-Tibet railway and the important role of the green protection of the subgrade slope in railway construction and ecological restoration, this paper evaluates the effect of the green protection of the subgrade slope in dry-hot valleys of the Sichuan-Tibet railway. First, an evaluation index system for the green protection effect of railway subgrade slopes is established in terms of the soil matrix quality, vegetation community quality, and protection performance of the slopes. Second, game theory is adopted to combine the improved-group-analytic-hierarchy-process method and the vector-angle-cosine method and thus determine the weight of each evaluation index. Moreover, the membership-cloud-gravity-center method is used to evaluate the green protection level of the railway subgrade slope, and an evaluation cloud map is drawn with the help of MATLAB software to further analyze the evaluation. Finally, a section subgrade slope of the DHV area of the Sichuan-Tibet railway is selected as the evaluation object, and the green protection effect is evaluated to verify the applicability and effectiveness of the model. The study provides a theoretical basis for the protection of subgrade slopes and ecological restoration in the DHV area.

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