Effect of Astaxanthin on the Growth and Resistance of Strawberry Seedling under Cadmium Stress

Abstract

In this experiment, we studied the effects of astaxanthin on the growth and resistance of strawberry tissue culture seedlings under the stress of heavy metal cadmium. Strawberry seedlings were planted in MS medium supplemented with different concentrations of astaxanthin and with 25 mg/L GdCl2. The results showed that the content of chlorophyll increased and the content of MDA decreased in the strawberry plantlets treated with astaxanthin compared with the control. The activity of SOD, POD and CAT increased in astaxanthin treated plantlets with low concentration (5 μmol/L~100 μmol/L), but decreased with high concentration. The content of vitamin C increased with astaxanthin treatment of 5~50 μmol/L, and decreased with the treatment of 100~200 μmol/L of astaxanthin. Meanwhile, astaxanthin treatment at 5 μmol/L showed the best antioxidant activity. Thus, low concentrations of astaxanthin could alleviate the damage in strawberry tissue culture seedlings under the stress of heavy metal cadmium, but the high concentration of astaxanthin could not relieve the damage. According to the indexes, the optimal concentration of astaxanthin to alleviate cadmium stress is between 10~100 μmol/L.