Effect of Silicon on Oat Salinity Tolerance: Analysis of the Epigenetic and Physiological Response of Plants

Abstract

Environmental conditions are the primary factor determining the growth and yield of plants. As a result of climate change, the negative impact of abiotic factors is intensifying. One of them is salt stress. Soil salinity is one of the major problems in agriculture in the world and affects many cultivar species. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of silicon foliar application on the physiological and epigenetic reaction of oats (Avena sativa L.) under salt stress. The pot experiment was carried out in controlled conditions. Oat plants were subject to sodium chloride (NaCl) at a concentration of 200 mM and applied to the soil. Three concentrations of Optysil (200 g∙L−1 SiO2) were used for foliar fertilization. Measurements were made of the relative chlorophyll content in the leaves, the selected chlorophyll fluorescence parameters, and the gas exchange parameters. In this study, methylation-sensitive amplification polymorphisms (MSAP) analysis was used to investigate the effect of Si application during salinity stress on the DNA methylation level in oat plants. The results of this study indicated that the exogenous application of silicon improved the tolerance of the oat plants to salinity. The doses of 0.1% and 0.2% Optysil had the greatest effect on alleviating the impact of salt stress on the oat plants. In this research, the epigenetic as well as the physiological response of plants to the applied experimental factors were analyzed, which is a broad coverage of the research topic on the effects of salinity and silicon on plants.

Bacillus aryabhattai Mitigates the Effects of Salt and Water Stress on the Agronomic Performance of Maize Under an Agroe-Cological System

“…It can be seen from Figure 8, that the internal CO2 concentration was higher when the maize was irrigated with water of lower salinity (0.3 dS m -1 ), demonstrating the negative effects of salt stress, which interferes in the osmotic, toxic and nutritional processes, and affects net CO2 assimilation [17]. Similar trends were observed by [53] studying salt stress in okra, where an increase in the electrical conductivity of the irrigation water promoted a reduction in the internal CO2 concentration.…”

“…2 of 20 potential, making the soil solution unavailable, or not readily available, for nutrient uptake by plants. These stresses have a negative effect on physiological processes, causing partial closure of the stomata, limiting the internal CO2 concentration, reducing the rates of photosynthesis and transpiration, and consequently water use efficiency and agricultural crop yields worldwide [15][16][17]. [18], evaluating the interaction between salt and water stress in the courgette, found a reduction in photosynthesis and transpiration.…”

Bacillus aryabhattai Mitigates the Effects of Salt and Water Stress on the Agronomic Performance of Maize under an Agroecological System

“…It can be seen from Figure 8 that the internal CO 2 concentration was higher when the maize was irrigated with water of lower salinity (0.3 dS m −1 ), demonstrating the negative effects of salt stress, which interferes in the osmotic, toxic, and nutritional processes and affects the net CO 2 assimilation [18]. uninoculated plants.…”

“…It can be seen from Figure 8 that the internal CO2 concentration was higher when the maize was irrigated with water of lower salinity (0.3 dS m −1 ), demonstrating the negative effects of salt stress, which interferes in the osmotic, toxic, and nutritional processes and affects the net CO2 assimilation [18]. Similar trends were observed by [57] studying salt stress in okra, where an increase in the electrical conductivity of the irrigation water promoted a reduction in the internal CO2 concentration.…”

“…Water and salt stress reduce the soil water potential, making the soil solution unavailable, or not readily available, for nutrient uptake by plants. These stresses have a negative effect on physiological processes, causing partial closure of the stomata, limiting the internal CO 2 concentration, reducing the rates of photosynthesis and transpiration, and consequently the water-use efficiency and agricultural crop yields worldwide [16][17][18]. Evaluating the interaction between salt and water stress in the courgette, [19] found a reduction in photosynthesis and transpiration.…”