Salt stress differently affects growth, water status and antioxidant enzyme activities in Solanum lycopersicum and its wild relative Solanum chilense

Abstract

The effect of saline stress (NaCl, 40, 80 and 160 mmol L−1 of NaCl) on growth, plant water status and leaf antioxidant enzyme activities was investigated in a commercial cultivar of cherry tomato (Solanum lycopersicum var. cerasiforme L.) and in a wild-related species collected in a salt-affected area of North Chile (Solanum chilense Dun.). Salt stress was applied in a nutrient solution at the vegetative stage during 40 days. The highest NaCl concentration reduced shoot relative growth, fresh and dry weight and leaf area in the cultivated S. lycopersicum but had less impact on S. chilense. Both species were able to efficiently perform osmotic adjustment but S. chilense also exhibited an increase in leaf succulence. The oxidative stress estimated through malondialdehyde quantification was always higher in the cultivated S. lycopersicum, both in the absence and in the presence of salt. Total superoxide dismutase activity (EC 1.15.1.1) increased in response to the highest dose of NaCl in S. chilense but remained constant in S. lycopersicum. Salinity induced an increase in ascorbate peroxidase (EC 1.11.1.11) in S. chilense but reduced it in S. lycopersicum. It is concluded that S. chilense displays efficient strategies to cope with high NaCl doses and that management of the oxidative status is a key mechanism allowing this species to tolerate salinity.

Salicylic acid differently impacts ethylene and polyamine synthesis in the glycophyte Solanum lycopersicum and the wild‐related halophyte Solanum chilense exposed to mild salt stress

“…Comparing the behavior of the cultivated glycophyte S. lycopersicum with its wild‐relative halophyte plant species S. chilense will help to unravel the strategies of plant response to salt stress and may also lead to identification of genes able to confer salt resistance to the cultivated tomato. Martínez et al (, ) reported that S. chilense displays a contrasting behavior in response to prolonged exposure to moderate salinity compared with S. lycopersicum and that salt stress does not markedly affect plant biomass and fruit yield in this species.…”

“…This species can dwell in hyper arid areas and is distributed from sea level up to 3500 m in the Andes (Chetelat et al ). This self‐incompatible perennial was historically included in the polymorphic Solanum peruvianum but is now considered as a distinct species found in a geographically restricted area and characterized by narrow ecological niches (Igic et al , Nakazato et al , Tellier et al ).This wild tomato species is able to grow in diverse environments and to cope with many biotic and abiotic constraints (Martínez et al , ). It is commonly considered as a valuable source of genes for resistance to viruses such as Pseudomonas syringae (Thapa et al ) or tomato yellow leaf curl disease (Pérez de Castro et al ).…”

Transcriptional regulation-mediating ROS homeostasis and physio-biochemical changes in wild tomato (Solanum chilense) and cultivated tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) under high salinity

“…Osmotic adjustment during salt stress in S. lycopersicum might result in the turgor loss point occupying at lower leaf water potential ( Suárez, 2011 ). Martínez et al (2014) reported that higher water-retaining ability on leaf dry weight basis during salt stress condition is an important tolerance strategy and could be correlated with higher stress tolerance in S. chilense than S. lycopersicum .…”

“…It has extreme potential to grow well in diverse and fluctuating environments. The tolerance of this wild species to such harsh environment is possibly due to presence of essential genes that govern key tolerance traits against various abiotic and biotic stresses ( Martínez et al, 2014 , Thapa et al, 2015 ). Interestingly, biochemical and physiological basis of salt resistance in S. chilense has been less explored when compared to other wild relatives such as Solanum cheesmanii , Solanum pennellii , and Solanum pimpinellifolium ( Almeida et al, 2014 ).…”

Metabolic Fingerprinting to Assess the Impact of Salinity on Carotenoid Content in Developing Tomato Fruits

“…One of the main reasons for these conflicting results may relate to the genetic background of the assessed tomato cultivars, which holds varying salt tolerances [ 48 ]. Indeed, various key mechanisms within the plant stress response have been recognized to be universal, but their relative importance may vary from species to species, depending amongst other on the metabolic background [ 49 ]. This statement has clearly been demonstrated in the study of Caro et al (1991) [ 50 ] in which normal-fruited tomato cultivars ( Solanum lycopersicum L.) were found to be less salt tolerant compared to cherry tomatoes ( Solanum lycopersicum L. var.…”