Seed Priming with Salicylic Acid Alleviates Salt Stress Toxicity in Barley by Suppressing ROS Accumulation and Improving Antioxidant Defense Systems, Compared to Halo- and Gibberellin Priming

Abstract

Plants are highly sensitive to various environmental stresses, which can hinder their growth and reduce yields. In this study, we investigated the potential of seed priming with salicylic acid (SA), gibberellic acid (GA3), and sodium chloride (NaCl) to mitigate the adverse effects of salinity stress in Hordeum vulgare at the germination and early seedling stages. Exposing H. vulgare seeds to salt stress reduced the final germination percentage and seedling shoot and root growth. Interestingly, all seed treatments significantly improved salt-induced responses, with GA3 being more effective in terms of germination performance, plant growth, and photosynthesis. SA priming exhibited promising effects on antioxidant defense mechanisms, proline, sugar, and ascorbic acid production. Notably, SA priming also suppressed reactive oxygen species accumulation and prevented lipid peroxidation. These findings highlight the ability of SA to manage crosstalk within the seed, coordinating many regulatory processes to support plant adaptation to salinity stress.

Exogenous Cytokinin 4PU-30 Modulates the Response of Wheat and Einkorn Seedlings to Ultraviolet B Radiation

“…Studies have revealed that CKs increased leaf chlorophyll content, chloroplast stability and net photosynthetic rate, thereby alleviating stress-induced damages [49,50]. The application of growth regulators for improving abiotic stress response is a promising strategy in modern agriculture and efforts are aimed at characterizing the molecular mechanisms underlying their mode of action [23,28,51].…”

“…Cytokinins (CKs) are phytohormones involved in various aspects of plant growth and development including cell division and differentiation and shoot and root morphogenesis, but they have also been shown to mediate plant stress responses [15][16][17][18][19][20]. The synthetic phenylurea type cytokinin 4PU-30 (N1-(2-chloro-4-pyridyl)-N2-phenylurea) has been reported to reduce the negative effects of drought [21,22] and salinity [23,24], alleviate the action of the herbicide glyphosate [25,26], and provide protection against herbicides and biotic stress [25,27]. The application of growth regulators capable of activating the plant defense system might be regarded as an alternative approach to developing stress tolerance in important crop species [28,29].…”