Selenium-Priming mediated growth and yield improvement of turnip under saline conditions
Creators: name: Hussain, Saber
name: Ahmed, Shakil
name: Akram, Waheed
name: Sardar, Rehana
name: Abbas, Muhammad
name: Yasin, Nasim Ahmad
Publisher: name: Taylor & Francis
Year: 2023
Subjects: subject: Biochemistry
subject: Biotechnology
subject: Environmental Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: Chemical Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: Ecology
subject: FOS: Biological sciences
subject: Biological Sciences not elsewhere classified
subject: Plant Biology

description: Salt toxicity is one of the foremost environmental stresses that declines nutrient uptake, photosynthetic activity and growth of plants resulting in a decrease in crop yield and quality. Seed priming has become an emergent strategy to alleviate abiotic stress and improve plant growth. During the current study, turnip seed priming with sodium selenite (Na<sub>2</sub>SeO<sub>3</sub>) was investigated for its ability to mitigate salt stress. Turnip (<i>Brassica rapa</i> L. var. Purple Top White Globe) seeds primed with 75, 100, and 125 <i>μ</i>ML<sup>−1</sup> of Se were subjected to 200 mM salt stress under field conditions. Findings of the current field research demonstrated that salt toxicity declined seed germination, chlorophyll content, and gas exchange characteristics of <i>B. rapa</i> seedling. Whereas, Se-primed seeds showed higher germination rate and plant growth which may be attributed to the decreased level of hydrogen peroxide (H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub>) and malondialdehyde (MDA) decreased synthesis of proline (36%) and besides increased total chlorophyll (46%) in applied turnip plants. Higher expression levels of genes encoding antioxidative activities (<i>CAT</i>, <i>POD</i>, <i>SO,D</i> and <i>APX</i>) mitigated oxidative stress induced by the salt toxicity. Additionally, Se treatment decreased Na<sup>+</sup> content and enhanced K<sup>+</sup> content resulting in elevated K<sup>+</sup>/Na<sup>+</sup> ratio in the treated plants. The <i>in-silico</i> assessment revealed the interactive superiority of Se with antioxidant enzymes including CAT, POD, SOD, and APX as compared to sodium chloride (NaCl). Computational study of enzymes-Se and enzymes-NaCl molecules also revealed the stress ameliorative potential of Se through the presence of more Ramachandran-favored regions (94%) and higher docking affinities of Se (-6.3). The <i>in-silico</i> studies through molecular docking of Na<sub>2</sub>SeO<sub>3</sub>, NaCl, and ROS synthesizing <i>enzymes</i> (receptors) including cytochrome P450 (CYP), <i>lipoxygenase</i> (LOX), and xanthine oxidase (XO), also confirmed the salt stress ameliorative potential of Se in <i>B. rapa</i>. The increased Ca, P, Mg, and Zn nutrients uptake nutrients uptake in 100 <i>μ</i>ML<sup>−1</sup> Se primed seedlings helped to adjust the stomatal conductivity (35%) intercellular CO<sub>2</sub> concentration (32%), and photosynthetic activity (41%) resulting in enhancement of the yield attributes. More number of seeds per plant (6%), increased turnip weight (115 gm) root length (17.24 cm), root diameter (12 cm) as well as turnip yield increased by (9%tons ha<sup>−1</sup>) were recorded for 100 <i>μ</i>ML<sup>−1</sup> Se treatment under salinity stress. Findings of the current research judiciously advocate the potential of Se seed priming for salt stress alleviation and growth improvement in <i>B. rapa</i>. According to our best of knowledge, it is the first time that seed primed with Selenium have been evaluated regarding NaCl stress mitigation in turnip. Salinity toxicity negatively affected physiochemical activities and growth of <i>B.rapa</i>.Seed priming with Selenium (Na<sub>2</sub>SeO<sub>3</sub>) mitigated salinity stress.Selenium (Se) enhanced nutrition, photosynthetic and antioxidant activity of applied plants.Selenium treated plants exhibited improved growth and reduced salinity content. Salinity toxicity negatively affected physiochemical activities and growth of <i>B.rapa</i>. Seed priming with Selenium (Na<sub>2</sub>SeO<sub>3</sub>) mitigated salinity stress. Selenium (Se) enhanced nutrition, photosynthetic and antioxidant activity of applied plants. Selenium treated plants exhibited improved growth and reduced salinity content.