## 4 Discussion  
The observed data suggested biological influence of AGE on various physiological processes during seed germination of eggplant. The effect, however, was proportional to the concentration of AGE and priming duration. Additionally, SA and MeJA also influenced the seed germination and early seedlings growth, indicating significant influence of these growth regulators on seed priming. Based on the results obtained, it was observed that the concentration of AGE influenced the germination processes in a dose dependent manner. Seeds applied with 100 \(\upmu\)g mL\({}^{-1}\) and 200 \(\upmu\)g mL\({}^{-1}\) AGE showed an increase in germination percentage, germination rate, and CVG. It is important to consider that the increase in the germination traits was concentration and priming duration dependent. The highest concentration of AGE inhibited these traits when the seeds were primed for prolonged (12 h) durations. Similar effects were observed for the enzymes such as SOD, and POD activities, where a concentration dependent effect was observed. These findings strongly suggest that the biological influence of AGE depends on its concentration and duration of the application. Previously, same concentrations of AGE have been reported to impose significant influence on the growth and physiology of subject plants [40; 41; 42], and therefore strongly agree to our results. Seed primed with MeJA and SA also exhibited alterations in the germination traits and the antioxidant enzymes activities, with MeJA being slightly more effective than SA. Previously, SA has been reported to induce defense responses and improve seed germination traits when the eggplant seeds were primed with various concentrations [16], which strongly agree with our findings that SA primed seeds have improved seed germination and seedling vigor. Furthermore, a study reported by [PERSON] et al. (2018) suggested that priming with MeJA alleviates osmotic stress in rice by altering the physiological processes in the germinating seedlings and our findings are in strong agreement to the biological influence of MeJA as seed priming. The prolonged exposure of these seeds to higher concentration of AGE i.e., 300 \(\upmu\)g mL\({}^{-1}\), however, negatively influenced the seedlings and the lipid peroxidation levels (MDA concentration) were significantly higher, indicating the onset of oxidative stress. These findings agree to the previously established dose dependent effects of garlic derived compounds [34; 35]. Moreover, it has been reported that AGE application triggers antioxidant enzymes in cucumber, eggplant, tomato, and pepper seedlings [36; 40; 41; 42], which are in line with current results. Antioxidant enzymes are the key players to counteract various stresses [52; 53] and help sustain the growth and development of the plants. Elevated reactive oxygen species such as O\({}_{2}\)\({}^{-}\) and H\({}_{2}\)O\({}_{2}\) were observed in the seedlings treated with different concentrations of AGE and the SA or MeJA treatments. These findings signify the role of seed priming in stimulated seeds germination and the resulting seedlings growth and development. As previously described, during cellular metabolism, numerous processes produce ROS, and these ROS signal a vast array of cellular responses to sustain normal plant growth [54]. Particularly during seed germination, these ROS play a pivotal role in the cell division and elongation processes [55; 56]. The elevated amounts observed in current findings not only indicate a stress situation but also, it is likely associated with enhanced cellular metabolic processes. The elevation in the antioxidant enzymes, therefore, indicates that these seedlings possessed a more stable and elaborate physiological state where the possible negative influence of the ROS (e.g., cellular destruction or DNA denaturation) was effectively controlled and the seedlings therefore exhibited significant morphological growth [52].