biologia plantarum

Biologia plantarum 50:591-596, 2006 | DOI: 10.1007/s10535-006-0093-2

Effect of NaCl on biomass, protein and proline contents, and antioxidant enzymes in seedlings and calli of two Trigonella species

V. Niknam^1,*, N. Razavi¹, H. Ebrahimzadeh¹, B. Sharifizadeh¹

¹ Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Tehran, Tehran, I.R. Iran

The effects of NaCl on growth, contents of proteins and proline, and activities of catalase, peroxidase and polyphenol oxidase were investigated in seedlings and calli of Trigonella foenum-graecum L. and T. aphanoneura Rech. f. Seeds and hypocotyl explants were cultured on Murashige and Skoog medium supplemented with 0, 50, 100, 150 and 200 mM NaCl. Seed germination and the fresh and dry mass of the seedlings decreased significantly under salinity. In both species significant increases in protein content of seedlings over that of control were observed at 150 and 200 mM NaCl. Protein content in calli decreased at 200 mM NaCl over that of control. Protein content was higher in seedlings than in calli at all NaCl concentrations. Conversely, proline content was lower in seedlings than in calli at all the tested NaCl concentrations. NaCl caused changes in the activities of peroxidase, catalase and polyphenol oxidase in seedlings and calli.

Keywords: catalase; in vitro culture; peroxidase; polyphenol oxidase; salinity

Subjects: antioxidants, antioxidative enzymes; catalase; gibberellic acid, gibberellins; growth analysis, plant development, biomass and yield enhancement; in vitro culture, callus growth and duration; nutrient medium, Murashige and Skoog; peroxidase; polyphenol oxidase; proline; proteins; reactive oxygen species (ROS); salt, salinity stress; seed; Trigonella aphanoneura; Trigonella foenum-graecum

Received: December 1, 2004; Accepted: June 1, 2005; Published: December 1, 2006  Show citation