Plants are regularly exposed to an adverse environment due to their sessile nature which has negative impacts on plant development and productivity. In this study, the effect of seeds priming with 50 µM CdCl2 in ameliorating the salinity (200 mM NaCl) induced oxidative stress in pigeon pea was assessed. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and malondialdehyde (MDA) content was reduced in Cd+SS (50 µM CdCl2 primed followed by 200 mM NaCl treatment) tissues as compared to salt stressed (SS) tissues. The activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), catalase (CAT), and guaicol peroxidase (GPX) were increased in Cd+SS tissues as compared to SS tissues. Moreover, the concentrations of ascorbic acid (ASC) and proline were also increased in Cd+SS tissues as compared to SS tissues. Thus, a low dose Cd priming provided tolerance to pigeon pea seedlings by activating the antioxidant machinery.
Global warming has a devastating effect on the growth and productivity of plants. Pigeon pea, the second most important legume crop with high nutritional value, is at high risk due to high temperature exposure. Priming is an innovative agronomical application that can be used as a strategy to minimize the detrimental effects of any kind of stresses. In this study, we investigated how low dose of cadmium priming alleviates heat stress (HS) in pigeon pea seedlings. The results demonstrated that low dose of cadmium priming induced the expression of antioxidant systems and maintain a redox homeostasis. An enhanced level of antioxidant glutathione, and antioxidative enzymes (SOD, APX, and GR) were observed in Cd+HS leaf (40 μM Cd priming followed by exposure to HS, 42°C) as compared to the HS leaf. Moreover, a reduction in hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and oxidized glutathione (GSSG) content was also noticed in Cd+HS leaf. The GSH/GSSG ratio, which was indicative of the redox state in the plant system, was also high in Cd+HS leaf as compared to HS leaf. Thus, the priming of pigeon pea seeds with low dose Cd alleviates HS by elevating antioxidant defenses, ultimately protecting pigeon pea seedlings against HS.
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