The effects of NaCl stress on growth, water status, contents of protein, proline, malondialdehyde (MDA), various sugars and photosynthetic pigments were investigated in seedlings of Salicornia persica and S. europaea grown in vitro. Seeds were germinated under NaCl (0, 100, 200, 300, 400, 500 and 600 mM) on Murashige and Skoog medium for 45 d. The shoot growth of both species increased under low NaCl concentration (100 mM) and then decreased with increasing NaCl concentrations. In contrast to S. persica, root length in S. europaea reduced steadily with an increase in salinity. Proline content in S. persica was higher than in S. europaea at most NaCl concentrations. Proline, reducing saccharide, oligosaccharide and soluble saccharide contents increased under salinity in both species. In contrast, contents of proteins and polysaccharides reduced in both species under salt stress. MDA content remained close to control at moderate NaCl concentrations (100 and 200 mM) and increased at higher salinities. MDA content in S. europaea was significantly higher than S. persica at higher salinities. Salt treatments decreased K + and P contents in seedlings of both species. Significant reduction in contents of chlorophylls and carotenoids due to NaCl stress was also observed in seedlings of both species. Some differences appeared between S. persica and S. europaea concerning proteins profile. On the basis of the data obtained, S. persica is more salt-tolerant than S. europaea.

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.Additional key words: catalase, in vitro culture, peroxidase, polyphenol oxidase, salinity.

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BackgroundSomatic embryogenesis (SE) is a complex biological process that occurs under inductive conditions and causes fully differentiated cells to be reprogrammed to an embryo like state. In order to get a better insight about molecular basis of the SE in Crocus sativus L. and to characterize differentially accumulated proteins during the process, a proteomic study based on two-dimensional gel electrophoresis and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time of flight mass spectrometry has been carried out.ResultsWe have compared proteome profiles of non-embryogenic and embryogenic calli with native corm explants. Total soluble proteins were phenol-extracted and loaded on 18 cm IPG strips for the first dimension and 11.5% sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gels for the second dimension. Fifty spots with more than 1.5-fold change in abundance were subjected to mass spectrometry analysis for further characterization. Among them 36 proteins could be identified, which are classified into defense and stress response, protein synthesis and processing, carbohydrate and energy metabolism, secondary metabolism, and nitrogen metabolism.ConclusionOur results showed that diverse cellular and molecular processes were affected during somatic to embryogenic transition. Differential proteomic analysis suggests a key role for ascorbate metabolism during early stage of SE, and points to the possible role of ascorbate-glutathione cycle in establishing somatic embryos.

The effect of various hormonal combinations on regeneration of shoots and roots from meristem-derived callus of Crocus sativus L. and activities of antioxidant enzymes have been studied. The most efficient regeneration occurred with 1.0 mg dm -3 1-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) + 1.0 mg dm -3 thidiazuron and 1.0 mg dm -3 NAA + 2.0 mg dm -3 kinetin. For sprouting, regenerated shoot were subcultured on Murashige and Skoog medium containing 1.0 mg dm -3 NAA + 1.0 mg dm -3 benzylaminopurine (BAP). Protein content and superoxide dismutase activity decreased in regenerated shoots and roots and increased in sprouting shoots, while catalase (CAT), peroxidase (POX) and polyphenol oxidase (PPO) activities increased during organogenesis and decreased in sprouting shoots. High CAT and PPO activities were detected in regenerated roots, whereas high POX activity was observed in regenerated shoot.Additional key words: catalase, peroxidase, polyphenol oxidase, protein, saffron, superoxide dismutase.

Long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) play crucial roles in regulating gene expression in response to plant stresses. Given the importance regulatory roles of lncRNAs, providing methods for predicting the function of these molecules, especially in non-model plants, is strongly demanded by researchers. Here, we constructed a reference sequence for lncRNAs in P. vera (Pistacia vera L.) with 53220 transcripts. In total, we identified 1909 and 2802 salt responsive lncRNAs in Ghazvini, a salt tolerant cultivar, after 6 and 24 h salt treatment, respectively and 1820 lncRNAs in Sarakhs, a salt sensitive cultivar, after 6 h salt treatment. Functional analysis of these lncRNAs by several hybrid methods, revealed that salt responsive NAT-related lncRNAs associated with transcription factors, CERK1, LEA, Laccase genes and several genes involved in the hormone signaling pathways. Moreover, gene ontology (GO) enrichment analysis of salt responsive target genes related to top five selected lncRNAs showed their involvement in the regulation of ATPase, cation transporter, kinase and UDP-glycosyltransferases genes. Quantitative real-time PCR (qRT-PCR) experiment results of lncRNAs, pre-miRNAs and mature miRNAs were in accordance with our RNA-seq analysis. In the present study, a comparative analysis of differentially expressed lncRNAs and microRNA precursors between salt tolerant and sensitive pistachio cultivars provides valuable knowledge on gene expression regulation under salt stress condition. Pistacia belongs to Anacardiaceae family and contains 13 or more species, which among them pistachio (Pistacia vera L.) is the only cultivated and economically important species that is called as the 'green gold tree'. The other species are used mainly as a rootstock for pistachio cultivation 1,2. Like many other fruit trees, P. vera is hard to root and thus requires a rootstock for vegetative propagation 3. Pistachio is a deciduous (2n = 30), wind-pollinated tree species 4,5. Studies indicate that pistachio probably originated in the Middle East 6-8. It has a long history of cultivation (3000-4000 years) in Iran 9. In 2017, Iran has been ranked first in area harvested (429535 ha) and production quantity (574987 tons) of pistachio among United States, Turkey, and Syria as biggest pistachio producer countries 10. According to the number of pistachio genotypes, Iran is one of the rich countries in the world 7,8,11. In addition to fruit, other parts of plant, including leaf, flower and resins, have pharmacological properties 12,13. Salinity is major and ever-increasing problem in arid and semi-arid regions that affect plant production and growth throughout the world 14. The cultivated areas of pistachio in Iran are often in arid and semi-arid regions that the most important problem for economic crop production in these areas is high concentration of ions

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Iran is one of the primary centers of diversity for wheat and its relatives. Wild wheats, in particular diploid species, are extensively distributed in various parts of Iran. Of these, the existence of two ''A'' genome donor species, i.e., T. baeoticum and T. monococcum, has already been reported in Iranian floras. However, the existence of the other important ''A'' genome donor, i.e., T. urartu, has not been clearly reported. In a germplasm collection survey in several regions of Iran, T. urartu was identified, collected, and described, and is reported here for the first time. In a detailed and extensive taxonomic program, the collected germplasms of the above three species were studied. Morphological characters and species-specific traits of the three species were evaluated and compared. Using the monographs by Gandilyan (1980) and Dorofeev et al. (1979) for the collected germplasms, 14 varieties were identified of T. boeoticum, 3 varieties of T. urartu, 2 forms of T. monococcum. Of these 5 varieties of T. baeoticum ssp. baeoticum (var. albinigrum, var. garniense, var. zuccarinii, var. baeoticum, var. pseudobaeoticum), 3 varieties of T. baeoticum ssp. thaoudar (var. abovjanii, var. albinigrescens, var. ebrahimzadehae, var. viridinigrireuteri) and 1 variety of T. monococcum (var. mansfeldii) are new to Iran. In addition, 1 variety of T. baeoticum ssp. baeoticum (var. khorramabadicum), 3 varieties of T. baeoticum ssp. thaoudar (var. ebrehimeadena var. taleghanicum, var. ilamicum) and 2 varieties of T. urartu (var. iranicum, var. sardashticum) are new to the wheat botany.