Melatonin significantly influences seed germination and seedling growth of<i>Stevia rebaudiana</i>Bertoni

Simlat, Magdalena; Ptak, Agata; Skrzypek, Edyta; Warchoł, Marzena; Morańska, Emilia; Piórkowska, Ewa

doi:10.7717/peerj.5009

Cited by 64 publications

(34 citation statements)

References 71 publications

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“…This indicator further validates the above conclusions. Our findings are broadly consistent with those of Simlat et al [49], who reported that the lowest melatonin concentrations examined (5 and 20 μM) exerted a significantly positive effect on Stevia seed germination compared with the 100 and 500 μM treatments. Previous studies have found that melatonin application significantly increased osmopriming effects, such that 50 μM melatonin achieved maximal results [43].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Exogenous melatonin accelerates seed germination in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.)

et al. 2019

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Seed germination is considered the beginning of the spermatophyte lifecycle, and it is a crucial stage in determining subsequent plant growth and development. Although many previous studies have found that melatonin can promote seed germination, the role of melatonin in cotton germination remains unexamined. The main objective of this study is the characterization of potential promotional effects of melatonin (at doses of 0, 10, 20, 50, 100 and 200 μM) on cotton seed germination. This experiment demonstrated that low concentrations of melatonin can promote germination, while high concentrations failed to promote germination and even inhibited germination. Together, these results indicate that a 20 μM melatonin treatment optimally promotes cotton seed germination. Compared with the control, germination potential (GP), germination rate (GR), and final fresh weight (FW) increased by 16.67%, 12.30%, and 4.81%, respectively. Although low concentrations of melatonin showed some improvement in vigor index (VI), germination index (GI), and mean germination time (MGT), these effects were not statistically significant. Antioxidant enzyme activity during seed germination was most prominent under the 20 μM melatonin treatment. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) and peroxidase (POD) activities were significantly increased by 10.37–59.73% and 17.79–47.68%, respectively, compared to the melatonin-free control. Malondialdehyde (MDA) content was reduced by 16.73–40.33%. Two important plant hormones in seed germination, abscisic acid (ABA) and gibberellins (GAs), were also studied. As melatonin concentration increased, ABA content in seeds decreased first and then increased, and GA 3 content showed a diametrically opposite trend, in which the 20 μM melatonin treatment was optimal. The 20 μM melatonin treatment reduced ABA content in seeds by 42.13–51.68%, while the 20 μM melatonin treatment increased GA 3 content in seeds to about 1.7–2.5 times that of seeds germinated without melatonin. This study provides new evidence suggesting that low concentrations of melatonin can promote cotton seed germination by increasing the activity of antioxidant enzymes, thereby reducing the accumulation of MDA and regulating plant hormones. This has clear applications for improving the germination rate of cotton seeds using melatonin.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Exogenous melatonin accelerates seed germination in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.)

et al. 2019

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“…These results demonstrated that the effect of MT on cotton seeds is closely associated with its concentration and 100 μM MT was defined as the optimum concentration to promote cotton seed germination under drought stress. These findings are in accordance with Simlat et al (2018) , who demonstrated that a low concentration of exogenous MT promoted seed germination, while treatments with a high dose of MT inhibited seed germination. Previous studies reported that soaking seeds in exogenous MT (20 and 100 μM) alleviated drought-induced germination inhibition by advancing the antioxidant defense system ( Ding, Liu & Zhang, 2017 ).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Melatonin improves the germination rate of cotton seeds under drought stress by opening pores in the seed coat

Bai

Xiao

Zhang

et al. 2020

PeerJ

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The germination of cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) seeds is affected by drought stress; however, little is known about the physiological mechanism affecting germination and the effect of melatonin (MT) on cotton seed germination under drought stress. Therefore, we studied the effects of exogenous MT on the antioxidant capacity and epidermal microstructure of cotton under drought stress. The results demonstrated a retarded water absorption capacity of testa under drought stress, significantly inhibiting germination and growth in cotton seeds. Drought stress led to the accumulation of reactive oxygen species (ROS), malondialdehyde (MDA), and osmoregulatory substances (e.g., proline, soluble protein, and soluble sugars); it also decreased the activity of antioxidant enzymes and α-amylase. Drought stress inhibited gibberellin acid (GA3) synthesis and increased abscisic acid (ABA) content, seriously affecting seed germination. However, seeds pre-soaked with MT (100 µM) showed a positive regulation in the number and opening of stomata in cotton testa. The exogenous application of MT increased the germination rate, germination potential, radical length, and fresh weight, as well as the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), and α-amylase. In addition, MT application increased the contents of organic osmotic substances by decreasing the hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), superoxide anion (O2-), and MDA levels under drought stress. Further analysis demonstrated that seeds pre-soaked with MT alleviated drought stress by affecting the ABA and GA3 contents. Our findings show that MT plays a positive role in protecting cotton seeds from drought stress.

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“…Simlat et al . 16 found that a low dose of MT (5 and 20 µM) significantly improved the seed germination and properties of Stevia rebaudiana Bertoni plantlet, while treatments with a higher dose showed an obvious inhibitory effect. Furthermore, Li et al .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…As a pleiotropic molecule with various functions in animals and plants, MT has been shown to be an efficient growth regulator in plants 12,13 . Several studies have demonstrated that, lower dose of MT ( < 10 μM) can stimulate the growth of maize plants and the germination of cucumber seeds under cold stress 14–16 . In cucumber, seed priming with MT promotes lateral root formation and seed germination under water-stress conditions 17 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seed Priming with Melatonin Improves the Seed Germination of Waxy Maize under Chilling Stress via Promoting the Antioxidant System and Starch Metabolism

Cao

Cui

et al. 2019

Sci Rep

117

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Chilling stress is one of the major abiotic stresses affecting waxy maize plant growth. Melatonin (MT) is able to improve tolerance to abiotic stress in plants. To investigate the effects of seed priming with MT on tolerance to chilling stress in waxy maize, the seed germination characteristics and physiological parameters were tested with varied MT concentrations (0, 50, 100 µM) and treatment times (12, 24 h) at ambient (25 °C) and chilling (13 °C) temperature. MT primed seeds significantly enhanced the germination potential (by 20.29% and 50.71%, respectively), germination rate (by 20.88% and 33.72%), and increased the radicle length (by 90.73% and 217.14%), hypocotyl length (by 60.28% and 136.14%), root length (by 74.59% and 108.70%), and seed vigor index (46.13%, 63.81%), compared with the non-priming seeds under chilling stress. No significant difference was found in priming time between primed and non-primed seeds. In addition, lower H2O2 and malondialdehyde concentrations, increased antioxidant enzyme activities (superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, catalase and ascorbateperoxidase), and promoted starch metabolism were found in primed seeds compared to non-primed ones. It was suggested that seed priming with MT improved waxy maize seed germination under chilling stress through improving antioxidant system and starch metabolism, which protected from oxidative damage.

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Melatonin significantly influences seed germination and seedling growth ofStevia rebaudianaBertoni

Cited by 64 publications

References 71 publications

Exogenous melatonin accelerates seed germination in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.)

Exogenous melatonin accelerates seed germination in cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.)

Melatonin improves the germination rate of cotton seeds under drought stress by opening pores in the seed coat

Seed Priming with Melatonin Improves the Seed Germination of Waxy Maize under Chilling Stress via Promoting the Antioxidant System and Starch Metabolism

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