The Role of Protein-Rich Extracts from Chondrus crispus as Biostimulant and in Enhancing Tolerance to Drought Stress in Tomato Plants

Abstract

The application of seaweed extract-based biostimulants is a promising approach for achieving sustainable agriculture, with an enormous potential of improving crop yield and mitigating climate change effects. Abiotic stressors, such as drought, are major factors resulting in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) yield losses and seaweed-based biostimulants have been proposed as an eco-friendly strategy to counteract this negative impact. Chondrus crispus is a common red seaweed widely used as source of carrageenans, not yet explored as a plant biostimulant. In this study, a protein hydrolysate-rich C. crispus extract, by-products of the carrageenan extraction, was tested on tomato plants under well-watered condition and water shortage. The foliar application of the protein-rich C. crispus extract conferred drought tolerance to tomato plants resulting in less noticeable visual stress symptoms. Treated plants showed higher shoot height and biomass under both well-watered and water deficit conditions, evidencing the double effect exerted by this new biostimulant, as plant growth promoter and drought stress protector. The treatment with the biostimulant had an effect on levels of abscisic acid and proline, and triggered the expression of Solyc02g084840, a drought marker gene. Finally, a label-free mass spectrometric approach allowed us to identify phycoerythrins and phycocyanins as major bioactive proteins contained in the extract. Altogether, these results indicate that the foliar application of protein hydrolysate-rich extracts from C. crispus improved tomato plant growth and tolerance to drought stress, suggesting a new opportunity for further applications in the agriculture and horticultural sectors.

Protein hydrolysates enhance recovery from drought stress in tomato plants: phenomic and metabolomic insights

“…The results highlighted that Malvaceae-derived PH (PH1) was highly effective in enhancing plant recovery after all drought stress events while the positive effect of Fabaceae-derived PH (PH2) was detected only during the recovery period after the first stress event. The above findings are in line with a study of Domingo et al (2023) where foliar applications of a vegetal protein hydrolysate conferred drought resistance to tomato plants resulting in higher biomass and shoot height. Metabolomic results allowed to investigate the changes induced by the best performing PH treatment (PH1) on metabolic profile of leaves.…”

Effects of Plant Biostimulation Time Span and Soil Electrical Conductivity on Greenhouse Tomato ‘Miniplum’ Yield and Quality in Diverse Crop Seasons

“…The high economic importance of tomato stimulated investigations of protein hydrolysate supply to enhance plant tolerance to salinity stress. Domingo et al [ 18 ] demonstrated the high prospects of Chondrus crispus extract hydrolysate as a remarkable source of protein, protecting tomato against salt stress. Francesca et al [ 19 ] reported the beneficial effect of Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast autolysate on tomato plants under high salinity.…”

An Update on the Chemical Constituents and Biological Properties of Selected Species of an Underpinned Genus of Red Algae: Chondrus

“…In addition to playing role in human health promotion, this genus has the potential to be utilized as a biostimulant in the horticultural and agricultural sectors. Recently, the protein-rich extract of C. crispus was first used as biostimulant to enhance the growth and drought tolerance of tomato plants [147].…”