Purpose Salinity, a major abiotic stress, adversely affects the growth and development of cereal crops, leading to significant yield reductions. This study investigated the protective effects of silicon (SI) and thiourea (TU) in enhancing salinity stress tolerance in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars. Methods This study investigated the effects of priming treatments (Non-primed control (NP), hydropriming (HP), silicon (SI), thiourea (TU), combined priming (SI + TU)) applications on two wheat cultivars (salt-tolerant Barzegar and salt-sensitive Amin) under saline conditions (0 (control), 4, and 10 dS m− 1 (equivalent to 0, 2.24, and 6.08 g L− 1 NaCl, respectively)). Results Combination of SI and TU treatments increased photosynthetic pigments (Chl a (13.3%), Chl b (21.8%), and carotenoids (13.3%)), improved chlorophyll fluorescence parameters (Fv/Fm (1.10-fold), F’v/F’m (1.06-fold), ɸPSII (1.4-fold), qP (1.3-fold), qL (2.2-fold), Rfd (3.8-fold)) and enhanced the antioxidant enzyme activity, including superoxide dismutase (10.4%), catalase (33.3%), and peroxidase (22.8%) while reducing non-photochemical quenching (qN, ɸNPQ, ɸNO and NPQ) and malondialdehyde levels (26.9%) in Barzegar compared to the NP treatments under 10 dS m− 1 salinity levels. This treatment also reduced hydrogen peroxide (15.8%) accumulation while elevating proline (25.8%) and total soluble sugar content (9.7%). Notably, plants treated with the combination of SI and TU treatments exhibited the highest shoot dry weight, demonstrating improved salinity stress tolerance. Conclusions These findings highlight the synergistic role of the combination of SI and TU treatments in enhancing wheat resilience to salinity stress, supporting their potential application in sustainable agriculture. However, further field studies are necessary to validate the efficacy of the combination of SI and TU treatments under real-world agricultural conditions.
Unraveling the Protective Roles of Silicon and Thiourea on Salinity Stress Tolerance of Triticum Aestivum L. Cultivars: from Antioxidant Defense To Photosynthetic Recovery
Mastinu A.
2025-01-01
Abstract
Purpose Salinity, a major abiotic stress, adversely affects the growth and development of cereal crops, leading to significant yield reductions. This study investigated the protective effects of silicon (SI) and thiourea (TU) in enhancing salinity stress tolerance in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars. Methods This study investigated the effects of priming treatments (Non-primed control (NP), hydropriming (HP), silicon (SI), thiourea (TU), combined priming (SI + TU)) applications on two wheat cultivars (salt-tolerant Barzegar and salt-sensitive Amin) under saline conditions (0 (control), 4, and 10 dS m− 1 (equivalent to 0, 2.24, and 6.08 g L− 1 NaCl, respectively)). Results Combination of SI and TU treatments increased photosynthetic pigments (Chl a (13.3%), Chl b (21.8%), and carotenoids (13.3%)), improved chlorophyll fluorescence parameters (Fv/Fm (1.10-fold), F’v/F’m (1.06-fold), ɸPSII (1.4-fold), qP (1.3-fold), qL (2.2-fold), Rfd (3.8-fold)) and enhanced the antioxidant enzyme activity, including superoxide dismutase (10.4%), catalase (33.3%), and peroxidase (22.8%) while reducing non-photochemical quenching (qN, ɸNPQ, ɸNO and NPQ) and malondialdehyde levels (26.9%) in Barzegar compared to the NP treatments under 10 dS m− 1 salinity levels. This treatment also reduced hydrogen peroxide (15.8%) accumulation while elevating proline (25.8%) and total soluble sugar content (9.7%). Notably, plants treated with the combination of SI and TU treatments exhibited the highest shoot dry weight, demonstrating improved salinity stress tolerance. Conclusions These findings highlight the synergistic role of the combination of SI and TU treatments in enhancing wheat resilience to salinity stress, supporting their potential application in sustainable agriculture. However, further field studies are necessary to validate the efficacy of the combination of SI and TU treatments under real-world agricultural conditions.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
