Exogenous Calcium Supplementation Improves Salinity Tolerance in BRRI Dhan28; a Salt-Susceptible High-Yielding Oryza Sativa Cultivar

• Published in: Journal of Crop Science and Biotechnology Vol. 21; no. 4; pp. 383 - 394
• Main Authors: Tahjib-Ul-Arif, Md, Roy, Popy Rani, Al Mamun Sohag, Abdullah, Afrin, Sonya, Rady, Mostafa M., Hossain, M. Afzal
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Suwon The Korean Society of Crop Science 01.12.2018; Springer Nature B.V; 한국작물학회
• Subjects: Accumulation; Antioxidants; Ascorbic acid; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Biotechnology; Calcium; Calcium chloride; Calcium ions; Catalase; Chlorophyll; Cultivars; Cultivation; Damage accumulation; Food security; Germination; Grain cultivation; Hydrogen peroxide; L-Ascorbate peroxidase; Life Sciences; Lipid peroxidation; Lipids; Malondialdehyde; Moisture content; Oryza sativa; Oxidative stress; Parameters; Peroxidase; Peroxidation; Photosynthesis; Photosynthetic pigments; Pigments; Plant Genetics and Genomics; Plant Pathology; Plant Physiology; Plant Sciences; Plants (botany); Proline; Research Article; Rice; Saline soils; Salinity; Salinity effects; Salinity tolerance; Salt; Salt tolerance; Seedlings; Seeds; Sodium chloride; Water balance; Water content; 농학; osmolytes; environmental stress; calcium; Antioxidant enzymes; reactive oxygen species; rice; germination indices
• ISSN: 1975-9479; 2005-8276
• DOI: 10.1007/s12892-018-0098-0

Salinity is one of the most brutal abiotic stressors, commencing a great stumbling block in the way of attaining food security in Bangladesh. Cultivation of rice in saline soils can be possible after enhancing its salt tolerance. This study aimed to examine the potential impact of exogenous calcium (3 and 5 mM Ca 2+ in CaCl 2 ) on conferring salt tolerance in rice ( cv . BRRI dhan28). At the germination stage, Ca 2+ -primed seeds were grown under 100 mM NaCl stress conditions for nine days. At the seedling stage, rice seedlings were grown in a sandponic culture with Hoagland′s nutrient solution amended or not amended with 100 mM NaCl for 20 days with or without Ca 2+ supplementation. Our results revealed that NaCl-stressed rice plants showed highly compromised germination indices and growth parameters, which could be attributed to reduced shoot and root growth, decreased photosynthetic pigments, increased H 2 O 2 accumulation, and elevated levels of lipid peroxidation measured as malondialdehyde (MDA). On the other hand, exogenous Ca 2+ application noticeably improved germination indices, growth and biomass-related parameters under salt stress. Ca 2+ -treated salt-stressed plants displayed amplified chlorophyll content, as well as suppressed the accumulation of H 2 O 2 , contributing to oxidative damage protection. Ca 2+ supplementation for salt-stressed rice seedlings elevated relative water content without increasing excess proline, indicating the role of Ca 2+ in maintaining water balance under stressful conditions. Furthermore, exogenous Ca 2+ decreased membrane injury under NaCl stress, as mirrored by notably diminished levels of MDA in stressed seedlings. The defensive role of Ca 2+ counter to oxidative stress was connected with the elevated activities of antioxidant enzymes such as catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, and peroxidase. In general, the best results in terms of growth at both germination and seedling stages were obtained in response to 3 mM Ca 2+ treatment. Finally, Ca 2+ supplementation can be an effective practice to cultivate rice in saline soils.