AUTHOR=Hussain Saber , Ahmed Shakil , Akram Waheed , Li Guihua , Yasin Nasim Ahmad 

TITLE=Selenium seed priming enhanced the growth of salt-stressed Brassica rapa L. through improving plant nutrition and the antioxidant system

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Plant Science

VOLUME=13

YEAR=2023

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/plant-science/articles/10.3389/fpls.2022.1050359

DOI=10.3389/fpls.2022.1050359

ISSN=1664-462X

ABSTRACT=<p>Various abiotic stresses may affect the germination, growth, and yield of direct-seeded vegetable crops. Seed priming with effective antioxidant mediators may alleviate these environmental stresses by maintaining uniformity in seed germination and improving the subsequent health of developing seedlings. Salt-induced stress has become a limiting factor for the successful cultivation of <italic>Brassica rapa</italic> L., especially in Southeast Asian countries. The present study was performed to elucidate the efficacy of seed priming using selenium (Se) in mitigating salt-induced oxidative stress in turnip crops by reducing the uptake of Na<sup>+</sup>. In this study, we administered three different levels of Se (Se-1, 75 μmol L<sup>−1</sup>; Se-2, 100 μmol L<sup>−1</sup>; and Se-3, 125 μmol L<sup>−1</sup>) alone or in combination with NaCl (200 mM). Conspicuously, salinity and Se-2 modulated the expression levels of the antioxidant genes, including catalase (<italic>CAT</italic>), peroxidase (<italic>POD</italic>), superoxide dismutase (<italic>SOD</italic>), and ascorbate peroxidase (<italic>APX</italic>). The upregulated expression of stress-responsive genes alleviated salt stress by scavenging the higher reactive oxygen species (ROS) level. The stress ameliorative potential of Se (Se-2 = 100 μmol L<sup>−1</sup>) enhanced the final seed germination percentage, photosynthetic content, and seedling biomass production up to 48%, 56%, and 51%, respectively, under stress. The advantageous effects of Se were attributed to the alleviation of salinity stress through the reduction of the levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), proline, and H<sub>2</sub>O<sub>2</sub>. Generally, treatment with Se-2 (100 μmo L<sup>−1</sup>) was more effective in enhancing the growth attributes of <italic>B. rapa</italic> compared to Se-1 (75 μmo L<sup>−1</sup>) and Se-3 (125 μmo L<sup>−1</sup>) under salt-stressed and non-stressed conditions. The findings of the current study advocate the application of the Se seed priming technique as an economical and eco-friendly approach for salt stress mitigation in crops grown under saline conditions.</p>