Exogenous application of gibberellic acid reduces antioxidant capacity of leaves, resulting in increased Tipburn damages in Lisianthus cultivars

Abstract

Tipburn (calcium (Ca) deficiency disorder of new leaf tips) is a severe problem in horticultural crop production. Studies have focused on the fact that tipburn commonly occurs during bolting and shown that plants exhibited greater tipburn damage than the control when bolting was induced using exogenous gibberellic acid (GA). However, why exogenous GA application enhances tipburn damage and why tipburn occurs during bolting remains unclear. To address this knowledge gap, we investigated the occurrence of tipburn, Ca concentrations in each organ, antioxidant capacity (superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase activity), and gene expression in three lisianthus cultivars (‘Umihonoka’ (UH), ‘Reina White’ (RW), and ‘Voyage Peach’ (VP)), where bolting was induced through exogenous active GA application (GA treatment) and discussed the cause of tipburn occurring during bolting. The incidence and severity of tipburn in the GA treatment were significantly higher than those in the control group in all cultivars. The Ca concentrations in the top leaves of the GA treatment were similar to or higher than those in the control treatment for all cultivars. In contrast, SOD activity in VP was significantly lower in GA treatment than that in the control, which was consistent with the results of SOD-CuZn expression. Additionally, significantly lower catalase activity at GA treatment were detected in the UH and RW than at the control. Recent studies have reported that reactive oxygen species and antioxidants significantly affect the appearance of blossom-end rot. Therefore, exogenous GA application decreased the antioxidant capacity of the upper leaves, resulting in increased tipburn damage. In addition, it is known that a decrease in antioxidant capacity and an increase in H2O2 concentration in leaves of Arabidopsis is a trigger for the initiation of bolting. Our findings provide important insight into the causes and ecological implications of tipburn during bolting.