Abstract
BackgroundIn northern Iran and other cold regions, winter freezing injury and resultant yield instability are major limitations to strawberry production. However, there is scarcity of information on the physiological and biochemical responses of strawberry cultivars to freezing stress. This study aimed to investigate the physiological and biochemical responses of strawberry cultivars (Tennessee Beauty, Blakemore, Kurdistan, Queen Elisa, Chandler, Krasnyy Bereg, and Yalova) to different freezing temperature treatments (− 5, − 10, − 15, − 20, and − 25 °C) under controlled conditions.ResultsAll measured physiological and biochemical features were significantly affected by the interaction effect between low temperatures and cultivars. Tennessee Beauty showed the highest RWC at − 25 °C. The highest Fv/Fm was observed in Queen Elisa. Krasnyy Bereg had the least freezing injury (FI) in crown and leaf, while Yalova and Chandler showed the highest crown and leaf FI, respectively. At − 20 to − 25 °C, the highest carbohydrates contents of crown and leaf were noted in Blakemore and Krasnyy Bereg cultivars, respectively. The Yalova showed the highest protein content in both crown and leaf tissues at − 25 °C. The Tennessee Beauty and Blackmore cultivars showed the highest proline in crowns and leaves at − 15 °C, respectively. The highest ThioBarbituric Acid Reactive Substances (TBARS) contents in the crown and leaf were observed in Kurdistan and Queen Elisa, respectively. Queen Elisa and Krasnyy Bereg cultivars showed SOD and POD peaks in the crown at − 15 °C, respectively.ConclusionFreezing stress was characterized by decreased Fv/Fm and RWC, and increased FI, TBARS, total carbohydrates, total proteins, proline content, and antioxidant enzyme activity. The extent of changes in above mentioned traits was cultivar dependent. FI and TBARS were the best traits among destructive parameters for evaluating freezing tolerance. Moreover, maximum quantum yield of PSII (Fv/Fm index), as non-destructive parameters, showed a significant efficiency in rapid assessment for screening of freezing tolerant strawberry cultivars. The cultivars Krasnyy Bereg, Queen Elisa, and Kurdistan were the most tolerant cultivars to freezing stress. These cultivars can be used as parents in breeding programs to develop new freezing tolerant cultivars.
Highlights
In northern Iran and other cold regions, winter freezing injury and resultant yield instability are major limitations to strawberry production
Maximum quantum yield of Photosystem II (PSII) (Fv/Fm) A decrease in the leaf Fv/Fm was observed with a decrease in temperature in all tested strawberry cultivars
The highest relative water content (RWC) was noted in the cultivar Yalova at + 4 °C compared to the other cultivars, while the lowest value was observed in the cultivar Kurdistan at − 25 °C (Fig. 2)
Summary
In northern Iran and other cold regions, winter freezing injury and resultant yield instability are major limitations to strawberry production. Zareei et al BMC Plant Biology (2021) 21:532 and associated tolerance mechanism involves different physiological, molecular, and metabolic alterations and adaptations [4, 5]. These include the accumulation of soluble sugars, amino acids, cold-induced stress-related proteins..This expression of encoded genes to stabilize membranes against injury is an important component of this freezing tolerance mechanism [6, 7]. Evaluation of freezing injury is significantly crucial for predicting plant winter survival, regrowth in the following spring Such evaluation is desired to recognize freezing-tolerant species and cultivars and to develop management strategies to improve plant performance under freezing stress. These temperature extremes have a significant effect on the growth and productivity of strawberries [11, 12]
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