Rutin improves salt stress tolerance in Zea mays L. by modulating osmolytes accumulation and antioxidant capacity

Abstract

Maize seedlings were grown hydroponically to study the effect of exogenous rutin (Rut) on changes in the stress parameters (thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), total chlorophyll), water status (leaf relative water content (RWC), osmolytes such as proline, total soluble sugar), and activities of the main antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), and peroxidase (POD)) in seedlings under salt stress. After 21 days of growth, plants were applied with Rut as foliar spray pretreatments for 24 hours, and after that, seedlings were exposed to osmotic stress induced by 100 and 200 mM NaCI in the Hoagland’s Solution for 72 hours. Six treatments with three replicates were tested, including a control (basal nutrients without NaCl or Rut), 150 mM NaCl, 200 mM NaCI, Rut, Rut+150 mM NaCl, and Rut+200 mM NaCl. Plant leaves were harvested 25 days after treatments and assayed for the above analysis. Exogenous Rut significantly decreased TBARS and H2O2 contents in leaves of salt-stressed seedlings compared to salt stresses, enhanced the level of osmolytes, leaf RWC, activities of SOD, CAT, APX, and POD, and relative expression levels of SOD, CAT1, and APX1. Besides, the effects were more hopeful under 150 mM NaCl stress. As a result, findings from the study present reveal the effect of Rut on salt stress tolerance in maize seedlings under different osmotic stress. Here, it was clear that Rut played an active role in stress-alleviating. This application under salt stress can be useful in developing salt stress tolerance in crops for the agriculture sector.