Short-term cold stress affects physiological and biochemical traits of pistachio rootstocks

Abstract

The current study evaluated the physiological response of four seven-month-old pistachio rootstocks (Badami, Ghazvini, UCB-1 and Kaleh-Ghouchi) under a four-day cold stress treatment. Our results showed that total chlorophyll (TChl) and total carotenoid (TCar) decreased dramatically under cold stress. On the contrary, antioxidant enzyme system including ascorbate peroxidase (APX), polyphenol oxidase (PPO), catalase (CAT) and guaiacol peroxidase (GPX), and non-enzymatic antioxidant defense system parameters including proline (PRO), total free amino acids (TFAAs) and total soluble carbohydrates (TSC) increased with the induction of cold stress. Similarly, electrolyte leakage (EL), malondialdehyde (MDA), other aldehydes (OLD), and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) (oxidative stress parameters) elevated in response to the cold stress, while, total soluble protein (TSP) decreased, significantly. Antioxidant enzyme activity was positively correlated with TSP, but negatively correlated with oxidative stress parameters. Bi-plot and cluster analyses revealed that Badami rootstock was the most tolerant to cold stress, followed by UCB-1, Ghazvini and Keleh-Ghouchi.