Stress tolerance in the marsh plant Spartina patens: Impact of NaCl on growth and root plasma membrane lipid composition

Abstract

The C‐4 salt marsh grass, Spartina patens, thrives in the upper portion of the marsh where soil salinities may be equal to coastal seawater. Spartina patens was grown in hydroponic culture in a greenhouse at 0, 340, and 510 mM NaCl, and measured for growth, tissue cation content, and root plasma membrane (PM) lipid composition. From 0 to 340 and 510 mM, the shoot growth decreased, but root growth was not affected. The Na+ content increased in both shoots and roots when plants were grown in salt, while the shoots had a decreased K+ content and the roots had a decreased Ca2+ content. Spartina patens root plasma membrane was isolated with an aqueous polymer two‐phase system. The purity of the plasma membrane was verified with cytochemical tests on membrane enzyme markers. Plasma membrane lipids were stable relative to the membrane protein content. Molar percentages of sterols (including free sterols) and phospholipid decreased with increasing salinity. However, glycolipid showed a statistically significant increase in the total lipid as salinity in the medium was increased from 0 to 510 mM. Even at a salinity of 510 mM, the plasma membrane sterol/phospholipid ratio was unaffected by NaCl. When the plants were grown in NaCl media, the plasma membrane had a decreased phosphatidylcholine (PC) and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE) content, but the PC/PE ratios were not affected. The plasma membrane molar percentage of sitosterol in total free sterol increased when plants were grown in salt media. The predominant membrane fatty acids were C11 and C14, and the major unsaturated one was C14:1. An increase in growth medium salinity resulted in a decreased root plasma membrane fluidity.