Seedling Growth Of Chickpea Research Articles

Physiological quality of seeds and growth of seedlings of chickpea under salt stress

Salt stress is a condition that causes physiological changes in several species, the identifying cultivars tolerant to such conditions is essential to high salinity environments. The objective was to evaluate the physiological quality of seeds of chickpea cultivars to salt stress during germination and seedling growth. Two cultivars (‘BRS Cícero’ and ‘BRS Aleppo’) and five osmotic potentials simulated with sodium chloride solutions (0.0; -0.2; -0.4; -0.6 and -0.8 MPa), were evaluated by the test of germination speed index, mean germination time, epicotyl and primary root length, epicotyl and primary root fresh mass, epicotyl and the primary root dry mass of the seeds were evaluated. Significant interactions were found for all variables, indicating that there are cultivars with specific performance for a particular salt condition, and the simulated salt stress conditions negatively affected germination and seedling growth. Osmotic potentials of less than -0.4 MPa are harmful to the germination and growth of chickpea seedlings. The ‘BRS Cícero’ seeds showed a higher salt tolerance than ‘BRS Aleppo’. The cultivar BRS Aleppo has a longer epicotyl length compared to 'BRS Cícero' when subjected to the same conditions of salt stress.

Physiological quality of chickpea seeds submitted to hydric and saline stress

The use of seeds of high physiological quality can be a strategy to reduce problems in the development of seedlings and allow the proper establishment of the stand under different environmental conditions, especially under stress conditions, such as water and saline. Thus, the objective was to evaluate the effect of water and salt stress on the physiological quality of seeds and on the growth of chickpea seedlings at different osmotic potentials, induced by polyethylene glycol 6000 (PEG) and sodium chloride (NaCl). The experiment was conducted in a completely randomized design, in a 2 x 5 factorial arrangement (two osmotic solutions, PEG and NaCl and five osmotic potentials, -0.2, -0.4, -0.6 and -0.8 MPa), with four replications of 200 seeds each. Initially, the water content of the seeds was determined. In the treatment effects, the physiological quality and initial seedling growth were evaluated (germination, first germination count, abnormal seedlings, germination speed index, average germination time, epicotyl and primary root length and dry mass of seedling). Osmotic potentials below -0.2 MPa reduces the germination and growth of chickpea seedlings, regardless of the stressor. Osmotic stress induced by NaCl produces more severe effects than PEG 6000 on the physiological quality of seeds

Chitosan nanoparticles loaded with thiamine stimulate growth and enhances protection against wilt disease in Chickpea

Nanoencapsulation is considered as one of the unique technique for increasing the bioavailability, solubility and retention time of bioactive compounds. In this study, thiamine was incorporated into the chitosan nanoparticles and characterized through FTIR, DLS, SEM, TEM and XRD analyses. Zeta potential of the synthesized nanoparticles was found to be 37.7 mV. The encapsulation efficiency of chitosan nanoparticle was 90 ± 3%. Application of thiamine loaded chitosan nanoparticle enhanced seed germination and growth of chickpea seedlings when compared to untreated control seeds. Treated seedlings showed enhanced production of indole acetic acid (IAA). Foliar application of synthesized nanoparticle induced defense enzymes in leaves and roots of chickpea plants. Decreased cell death in the chickpea roots of treated plants was observed when compared to control under green house condition. These results showed that the thiamine loaded chitosan nanoparticle can be used as a growth stimulator as well as a defense activator in chickpea.

Effect of plant growth-promoting rhizobacterial composite culture on the growth of chickpea seedlings

In the present study, 20 soil and plant samples from 13 villages of Raipur, Durg, and Balod District of Chhattisgarh (India) were collected from chickpea fields. From these samples, a total of 86 isolates including 16 Rhizobium, 40 Azotobacter, 29 Azosprillum, and one PSB were obtained on selective culture media. All the isolates were screened for their plant growth-promoting traits. Three (GmR8, ASL3 & ASL4) out of 86 were finally selected for further studies. One Azotobacter isolate, i.e., Azo137, was selected from the departmental culture collection. Finally, four isolates including GmR8 (Rhizobium), ASL3, ASL4 (Azospirillum), and Azo137 were selected for composite culture formulations. GmR and ASL4 were siderophore-producing isolates, whereas ASL3 and Azo137 were IAA producer along with their ability to fix nitrogen. Five composite cultures were prepared randomly and tested for effect on the growth of chickpea (the seedling test and the pot experiment). Among all the composite culture groups, C2 (GmR8, Azo137, ASL4) significantly increased the root (10.84 cm) and shoot (8.10 cm) length, whereas biomass (3.60 g) was the highest in the case of C1 (GmR8, Azo137, ASL3, ASL4) of seedlings as compared to the control (6.80 cm, 2.60 cm, and 3.30 g, respectively). Overall, the study revealed a better performance of composite or mixed culture over individual bacteria.

A novel extracellular low-temperature active phytase from Bacillus aryabhattai RS1 with potential application in plant growth.

Bacillus aryabhattai RS1 isolated from rhizosphere produced an extracellular, low temperature active phytase. The cultural conditions for enzyme production were optimized to obtain 35 UmL-1 of activity. Purified phytase had specific activity and molecular weight of 72.97 Umg-1 and ∼40 kDa, respectively. The enzyme was optimally active at pH 6.5 and 40°C and was highly specific to phytate. It exhibited higher catalytic activity at low temperature, retaining over 40% activity at 10°C. Phytase was more thermostable in presence of Ca2+ ion and retained 100% residual activity on preincubation at 20-50°C for 30 min. Partial phytase encoding gene, phyB (816 bp) was cloned and sequenced. The encoded amino acid sequence (272 aa) contained two conserved motifs, DA[A/T/E]DDPA[I/L/V]W and NN[V/I]D[I/L/V]R[Y/D/Q] of β-propellar phytase and had lower sequence homology with other Bacillus phytases, indicating its novelty. Phytase and the bacterial inoculum were effective in improving germination and growth of chickpea seedlings under phosphate limiting condition. Moreover, the potential applications of the enzyme with relatively high activity at lower temperatures (20-30°C) could also be extended to aquaculture and food processing. © 2017 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 33:633-641, 2017.