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Effect of boron deficiency on photosynthesis and antioxidant responses of young tea plantlets

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Abstract

Boron (B) deficiency is prevalent in the soils of tea growing regions of India. In order to investigate the physico-chemical alterations associated with B deficiency in tea ((Camellia sinensis (L.) O. Kuntze, cv. T-78) plants, young plantlets were treated with boric acid (H3BO3) at 0, 2.5, and 5 μM for 8 weeks. B-scarcity decreased the photosynthetic rate (P n), stomatal conductance (g s), and transpiration (E) alongside chlorophyll a (Chl a), chlorophyll b (Chl b), and carotenoids (Car). Superoxide anion (O ·−2 ), malondialdehyde (MDA), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) generation and electrolyte leakage were elevated in B-deprived plants. The activities of ascorbate peroxidase (APX; EC 1.11.1.11), catalase (CAT; EC 1.11.1.6), peroxidase (POD; EC 1.11.1.7), and superoxide dismutase (SOD; EC 1.15.1.1) were increased in B-deficient plants. Simultaneously, transcripts of the antioxidant enzymes were up-regulated under B deficiency. By and large, the results suggest that B deficiency intensifies ROS generation but the antioxidant system does not provide for an adequate protection from oxidative damage.

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Abbreviations

APX:

ascorbate peroxidase

CAT:

catalase

Chl:

chlorophyll

Car:

carotenoids

E :

the rate of transpiration

EST:

expressed sequence tag

g s :

stomatal conductance

NCBI:

National Center for Biotechnology Information

P n :

photosynthetic rate

POD:

peroxidase

RG:

II-rhamnogalacturonan II

RT-PCR:

reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction

SOD:

superoxide dismutase

TEM:

transmission electron microscope

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Biotechnology Laboratory, Uttar Banga Krishi Viswavidyalaya, Cooch Behar, West Bengal, India

    M. Mukhopadhyay & T. K. Mondal

  2. Department of Botany, University of Kalyani, Kalyani, West Bengal, India

    M. Mukhopadhyay & P. D. Ghosh

  3. National Research Center on DNA Fingerprinting, National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, Pusa, New Delhi, 110012, India

    T. K. Mondal

Authors
  1. M. Mukhopadhyay
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  2. P. D. Ghosh
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  3. T. K. Mondal
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Correspondence to T. K. Mondal.

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Mukhopadhyay, M., Ghosh, P.D. & Mondal, T.K. Effect of boron deficiency on photosynthesis and antioxidant responses of young tea plantlets. Russ J Plant Physiol 60, 633–639 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1021443713030096

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S1021443713030096

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