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Regulation of growth and stress metabolism in rice plants through foliar and root application of seaweed extract from Kappaphycus alvarezii (Rhodophyta)

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Abstract

The red alga Kappaphycus alvarezii (Rhodophyta) is one of the most cultivated species in the world. Extracts obtained from Kappaphycus (KAlv-sap) have been shown to promote plant growth as well as defense against abiotic stresses. The present study aimed to examine the regulation of photosynthesis and the genetic and metabolic mechanisms resulting from foliar and root application of KAlv-sap in rice plants (Oryza sativa). KAlv-sap was obtained from fresh algae cultivated in the bay of Ilha Grande, Paraty, Brazil, and previously well characterized. Experiments were performed using applications at 21 and 24 days after germination (DAG) with four treatments: control (without KAlv-sap); two foliar application treatments with 2% and 10% KAlv-sap (2% K-sapF and 10% KAlv-sapF, respectively); and root application treatment with 2% KAlv-sap (2% KAlv-sapR). Both foliar and root applications of KAlv-sap promoted improved photosynthetic efficiency transport and adaptive response to the stress, at least until 27 DAG. KAlv-sap application increased the uptake of N and K, leading to an increase in N-NO3- and amino-N. Such conditions promote increases in biomass production, growth, and root development. Root application of KAlv-sap stimulated the growth of plants at later times compared to foliar application and, in both cases, the pathways of action include the regulation of redox homeostasis. The results shed light on the pathways of action stimulated by aqueous extracts of Kappaphycus, contributing to the improvement of the agricultural bioinputs.

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The datasets generated and analyzed in the current study may be made available on demand and reasonable request.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by “Fundação Coordination of Projects, Research and Technological Studies – COPPETEC-UFRJ”, by the Carlos Chagas Filho Foundation for Research Support of the State of Rio de Janeiro - Brazil (Grant no. SisFAPERJ:2012028010), by the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development - Brazil (CNPQ: No. 402396/2021-9 Universal 18/2021, CNPq-No. 309722/2021-7, PQ -2 Research grant), the Post-Graduate Program in Agronomy - Soil Science at the Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro (PPGA -CS, UFRRRJ), and the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Education Personnel - Brazil (Grant no. CAPES:001). The authors would like to express our gratitude to the anonymous referees for constructive comments and anonymous reviewers who dedicated their time to improving our manuscript.

Funding

COPPETEC-UFRJ. FAPERJ - Brazil (Grant no. SisFAPERJ:2012028010). CNPq - Brazil (CNPQ: No. 402396/2021-9 Universal 18/2021, CNPq-No. 309722/2021-7, PQ -2 Research grant). Post-Graduate Program in Agronomy - Soil Science at the Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro (PPGA -CS, UFRRRJ). CAPES - Brazil (Grant no. CAPES:001).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Soil Biological Chemistry, Department of Soils, Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRRJ), Seropédica, RJ, Brazil

    Tadeu Augusto van Tol de Castro, Orlando Carlos Huertas Tavares, Danielle França de Oliveira Torchia, Natalia Fernandez Rodrigues, Ricardo Luiz Louro Berbara & Andrés Calderín García

  2. Laboratory of Plant Mineral Nutrition, Department of Soils, Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRRJ), Seropédica, RJ, Brazil

    Erinaldo Gomes Pereira & Leandro Azevedo Santos

  3. Laboratory of Food Technology, Department of Biochemical Engineering – School of Chemistry, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

    Ana Lúcia do Amaral Vendramini & Carolina Vieira Viêgas

  4. Instituto Terra Viva, Maceió, Brazil

    Mauricio Roque da Mata Jr

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  1. Tadeu Augusto van Tol de Castro
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  2. Orlando Carlos Huertas Tavares
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  3. Danielle França de Oliveira Torchia
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  4. Erinaldo Gomes Pereira
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  6. Leandro Azevedo Santos
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  8. Mauricio Roque da Mata Jr
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  9. Carolina Vieira Viêgas
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Contributions

T.A. van Tol. Castro: Formal analysis, Experiment conduction, Writing – original draft. O.C.H. Tavares: Formal analysis, Experiment conduction, Writing – original draft. D.F⋅O Torchia: Formal analysis, Experiment conduction, Writing – original draft. E. G. Pereira: Experiment conduction. N.F. Rodrigues: Experiment conduction. L. A. Santos: Investigation, Data curation, Writing – review & editing. A.L.A. Vendramini: Resources, Funding acquisition, Formal analysis. M. R. Mata: Funding acquisition, Formal analysis. C⋅V. Viêgas: Formal analysis, Experiment conduction. R.L. L. Berbara: Investigation, Data curation, Writing – review & editing. A.C. García: Conceptualization, Methodology, Data curation, Formal analaysis, Investigation, Writing – original draft, Visualization, Supervision, Project administration.

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Correspondence to Andrés Calderín García.

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van Tol de Castro, T.A., Tavares, O.C.H., de Oliveira Torchia, D.F. et al. Regulation of growth and stress metabolism in rice plants through foliar and root application of seaweed extract from Kappaphycus alvarezii (Rhodophyta). J Appl Phycol (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10811-024-03216-y

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