Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

IAA alleviates Cd toxicity on growth, photosynthesis and oxidative damages in eggplant seedlings

  • Original paper
  • Published:
Plant Growth Regulation Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Plant growth regulator IAA (indole-3-acetic acid), besides its role in growth and development, is gaining increased attention because of its involvement in regulation of abiotic stresses. To ascertain this hypothesis, sand culture experiments were conducted to investigate the implication of IAA in regulation of Cd (cadmium) toxicity in eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) seedlings. Cd at tested doses (Cd1: 3 mg Cd kg−1 sand and Cd2: 9 mg Cd kg−1 sand) declined growth, pigment contents and photosynthesis, and increased the rate of dark respiratory oxygen uptake, and these effects were accompanied with Cd accumulation in tissues. Photochemistry of photosystem II (PS II) was analyzed by measuring chlorophyll a fluorescence kinetics-JIP test. Cd declined the efficiency of PS II in its concentration dependent manner which is evident from the decreased values of Fv/F0, Fv/Fm (ϕP0), Ψ0, ϕE0 and PIABS and increased values of F0/Fv and energy fluxes per reaction centre: ABS/RC, ET0/RC, TR0/RC and DI0/RC. Enhanced level of oxidants: superoxide radical and hydrogen peroxide under Cd stress stimulated the rate of lipid peroxidation and electrolyte leakage, despite of appreciable rise in activity of superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, catalase, glutathione-s-transferase and contents of non protein thiol and proline. Exogenous IAA application alleviated Cd induced toxicity on growth performance by improving the structural and functional attributes of photosynthetic apparatus i.e. pigment contents and photosynthetic activity. The ameliorating effect of exogenous IAA was due to (1) significant reduction in Cd uptake in roots and its translocation to leaves and (2) further rise in level/activity of antioxidants which brought the level of oxidants under control hence, minimized the oxidative damage in eggplant seedlings.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

Abbreviations

ABS/RC:

Light absorption flux (for PS II antenna chlorophylls) per reaction centre (RC)

CAT:

Catalase

Cd:

Cadmium

DI0/RC:

Dissipation energy flux per PS II reaction centre (RC)

ET0/RC:

Maximum electron transport flux (further than QA−) per PS II reaction centre (RC)

Fv/F0:

The size and number of active reaction centres in the photosynthetic apparatus

Fv/Fm (ϕP0):

Maximum quantum efficiency of PS П photochemistry

GST:

Glutathione-S-transferase

IAA:

Indole-3-acetic acid

MDA:

Malondialdehyde

NP-SH:

Non-protein thiol

POD:

Peroxidase

Phi_E0 or ϕE0 :

Quantum yield of electron transport

Psi_0 or Ψ0 :

Yield of electron transport per trapped exciton

QA:

Primary electron accepter of PS II

RC:

Reaction centre

SOD:

Superoxide dismutase

TR0/RC:

Trapped (maximum) energy flux per reaction centre (RC)

References

  • Aebi H (1984) Catalase in vitro. Methods Enzymol 105:121–126

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Agami RA, Mohamed GF (2013) Exogenous treatment with indole-3-acetic acid and salicylic acid alleviates cadmium toxicity in wheat seedlings. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf 94:164–171

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ahammed GJ, Choudhary SP, Chen S, Xia X, Shi K, Zhou Y, Yu J (2013) Role of brassinosteroids in alleviation of phenanthrene–cadmium co-contamination induced photosynthetic inhibition and oxidative stress in tomato. J Exp Bot 64:199–213

    Article  CAS  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Allen SE, Grimshaw HM, Rowland AP (1986) Chemical analysis. In: Moore PD, Chapman SB (eds) Methods in plant ecology. Blackwell, Oxford, pp 285–344

    Google Scholar 

  • Almog O, Lotan O, Shoham G, Nechushtai R (1991) The composition and organization of photosystem I. J Basic Clin Physiol Pharmacol 2:123–140

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • ATSDR (2005) Agency for toxic substance and disease registry, U.S. Toxicological profile for cadmium. Department of Health and Humans Services, Public Health

  • Bates LS, Waldren RP, Teare ID (1973) Rapid determination of free proline for water stress studies. Plant Soil 39:205–208

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Belkadhi A, Hediji H, Abbes Z, Djebali W, Chaïbi W (2012) Influence of salicylic acid pre-treatment on cadmium tolerance and its relationship with non-protein thiol production in flax root. Afr J Biotechnol 11:9788–9796

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Chance BA, Maehly C (1955) Assay of catalase and peroxidase. In: Colowick SP, Kaplan NO (eds) Methods enzymol, vol 2, pp 764–775

  • Chaoui A, El Ferjani E (2005) Effect of cadmium and copper on antioxidant capacities, lignification and auxin degradation in leaves of pea (Pisum sativum L.) seedlings. Plant Biol Pathol 328:23–31

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dube BK, Sinha P, Shukla K, Chatterjee C, Pandey VK, Rai AD (2009) Involvement of excess cadmium on oxidative stress and other physiological parameters of eggplant. J Plant Nutr 32:996–1004

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Durand TC, Sergeant K, Planchon S, Carpin S, Label P, Morabito D, Hausman JF, Renaut J (2010) Acute metal stress in Populus tremula x P. alba (717–1B4 genotype): leaf and cambial proteome changes induced by Cd2+. Proteomics 10:349–368

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ellman GL (1959) Tissue sulfhydryl groups. Arch Biochem Biophys 82:70–77

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Elstner EF, Heupel A (1976) Inhibition of nitrite formation from hydroxyl ammonium chloride: a simple assay for superoxide dismutase. Anal Biochem 70:616–620

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Faller P, Kienzler K, Krieger-Liszkay A (2005) Mechanism of Cd2+ toxicity: Cd2+ inhibits photoactivation of Photosystem II by competitive binding to the essential Ca2+ site. Biochem Biophys Acta 1706:158–164

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fang Z, Bouwkamp JC, Solomos T (1998) Chlorophyllase activities and chlorophyll degradation during leaf senescence in non-yellowing mutant and wild type of Phaseolus vulgaris L. J Exp Bot 49:503–510

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gangwar S, Singh VP, Maurya JN (2011) Responses of Pisum sativum L. to exogenous indole acetic acid application under manganese toxicity. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 86:605–609

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Giannopolitis CN, Reis SK (1977) Superoxide dismutase. I. Occurrence in higher plants. Plant Physiol 59:309–314

    Article  CAS  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gill SS, Tuteja N (2010) Reactive oxygen species and antioxidant machinery in abiotic stress tolerance in crop plants. Plant Physiol Biochem 48:909–930

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Godt J, Scheidig F, Grosse-Siestrup C, Esche V, Brandenburg P, Reich A, Groneberg DA (2006) The toxicity of cadmium and resulting hazards for human health. J Occup Med Toxicol 1:22

    Article  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gong M, Li YJ, Chen SZ (1998) Abscisic acid induced thermo tolerance in maize seedlings is mediated by calcium and associated with antioxidant system. J Plant Physiol 153:488–496

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gonzalez-Mendoza D, Espadasy GF, Santamara JM, Zapata-Perez O (2007) Multiple effects of cadmium on the photosynthetic apparatus of Avicennia germinans L. as probed by OJIP chlorophyll fluorescence measurements. Zeitschrift fur Naturforschung C 62:265–272

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Habig WH, Pabst MJ, Jakoby WB (1974) Glutathione-S-transferases, the first enzymatic step in mercapturic acid formation. J Biol Chem 249:7130–7139

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • He JY, Ren YF, Zhu C, Yan YP, Jiang DA (2008) Effect of Cd on growth, photosynthetic gas exchange, and chlorophyll fluorescence of wild and Cd-sensitive mutant rice. Photosynthetica 46:466–470

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hoagland DR, Arnon DI (1950) The water culture method for growing plants without soil. Cal Agri Exp Station Circ 347:1–39

    Google Scholar 

  • Hodges MD, DeLong JM, Forney CF, Prarge PK (1999) Improving the thiobarbituric acid reactive substances assay for lipid peroxidation in plant tissues containing anthocyanine and other interfering compounds. Planta 207:604–611

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Israr M, Jewell A, Kumar D, Sahi SV (2011) Interactive effects of lead, copper, nickel and zinc on growth, metal uptake and antioxidative metabolism of Sesbania drummondii. J Hazard Mater 186:1520–1526

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Jackson NE (1973) Soil chemical analysis. Prentice Hall, Englewood Cliffs 498

    Google Scholar 

  • Jain M, Khurana JP (2009) Transcript profiling reveals diverse roles of auxin-responsive genes during reproductive development and abiotic stress in rice. FEBS Lett 276:3148–3162

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Janeczko A, Koscielniak J, Pilipowicz M, Szarek-Łukaszewska G, Skoczowski A (2005) Protection of winter rape photosystem 2 by 24-epibrassinolide under cadmium stress. Photosynthetica 43(2):293–298

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Krause GH, Weiss E (1991) Chlorophyll fluorescence and photosynthesis: the basic. Ann Rev Plant Physiol 42:313–349

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kriedemann PF, Graham RD, Wiskich JT (1985) Photosynthetic dysfunction and in vivo chlorophyll a fluorescence from manganese deficient wheat leaves. Aust J Agric Res 36:157–169

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Kurra-Hotta M, Satoh K, Katoh S (1987) Relationship between photosynthesis and Chl content during leaf senescence of rice seedlings. Plant Cell Physiol 28:1321–1329

    Google Scholar 

  • Li S, Yang W, Yang T, Chen Y, Nia W (2015) Effects of cadmium stress on leaf chlorophyll fluorescence and photosynthesis of Elsholtzia argyi—a cadmium accumulating plant. Int J Phytoremediat 17:85–92

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lichtenthaler HK (1987) Chlorophylls and carotenoids: pigments of photosynthetic bio membranes. Methods Enzymol 148:350–382

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Nelson DW, Sommers LE (1973) Determination of total nitrogen in plant material. Agron J 65:109–112

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Qian H, Li J, Sun L, Chen W, Sheng GD, Liu W, Fu Z (2009) Combined effect of copper and cadmium on Chlorella vulgaris growth and photosynthesis-related gene transcription. Aquat Toxicol 94:56–61

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sayed OH (1998) Analysis of photosynthetic responses and adaptation to nitrogen starvation in Chlorella using in vivo chlorophyll fluorescence. Photosynthetica 35:611–619

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Siddhu G, Sirohi DS, Kashyap K, Khan IA, Khan MAA (2008) Toxicity of cadmium on the growth and yield of Solanum melongena L. J Environ Biol 29:853–857

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Singh A, Prasad SM (2014) Effect of agro-industrial waste amendment on Cd uptake in Amaranthus caudatus grown under contaminated soil: an oxidative biomarker response. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf 100:105–113

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Singh VP, Srivastava PK, Prasad SM (2013) Nitric oxide alleviates arsenic-induced toxic effects in ridged Luffa seedlings. Plant Physiol Biochem 71:155–163

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Stobart AK, Griffiths WT, Ameen-Bukhari I, Sherwood RP (1985) The effect of Cd2+ on the biosynthesis of chlorophyll in leaves of barley. Physiol Plant 63:293–298

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Strasser RJ, Srivastava A, Tsimilli-Michael M (2000) The fluorescence transient as a tool to characterise and screen photosynthetic samples. In: Yunus M, Pathre U, Mohanty P (eds) Probing photosynthesis: mechanisms, regulation and adaptation. Taylor & Francis, London, pp 445–483

    Google Scholar 

  • Sun JY, Shen ZG (2007) Effects of Cd stress on photosynthetic characteristics and nutrient uptake of cabbages with different Cd-tolerance. Chin J App Ecol 18:2605–2610

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Tiwari BS, Belenghi B, Levine A (2002) Oxidative stress increased respiration and generation of reactive oxygen species, resulting in ATP depletion, opening of mitochondrial permeability transition, and programmed cell death. Plant Physiol 128:1271–1281

    Article  CAS  PubMed Central  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Velikova V, Yordanov I, Edreva A (2000) Oxidative stress and some antioxidant system in acid rain treated bean plants. Plant Sci 151:59–66

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • WHO (2007) Joint FAO/WHO Expert standards program codex Alimentation Commission. Geneva, Switzerland. http://www.who.int. Accessed 10/09/2012

  • Zhu XF, Wanga ZW, Dongb F, Lei GJ, Shi YZ, Li GX, Zheng SJ (2013) Exogenous auxin alleviates cadmium toxicity in Arabidopsis thaliana by stimulating synthesis of hemicelluloses1 and increasing the cadmium fixation capacity of root cell walls. J Hazard Mater 263:398–403

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We are very grateful to The Head, Department of Botany, University of Allahabad for providing necessary lab facilities. The University Grants Commission, New Delhi is thankfully acknowledged for providing financial assistant to Prof. S. M. Prasad as PI [Project No: 41-460/2012(SR)] and to Shikha Singh as project fellow to carry out this work.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ranjan Plant Physiology and Biochemistry Laboratory, Department of Botany, University of Allahabad, Allahabad, 211002, India

    Shikha Singh & Sheo Mohan Prasad

Authors
  1. Shikha Singh
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Sheo Mohan Prasad
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Sheo Mohan Prasad.

Electronic supplementary material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

Supplementary material 1 (DOCX 14 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Singh, S., Prasad, S.M. IAA alleviates Cd toxicity on growth, photosynthesis and oxidative damages in eggplant seedlings. Plant Growth Regul 77, 87–98 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10725-015-0039-9

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10725-015-0039-9

Keywords

Search

Navigation