Abstract
The mechanism of Cu tolerance in plants and its control measures are of considerable significance for the remediation of Cu-contaminated soils. Gibberellic acid (GA3) is involved in plant growth and development and in the response to heavy metal stress. In the present study, changes in the biomass, oxidative stress response responses, and photosynthesis of spinach seedlings were examined under Cu stress with exogenous GA3 applied at concentrations of 0, 3, 5, 10, 20, 40, 60, or 80 mg L−1. Under Cu stress, the plant Cu concentration and oxidative damage were greater, photosynthetic parameters and biomass declined, and antioxidant enzyme activities and the proline concentration increased. However, spinach growth did not terminate, indicating that spinach seedlings had strong Cu tolerance. When low concentrations of GA3 (3–5 mg L−1) were added to Cu-stressed spinach seedlings, the damage caused by Cu stress to spinach seedlings was reduced, and the Cu tolerance of spinach seedlings was enhanced, which mainly manifested as reduced oxidation damage, an increased proline concentration, elevated antioxidant enzyme activities, decreased Cu concentration in leaves, and increased Cu concentration in roots, increased photosynthetic parameters, and an increased in the total biomass. In contrast, additions of GA3 at concentrations higher than 40 mg L−1 intensified oxidative damage and decreased the activities of antioxidant enzymes, photosynthetic parameters, and biomass. Additionally, the Cu concentration increased in leaves and decreased Cu concentration in roots, indicating that high concentrations of GA3 aggravated stress damage and severely influenced physiological functions in spinach seedlings. In summary, the application of 3–5 mg L−1 GA3 to spinach seedlings in Cu-contaminated soil can be used to reduce Cu toxicity to plants and increase Cu tolerance.
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Abbreviations
- FW:
-
Fresh weight
- DW:
-
Dry weight
- MDA:
-
Malondialdehyde
- TCA:
-
Trichloroacetic acid
- SOD:
-
Superoxide dismutase
- POD:
-
Peroxidase
- CAT:
-
Catalase
- APX:
-
Ascorbate peroxidase
- ROS:
-
Reactive oxygen species
- Chl a/b:
-
Chlorophyll a/b
- PSII:
-
Photosystem II
- P n :
-
Net photosynthetic rate
- g s :
-
Stomatal conductance
- C i :
-
Internal CO2 concentration
- T r :
-
Transpiration rate
- Fv/Fm:
-
Maximum quantum yield of PSII photochemistry
- qP:
-
Photochemical quenching
- NPQ:
-
Nonphotochemical quenching
- ETR:
-
Electron transport rate
- NBT:
-
Nitroblue tetrazolium
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This work was funded by grants from key projects of the Hubei Natural Fund (innovation group) of China (2016CFA016) and the research project of Xinjiang Agricultural Vocational and Technical College (XJNZYKJ201901).
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Qong Gin, Ling Wang, and Jing-yi Zhou conducted the experiments, collected and analyzed the samples, and drafted the manuscript. Qun Kang and Duan-dan Niu analyzed the data and revised the manuscript. Zhao-hua Li and Qong Gin conceived and designed this work. All authors read and approved the manuscript.
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Gong, Q., Li, Zh., Wang, L. et al. Gibberellic acid application on biomass, oxidative stress response, and photosynthesis in spinach (Spinacia oleracea L.) seedlings under copper stress. Environ Sci Pollut Res 28, 53594–53604 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-13745-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-021-13745-5