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Investigating the Effect of Silicon on the Morpho-Physiological and Molecular Structures of Wheat (Triticum aestivum L. cv. Yannong 19) Under Cadmium Stress

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Abstract

There is a rapid increase in the contamination of agricultural soils with cadmium worldwide, especially in China, so it is necessary to find solutions to reduce the toxicity of it. To investigate the effect of silicon on cadmium toxicity in Triticum aestivum L. cv. Yannong 19, an experiment was conducted with four treatments (control, silicon, cadmium, silicon × cadmium). This experiment examined the following factors in wheat: root-and-shoot cadmium concentration, TF, root-and-shoot Silicon concentration, SOD, POD, CAT, APX, GSH, AsA, MDA, total protein content, total soluble sugars, root-and-shoot dry weight, Total chlorophyll, chlorophyll a and b, the content of N, P, and K. The present study showed that cadmium treatment severely affected wheat seedling morphological and physiological factors, but silicon treatment greatly reduced these adverse effects. Furthermore, silicon alone had significant positive effects on wheat's biochemical and morphological structures. The results of this study also revealed that silicon treatment increased TaPIP1 and TaLsi1 gene expression (involved in the absorption and transport of Si), whilst cadmium treatment caused the upregulation of TaNramp5, TaLCT1, TaTM20, TaHMA2, and TaHMA3 genes (involved in the absorption and transport of Cd). In conclusion, the present study found that, although cadmium negatively affects the various structures of Yannong 19, nevertheless, Sodium Metasilicate Nonahydrate (a source of silicon) can be a viable method of reducing cadmium absorption, transfer, and toxicity in this wheat variety.

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Acknowledgements

The sincere gratitude goes out to our colleagues at the College of Environment and Surveying and Mapping Engineering, Suzhou University, Anhui, who supported us during this research.

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  1. College of Environment and Surveying and Mapping Engineering, Suzhou University, Suzhou, 234000, China

    Mohammad Reza Boorboori & Haiyang Zhang

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  1. Mohammad Reza Boorboori
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Mohammad Reza Boorboori and Haiyang Zhang wrote the main manuscript text and E.F. prepared Figs. 1, 2 and 3. All authors reviewed the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Mohammad Reza Boorboori or Haiyang Zhang.

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Boorboori, M.R., Zhang, H. Investigating the Effect of Silicon on the Morpho-Physiological and Molecular Structures of Wheat (Triticum aestivum L. cv. Yannong 19) Under Cadmium Stress. Silicon 16, 1033–1042 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12633-023-02704-z

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