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Silicon enhances the tolerance of Poa annua to cadmium by inhibiting its absorption and oxidative stress

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  • Published:
Biologia Plantarum

Abstract

Silicon (Si) could enhance plant tolerance to heavy metals; however, the mechanism of Si-mediated alleviation of cadmium (Cd) toxicity in Poa annua was not clear. In this study, we found that 100 μM Cd significantly inhibited the growth of Poa annua seedlings. Furthermore, Cd enhanced the H2O2 and malondialdehyde content. The activities of superoxide dismutase and ascorbate peroxidase were enhanced, but the catalase and peroxidase activities were reduced by Cd treatment. Cd also altered the activity and expression of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PDH) in Poa annua roots. Application of Na3PO4, an inhibitor of G6PDH, decreased the activity of G6PDH, the expression of G6PDH, and increased the Cd toxicity, suggesting that G6PDH is involved in the regulation of oxidative stress induced by Cd. Application of 1 mM Si alleviated the inhibition of Cd on the growth of Poa annua seedlings. Si application not only led to reduced oxidative injuries but also decreased the accumulation of Cd in Poa annua seedlings under Cd stress. Furthermore, Si decreased the activity of G6PDH and the expression of G6PDH under Cd stress, which demonstrated that Si attenuates the Cd toxicity in Poa annua probably through decreasing the expression of G6PDH under Cd stress. When G6PDH was inhibited, the alleviation impact of Si on Cd stress was abolished. Taken together, these results demonstrated that the Cd tolerance in Poa annua enhanced by Si is mainly due to the decrease of Cd uptake in roots and lowering the oxidative stress induced by Cd.

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Abbreviations

APX:

ascorbate peroxidase

CAT:

catalase

EDTA:

ethylene diamine tetraacetic acid

G6PDH:

glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase

GR:

glutathione reductase

GSH:

glutathione

MDA:

malondialdehyde

MS:

Murashige and Skoog

NADPH:

nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate

OPPP:

oxidative pentose phosphate pathway

PAGE:

polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis

PEPC:

phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase

6PGDH:

6-phosphogluconate dehydrogenase

PMSF:

phenylmethanesulfonyl fluoride

POD:

peroxidase

PVDF:

polyvinylidene fluoride

PVP:

polyvinyl pyrrolidone

ROS:

reactive oxygen species

SOD:

superoxide dismutase

TBA:

thiobarbituric acid

TCA:

trichloroacetic acid

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Cell Activities and Stress Adaptations, School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, 730000, P.R. China

    P. Li, C. Z. Zhao, Y. Q. Zhand, X. M. Wang, J. F. Wang, F. Wang & Y. R. Bi

  2. State Key Laboratory of Plateau Ecology and Agriculture, Qinhai University, Xining, 810016, P.R. China

    P. Li

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  1. P. Li
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  2. C. Z. Zhao
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  3. Y. Q. Zhand
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  4. X. M. Wang
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  5. J. F. Wang
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  7. Y. R. Bi
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Correspondence to Y. R. Bi.

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Acknowledgements: This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31671595; 31670244), the National Program on Key Basic Research Project (2012CB026105), the Foundation of Science and Technology Program of Gansu Province (1506RJZA209), the National High Technology Research and Development Program (2007AA021401), and the Foundation of Science and Technology Program of Lanzhou City (2015-3-53).

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Li, P., Zhao, C.Z., Zhand, Y.Q. et al. Silicon enhances the tolerance of Poa annua to cadmium by inhibiting its absorption and oxidative stress. Biol Plant 61, 741–750 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10535-017-0731-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10535-017-0731-x

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