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Oxidative stress in greater duckweed (Spirodela polyrhiza) caused by long-term NaCl exposure

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Abstract

The mechanisms of aquatic plant defense against salinity were studied by long-term exposure of Spirodela polyrhiza (greater duckweed) to NaCl. In this study, the effects of 200 mM NaCl on greater duckweed were evaluated after 6 and 12 days of treatment, while plant growth was measured every day. High concentration of NaCl caused an inhibition of plant growth, reduced in the content of photosynthetic pigments, increased lipid peroxidation, and enhanced the entire antioxidant defense. The responses of five antioxidant enzymes showed that ascorbate peroxidase, guaiacol peroxidase, and superoxide dismutase activities were the most enhanced after NaCl exposure, catalase moderately, and glutathione reductase least. The content of soluble proteins was decreased, while ascorbic acid was drastically increased. In NaCl-treated fronds, the appearance of two NaCl-induced polypeptides with apparent molecular weight of 16 and 21 kDa, as well as the accumulation of two polypeptides with molecular weights 18 and 27 kDa, were observed in sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE). NaCl also led to accumulation of the heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) and induced an isoform of the glutamine synthetase (GS1) expression. Our results suggest that in S. polyrhiza, different adaptive mechanisms are involved in counter balancing high doses of a particular toxicant (sodium chloride). The possible application of the examined biomarkers in ecotoxicological research is discussed.

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Acknowledgments

This research was funded in partly by a Grant from the Chung-Cheng Agriculture Science and Social Welfare Foundation, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC. The authors thank Dr. Peter Wong (University of Kansans, Manhattan, KS) for the anti-GS antibodies and Drs. T-L Chang and C–C Tsao for their help in manuscript preparations.

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  1. Department of Applied Life Science and Health, Chia-Nan University of Pharmacy and Science, Tainan, 71710, Taiwan, ROC

    Lee-Ju Cheng

  2. Department of Biological Sciences and Technology, National University of Tainan, Tainan, 70005, Taiwan, ROC

    In-Hwa Chang, Kai-Teng Cheng, Po-Chuan Huang, Yen-Yu Lin & Tai-Sheng Cheng

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  1. In-Hwa Chang
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  2. Kai-Teng Cheng
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Communicated by J.-H. Liu.

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Chang, IH., Cheng, KT., Huang, PC. et al. Oxidative stress in greater duckweed (Spirodela polyrhiza) caused by long-term NaCl exposure. Acta Physiol Plant 34, 1165–1176 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11738-011-0913-7

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