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Evaluation of antioxidant bioindicators and growth responses in Malva parviflora L. exposed to cadmium

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Abstract

In this study, the effect of cadmium (Cd) uptake and concentration on some growth and biochemical responses were investigated in Malva parviflora under Cd treatments including 0, 10, 50 and 100 µM. The shoots and roots were able to accumulate Cd. However, increased Cd dose led to a considerable Cd content in the roots. Cd stress decreased growth, increased lipid peroxidation and also enhanced proline and ascorbic acid contents in both shoots and roots. Chlorophyll and carotenoid contents decreased in the plants with the increasing Cd concentration. While the activities of catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) increased in the shoots under different Cd doses, these activities decreased in the roots as compared to the control. Both shoots and roots demonstrated a significant increase in guaiacol peroxidase activity in response to Cd stress. Contrary to the aboveground parts, the roots subjected to Cd doses showed a rise in protein content. Despite higher Cd content in the roots, it seems that CAT and SOD do not play a key role in detoxification of Cd-induced oxidative stress. These findings confirm that reduced biomass and growth under Cd stress can be due to an increase in oxidative stress and a decrease in photosynthetic pigment content. The present study clearly indicates that the shoots and roots exploit different tolerance behaviors to alleviate Cd-induced oxidative stress in M. parviflora.

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Abbreviations

AsA:

Ascorbate

CAT:

Catalase

DHA:

Dehydroascorbate

DW:

Dry weight

FW:

Fresh weight

GPX:

Guaiacol peroxidase

H2O2 :

Hydrogen peroxide

TBARS:

Thiobarbituric acid reactive substances

POX:

Peroxidase

PSB:

Potassium phosphate buffer

ROS:

Reactive oxygen species

O2 ˙ − :

Superoxide anion

SOD:

Superoxide dismutase

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the Research Affairs of Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz (Grant No. 94/3/02/31579).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran

    Parzhak Zoufan, Roya Jalali & Elham Neisi

  2. Department of Agronomy and Plant Breeding, Faculty of Agriculture, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran

    Payman Hassibi

  3. Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Shahid Chamran University of Ahvaz, Ahvaz, Iran

    Saadat Rastegarzadeh

Authors
  1. Parzhak Zoufan
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  2. Roya Jalali
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  3. Payman Hassibi
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  4. Elham Neisi
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  5. Saadat Rastegarzadeh
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Contributions

PZ designed and conducted the research, analyzed the data and wrote the paper; RJ performed all the assessments related to growth and biochemical parameters; EN measured cadmium concentration of plant tissues; PH and SR helped as consultant to carry out measurement protocols.

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Correspondence to Parzhak Zoufan.

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The authors declared that they have no conflict of interest.

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Zoufan, P., Jalali, R., Hassibi, P. et al. Evaluation of antioxidant bioindicators and growth responses in Malva parviflora L. exposed to cadmium. Physiol Mol Biol Plants 24, 1005–1016 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12298-018-0596-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12298-018-0596-2

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