biologia plantarum

Biologia plantarum 45:601-604, 2002 | DOI: 10.1023/A:1022308809328

Chilling Induced Oxidative Stress in Germinating Wheat Grains as Affected by Water Stress and Calcium

H. Nayyar¹, S.K. Kaushal²

¹ Department of Botany, Panjab University, Chandigarh, India

² Department of Plant Physiology, H.P.K.V., Palampur, India

Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) plants were subjected to mild water stress during grain filling at milk (early, medium, and late) and dough (early, soft, hard) stages. The grains harvested from stressed plants were subjected to low temperature stress of 10 °C for 24 h in presence or absence of 1 mM CaCl₂, and embryos were examined for oxidative injury. The embryos of grains water stressed at milk and soft dough stages showed lowest contents of H₂O₂ and malondialdehyde and highest membrane stability index, ascorbic acid content, and activities of catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, and superoxide dismutase as compared to control embryos or water-stressed at other stages. Presence of Ca²⁺ in the medium reduced H₂O₂ and malondialdehyde content and increased ascorbic acid content, and catalase, ascorbate peroxidase and superoxide dismutase activities.

Keywords: ascorbate peroxidase; catalase; hydrogen peroxide; malondialdehyde; superoxide dismutase; Triticum aestivum

Subjects: ascorbate peroxidase; calcium, oxidative stress, chilling, water stress; catalase; chilling, germination, water stress; malondialdehyde; oxidative stress, chilling, water stress; seed germination; superoxide dismutase, water stress, chilling; Triticum aestivum; wheat, oxidative stress, chilling, water stress

Published: December 1, 2002  Show citation