Effects of Ascorbic Acid and/or α-Tocopherol on Agronomic and Physio-Biochemical Traits of Oat (<i>Avena sativa</i> L.) under Drought Condition
Water stress is notably a critical environmental condition restricting plant growth and economic outputs in semi-arid and arid environments. In a pot experiment, we explored the potential function of α-tocopherol (α-toc) and/or ascorbic acid (AsA) on the agronomic and physio-biochemical features of...
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MDPI AG
2022-09-01
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| Series: | Agronomy |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/12/10/2296 |
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| author | Hossam S. El-Beltagi Sulaiman Maged Elsayed Mohamed Mohamed Sami Ullah Sikandar Shah |
| author_facet | Hossam S. El-Beltagi Sulaiman Maged Elsayed Mohamed Mohamed Sami Ullah Sikandar Shah |
| author_sort | Hossam S. El-Beltagi |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Water stress is notably a critical environmental condition restricting plant growth and economic outputs in semi-arid and arid environments. In a pot experiment, we explored the potential function of α-tocopherol (α-toc) and/or ascorbic acid (AsA) on the agronomic and physio-biochemical features of oat grown in water-scarce conditions. Drought duration significantly reduced the soil electrical conductivity and pH but increased the soil temperature, influencing the nutrient availability and uptake. For example, post-drought (25 days) soil analysis indicated that electrical conductivity decreased from 597 to 306 mS/m, total dissolved solids from 298 to 153 mg/L, and pH from 7.5 to 6.3 in 25 days of drought. Further, the drought-stressed leaves also contained significantly lower metabolites, such as proline, protein, sugar, and glycine betaine, than the control leaves, indicating impaired plant defense mechanisms. Significantly increased enzymatic antioxidants in leaves (e.g., superoxide dismutase, ascorbate peroxidase, and peroxidase) suggested the inability of oat plants to overcome drought-induced oxidative damage. In contrast, AsA and/or α-toc significantly amplified the seed germination rates and plant growth. Taken together, our results demonstrate that AsA and α-toc have the capability to mitigate adverse effects of drought conditions on oat plants by improving leaf relative water contents, photosynthetic pigments, and the antioxidant defense system. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T20:55:01Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e99ae88dc92b42a58ed3ad509bde3003 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2073-4395 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T20:55:01Z |
| publishDate | 2022-09-01 |
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| series | Agronomy |
| spelling | doaj.art-e99ae88dc92b42a58ed3ad509bde30032023-11-23T22:24:38ZengMDPI AGAgronomy2073-43952022-09-011210229610.3390/agronomy12102296Effects of Ascorbic Acid and/or α-Tocopherol on Agronomic and Physio-Biochemical Traits of Oat (<i>Avena sativa</i> L.) under Drought ConditionHossam S. El-Beltagi0Sulaiman1Maged Elsayed Mohamed Mohamed2Sami Ullah3Sikandar Shah4Agricultural Biotechnology Department, College of Agriculture and Food Sciences, King Faisal University, Al-Ahsa 31982, Saudi ArabiaDepartment of Botany, University of Peshawar, Peshawar 25120, PakistanDepartment of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Clinical Pharmacy, King Faisal University, Al-Ahsa 31982, Saudi ArabiaDepartment of Botany, University of Peshawar, Peshawar 25120, PakistanPlanta International, University of Grenoble Alpes, CEDEX 9, 38054 Grenoble, FranceWater stress is notably a critical environmental condition restricting plant growth and economic outputs in semi-arid and arid environments. In a pot experiment, we explored the potential function of α-tocopherol (α-toc) and/or ascorbic acid (AsA) on the agronomic and physio-biochemical features of oat grown in water-scarce conditions. Drought duration significantly reduced the soil electrical conductivity and pH but increased the soil temperature, influencing the nutrient availability and uptake. For example, post-drought (25 days) soil analysis indicated that electrical conductivity decreased from 597 to 306 mS/m, total dissolved solids from 298 to 153 mg/L, and pH from 7.5 to 6.3 in 25 days of drought. Further, the drought-stressed leaves also contained significantly lower metabolites, such as proline, protein, sugar, and glycine betaine, than the control leaves, indicating impaired plant defense mechanisms. Significantly increased enzymatic antioxidants in leaves (e.g., superoxide dismutase, ascorbate peroxidase, and peroxidase) suggested the inability of oat plants to overcome drought-induced oxidative damage. In contrast, AsA and/or α-toc significantly amplified the seed germination rates and plant growth. Taken together, our results demonstrate that AsA and α-toc have the capability to mitigate adverse effects of drought conditions on oat plants by improving leaf relative water contents, photosynthetic pigments, and the antioxidant defense system.https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/12/10/2296water stresscereal cropssecondary metabolitesgrowth mediatorsantioxidant properties |
| spellingShingle | Hossam S. El-Beltagi Sulaiman Maged Elsayed Mohamed Mohamed Sami Ullah Sikandar Shah Effects of Ascorbic Acid and/or α-Tocopherol on Agronomic and Physio-Biochemical Traits of Oat (<i>Avena sativa</i> L.) under Drought Condition Agronomy water stress cereal crops secondary metabolites growth mediators antioxidant properties |
| title | Effects of Ascorbic Acid and/or α-Tocopherol on Agronomic and Physio-Biochemical Traits of Oat (<i>Avena sativa</i> L.) under Drought Condition |
| title_full | Effects of Ascorbic Acid and/or α-Tocopherol on Agronomic and Physio-Biochemical Traits of Oat (<i>Avena sativa</i> L.) under Drought Condition |
| title_fullStr | Effects of Ascorbic Acid and/or α-Tocopherol on Agronomic and Physio-Biochemical Traits of Oat (<i>Avena sativa</i> L.) under Drought Condition |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effects of Ascorbic Acid and/or α-Tocopherol on Agronomic and Physio-Biochemical Traits of Oat (<i>Avena sativa</i> L.) under Drought Condition |
| title_short | Effects of Ascorbic Acid and/or α-Tocopherol on Agronomic and Physio-Biochemical Traits of Oat (<i>Avena sativa</i> L.) under Drought Condition |
| title_sort | effects of ascorbic acid and or α tocopherol on agronomic and physio biochemical traits of oat i avena sativa i l under drought condition |
| topic | water stress cereal crops secondary metabolites growth mediators antioxidant properties |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2073-4395/12/10/2296 |
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