Exogenous application of sodium hydrosulfide and salicylic acid mitigate salinity stress in maize by regulating ionic balance, biochemical attributes, photosynthetic pigments and some key antioxidants
Sidra Shoukat, Ayesha Tassawar, Rumana Keyani, Mohsin Zafar, Rabia Naz, Asia Nosheen, Zafar Abbas Shah, Prashant Kaushik, Mohammed Nasser Alyemeni, Humaira Yasmin, Parvaiz Ahmad
Abstract
Hydrogen sulfide (H2S) and salicylic acid (SA) have been recently explored as important priming agents for plant growth and development. The effects of NaHS alone and in combination with SA to alleviate salt stress effects on maize plants are not determined yet. Here, we executed an approach to examine the effects of NaHS (H2S donor) and SA treatments to overcome the salt stress in maize plants. In vitro screening exhibited that SA (0.1 mM) and NaHS (0.5 mM) as the most effective concentrations to increase biomass and germination of maize plant under salt stress. Furthermore, data revealed that alone and combined treatments of H2S and SA during salt stress showed improved morphological, biochemical, and physiological attributes compared to non-treated plants. However, combined treated plants exhibited maximum salinity resistance than individual treatments. The combined treatment showed increased chlorophyll a (165%), chlorophyll b (138%) and carotenoid (54.4%) and increased activities of antioxidants enzymes like catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), and polyphenol oxidase (PPO) by 441%, 416.7%, 501.4% and 510%, respectively while reduced Na+accumulation and enhanced K+accumulation. Combined treatment protects the plants by lowering proline and MDA content by 300% and 108% respectively. Our in-silico outcomes of the NaHS-SA pathway verify experimental results regarding modulation of salt stress response mechanisms depicts ideal picture of above-mentioned parameters during stress hence suggesting NaHS-SA mediated biofertilizers could strengthen genomic stability and maintenance capability under stress.