Nano-selenium regulates the sugar metabolism in pea (Pisum sativum L.) sprouts
Wentong Xue, Kang Yu-fan, Canping Pan, Tingting Hu, Miao Yu, Ya‐Yun Chen, Shu Jie Zhang
Abstract
Selenium, a beneficial trace element, plays a vital role in plant growth. In this study, the effects of nano-selenium on pea ( Pisum sativum L.) germination were characterized. Nano-selenium application led to decreases in starch, crude fiber, and soluble polysaccharide contents, but a significant increase in total soluble sugar content. The most prominent changes in sugars occurred 96 h after germination commenced. The nano-selenium treatment significantly increased glucose content in roots, slightly decreased fructose content in the hypocotyl, and increased fructose content in roots and seed. Oligosaccharide content was higher in seed than in the hypocotyl and roots, with sucrose being the highest, followed by maltose. The transcriptome analysis of pea tissues at different stages of germination detected 56 differentially expressed genes related to sugar metabolism. The verification of expression of five selected key genes by qRT-PCR showed the hexokinase (HK) gene had the highest relative expression in the tissues of pea sprouts. There were significant differences in gene expression in the pea sprouts cultured with nano-selenium compared with the control group. Nano-selenium promoted the expression of genes associated with sugar metabolism in roots and seeds, promoted the synthesis of soluble sugars in the sprouts, accelerated the amylolysis, and inhibited cellulose synthesis.