Effects of Chitosan Spraying on Physiological Characteristics of Ferula flabelliloba (Apiaceae) Under Drought Stress

Document Type : Research Article

Author

• Gh Taheri

Neyshabur Branch, Islamic Azad University

10.22067/gsc.v13i4.32342

Abstract

Introduction
Ferula flabelliloba Rech. F. & Aell., (Apiaceae), a perennial plant with medicinal value, is one of important soil protective grown in Binalood mountains. Decreased precipitation in the previous years caused plants subjected to drought stress condition. Drought stress limits the growth and productivity of plants more than any other environmental factors. Drought stress can alter plant light absorption and consumption processes and increases production of reactive oxygen species (ROS). ROS is responsible for lipid peroxidation and associated injury to membranes, nucleic acids, proteins and enzymes. To detoxify ROS, plants develop different types of antioxidants to reduce oxidative damage and confer drought tolerance. ROS scavengers are either non- enzymatic (ascorbate, glutathione, flavonoids, alkaloids, carotenoids and phenolic compound) or enzymatic containing superoxide dismutase, catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, and glutathione reductase. The activity of these antioxidants and enzymes allows short-term acclimation to temporary water deficit, but these biochemicals cannot overcome the effects of extreme or prolonged drought.
Chitosan is a natural biopolymer formed by low alkaline deacetylation of chitin, an important component of the exoskeletons of crustaceans such as crab, crawfish and shrimp. Chitosan can affect plant physiology and gene expression, hence these materials can increase the plant resistant to many unfavorable environmental condition. The biological properties of chitosan have led to use it for various purposes. Chitosan has been used as plant protectant against fungi, bacteria and viruses, to improve soil fertility and to stimulate plant defense system. Thus, it seems that chitosan is a promising material for improving plant growth, especially under drought stress conditions where water deficit limits plant growth and establishment. In the present study, the effects of chitosan as foliar spraying of F. flabelliloba with different concentrations were investigated. The main objective of this study was to examine the potential benefits of chitosan by reducing damage to F. flabelliloba at the seedling stages under water-deficit conditions.
Materials and Methods
In order to evaluate the effects of chitosan spraying and drought stress on physiological characteristics of F. felabelliloba, a factorial experiment in a completely randomized design with three replications was conducted in laboratory. The experimental treatments included drought stress (irrigated in Field capacity, depletion of soil water content up to 35% and 65% of FC condition) and foliar chitosan spray (Zero, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6 and 0.8 mg l-1).
Seeds of F. flabelliloba were harvested in June-July of 2012 from natural habitat in Binalood mountain and kept in laboratory condition until the study started. F. flabelliloba seeds were germinated and grown in soils at light/dark temperature cycle of 20-16 degree centigrade and photoperiod of 16-8 h. Irrigation treatments were performed after 20 days, when seedling established and chitosan sprayed simultaneous and repeated one month later.
The shoot from 60-day-old plants were taken and used for analysis the physiological parameters. Shoot dry weight was measured in oven at 70 ºC for 24 hours. Enzyme activity was determined from the extract prepared according to the method of Sairam and Saxena (2000). Catalase and Peroxidase activities were determined according to Weydert and Cullen (2010) and Superoxide dismutase activity assayed as described by Beauchamp and Fridovich (1971). Lipid peroxidation was estimated by measuring spectrophotometrically malondialdehyde (MDA) content of plant based on Jiang and Hung (2001). Total phenolic content was determined according to Ebrahimzadeh and Bahramian (2009). Data from the experiment was analyzed using SPSS ver. 17 and MSTAT-C software and mean comparison was carried out using Duncan´s multiple range test at the 95% of probability.


Results and Discussion
Results showed that shoot dry weight of the plants maintained under depletion of soil water content up to 65% of FC decreased and total phenolic content, Malondialdehyde (MDA) concentration, the activity of Superoxide Dismutase (SOD) and Catalase (CAT) increased. The highest shoot dry weight was obtained in plants treated with 0.4 mg l-1 chitosan. The highest phenolic content, CAT and SOD activity were obtained in plants subtended in depletion of soil water content up to 65% of FC and sprayed with 0.6 and 0.8 mg l-1 chitosan.
Defensive mechanisms against oxidative damage related with drought stress, including production of antioxidative enzymes can be increased by exogenous application of chitosan. Chitosan may have had the beneficial effects on plant growth under water deficit stress condition, often by anti-transparent and causing the closure of stomata which conserves water. The lower amount of MDA in plants sprayed with chitosan, whether under well-watered or drought conditions, suggests that chitosan protects against oxidative damage. Moreover, our study demonstrates that application of chitosan to 0.6 mg l-1, increased total phenolic content in F. flabelliloba leaf tissue, and decreased the lipid peroxidation. The decrease in shoot dry weight against drought stress in the F. flabelliloba plants sprayed with 0.8 mg l-1 of chitosan, might be result of factors that occurred alone or in combination. High rates of chitosan can reduce plant growth by decreasing photosynthesis and the rates of some biochemical processes.
Conclusions
The Results of this study indicated that chitosan sprayed under drought condition could stimulate enzymatic and non-enzymatic anti-oxidative defence system of F. flabelliloba and decreased oxidative damage in water stress condition. According to the result, it can be concluded that chitosan foliar spraying can decrease harmful effects of drought stress and can be used as a plant growth enhancer for F. Flabelliloba.

Keywords

• Anti-oxidant
• Enzyme
• Irrigation
• Phenol
• Vegetative growth

20.1001.1.20081472.1394.13.4.7.3

---

References

1. Abdalla, M. M. 2011. Beneficial effects of diatomite on the growth, the biochemical contents and polymorphic DNA in Lupinus albus plants grown under water stress. Agriculture & Biology Journal of North America 2: 207- 220.

2. Agarwal, S., Sairam, R. K., Srivatava, G. C., and Meena, R. C. 2005. Changes in antioxidant enzymes activity and oxidative stress by abscisic acid and salicylic acid in wheat genotypes. Biologia Plantarum 49 (4): 541- 550.

3. Amudha, J., and Balasubramani, G. 2010. Recent molecular advances to combat abiotic stress tolerance in crop plants. Biotechnology and Molecular Biology Review 6 (2): 31-58.

4. Beauchamp, C., and Fridovich, I. 1971. Superoxide dismutase: improved assays and an assay applicable to acrylamide gels. Annual Journal of Biochemistry 44: 276-287.

5. Ben-Shalom, N., Ardi, R., Pinto, R., Aki, C., and Fallik, E. 2003. Controlling gray mold caused by Botrytis cinerea in cucumber plants by means of chitosan. Crop Protection 22: 285-290.

6. Bittelli, M., Flury, M., Campbell, G. S., and Nichols, E. J. 2001. Reduction of transpiration through foliar application of chitosan. Agricultural Forest Meteorology 107: 167-175.

7. Boonlertinirun, S., Chaweewan, B., and Suvanasara, R. 2008. Application of chitosan in rice production. Journal of Metals, Materials and Minerals 18 (2): 47-52.

8. Chamberlain, D. F., and Rechinger, K. H. 1987. Ferula L. In: Flora Iranica, Umbelliferae. (eds.) Hedg I. C., Lamond J. M. and Rechinger, K. H.) 162: 387-426. Akademische Druck- und Verlagsanstalt, Graz.

9. Chen, H. P., and Xu, L. L. 2005. Progress of study on chitosan in regulating plant’s growth and eliciting plant’s defense responses. Acta Botanica Yunnanica 27 (6): 613-619.

10. Demirevska, K., Zasheva, D., Dimitrov, R., Simova-Stoilova, L., Stamenova, M., and Feller, U. 2009. Drought stress effects on Rubisco in wheat: changes in the Rubisco large subunit. Acta Physiolical Plantarum 31: 1129-1138.

11. Ebrahimzadeh, M. A., and Bahramian, F. 2009. Antioxidant activity of Crataegus pentagina subsp. elbursis fruits extracts used in traditional medicine in Iran. Pakistan Journal of Biological Sciences 12 (5): 413- 419.

12. Fawzy, Z. F., El-Shal, Z. S., Yunsheng, L., Ouyang, Z., and Omaima, M. S. 2012. Response of garlic (Allium Sativum L.) plants to foliar spraying of some bio-stimulants under sandy soil condition. Journal of Applied Sciences Research 8 (2): 770-776.

13. Gupta, A., and Kaur, N. 2005. Sugar signaling and gene expression in relation to carbohydrate metabolism under abiotic stress in plant. Journal of Bioscience 30: 761-776.

14. Hernandez-Munoz, P., Almenar, E., Del Valle, V., Velez, D., and Gavara, R. 2008. Effect of chitosan coating combined with postharvest calcium treatment on strawberry (Fragari X ananassa) quality during refrigerated storage. Food Chemistry 110: 428-435.

15. Iriti, M., and Faoro, F. 2009. Chitosan as a MAMP, searching for a PRR. Plant Signal Behaviors 4 (1): 66-68.

16. Jiang, Y., and Hung, B. 2001. Drought and heat stress injury to two cool-season turf grasses in relation to antioxidant metabolism lipid peroxidaion. Crop Science 41: 436-442.

17. Kiddle, G. 2004. The role of ascorbate in plant defense and development. Bristol, UK: University of Bristol.

18. Mahdavi, B., Modarres Sanavy, S. A. M., Aghaalikhani, M., Sharifi, M., and Alavi Asl, S. A. 2014. Effect of Foliar Application of chitosan on growth and biochemical characteristics of Safflower (Carthamus tinctorius L.) under water deficit stress. Iranian Journal of Field Crops Research 12 (2): 229-236. (in Persian with English summary).

19. Makkar, H. P. S., Singh, B., and Dawra, R. K. 1988. Effect of tannin-rich leaves of oak (Quercus incana) on various microbial enzyme activities of the bovine rumen. British Journal of Nutrition 60 (2): 287-296.

20. Mondal, M. M., Malek, M. A., Puteh, A. B., Ismail, M. R., and Ashrafuzzaman, M. 2012. Effect of foliar application of chitosan on growth and yield in okra. Australian Journal of Crop Science 6 (5): 918-921.

21. Morello, J. R., Romero, M. P., Ramo, T., and Motilva, M. J. 2005. Evaluation of L-phenylalanine ammonialyase activity and phenolic profile in olive drupe (Olea europaea L.) from fruit setting period to harvesting time. Plant Science 168: 65-72.

22. Rinaudo, M. 2006. Chitin and chitosan: properties and applications. Progress in Polymer Science 31 (7): 603-632.

23. Sairam, R. K., and Saxena, D. C. 2000. Oxidative stress and antioxidants in wheat genotypes: possible mechanism of water stress tolerance. Journal of Agronomy and Crop Science 184: 55-61.

24. Thomas, F. M., and Schafellner, C. 1999. Effects of excess nitrogen and drought on the foliar concentrations of allelochemicals in young oaks (Quercus robur L. and Q. petraea [Matt.]. Liebl. Journal of Applied Botany 73: 222-227.

25. Uthairatanakij, A., Teixeira, J. A., and Obsuwan, K. 2007. Chitosan for improving Orchid production and quality. Science 1: 1- 5.

26. Vurayai, R., Emongor, V., and Moseki, B. 2011. Effect of water stress imposed at different growth and development stages on morphological traits and yield of bambara groundnuts (Vigna subterranean (L.) Verde). American Journal of Plant Physiology 6 (1): 17- 27.

27. Waseem, S., Hamid, M., Ishrat, N., Waqas, K. K., Haroon, A., Saqib, H., and Atif, K. 2010. Pharmacognostical study of the medicinal plant Calendula officinalis L. (Family Compositae). International Journal of Cell & Molecular Biology 1 (2): 108-116.

28. Weydert, C. J., and Cullen, J. J. 2010. Measurement of superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase in cultured cells and tissue. Natural Protocol 5 (1): 51-66.

29. Wojdyla, A. T. 2004. Chitosan (biochikol 020 PC) in the control of some ornamental foliage diseases. Communications in Agricultural and Applied Biological Sciences 69: 705-715.

30. Yang Feng, H., Li, J., Wu, J., and Yurong, X. Q. 2009. Chitosan enhances leaf membrane stability and antioxidant enzyme activities in apple seedlings under drought stress. Plant Growth Regulation 58: 131-136.

31. Zeng, D., and Luo, X. 2012. Physiological effects of chitosan coating on wheat growth and activities of protective enzyme with drought tolerance. Journal of Soil Science 2 (3): 282-288.

32. Zhili, J., Yong, L., Juanjuan, L., Xu, X., Li, H., Lu, D., and Jingying, W. 2012. Effects of exogenous chitosan on physiological characteristics of potato seedlings under drought stress and rehydration. Potato Research 55: 293-301.