PJB-2018-1671
Effects of hydrogen peroxide on seed germination, seedling growth and physiological characteristics of Bombax ceiba after heat shock
Yanling Zheng, Xinhua Yin and Huancheng Ma
Abstract
Bombax ceiba can grow in the dry-hot valley of southwestern China where adult trees produce many seeds, but few seedlings are found around the mature trees. Previous studies have shown that high temperature is a limiting factor for seed germination of B. ceiba. The effects of seed pretreatment with hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) on seed germination, seedling growth and physiological characteristics in seedlings were studied after seeds were heat shocked. After heat shock, germination percentage decreased for seeds without H2O2 treatment (untreated seeds) compared to the seeds that experienced no heat shock (control). Photosynthetic activity was decreased in the seedlings of untreated seeds, which was partially caused by the enhanced heat dissipation. Soluble sugar and proline did not play a role in osmoprotectance as they did not accumulate. Pretreatment of seeds with 80 mM of H2O2 improved seed germination rate and increased photosynthetic efficiency of seedlings relative to the no treatment on seeds, which might be related with the H2O2-induced activity of superoxide dismutase. However, pretreatment of seeds with a higher concentration of H2O2 at 120 mM accelerated chlorophyll degradation and photoinhibition in seedlings. In conclusion, seeds of B. ceiba can be primed with 80 mM of H2O2 to improve seedling survival under high temperature stress
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