Effects of acclimation and pretreatment with abscisic acid or salicylic acid on tolerance of Trigonobalanus doichangensis to extreme temperatures

• Published in: Biologia plantarum Vol. 59; no. 2; pp. 382 - 388
• Main Authors: Zheng, Y. L, Li, W. Q, Sun, W. B
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer-Verlag 01-06-2015; Springer Netherlands; Institute of Experimental Botany of the Czech Academy of Sciences
• Subjects: abscisic acid; acclimation; acid tolerance; Biomedical and Life Sciences; cold; cold stress; electrical conductivity; fluorescence; freezing; heat; heat shock response; heat stress; heat tolerance; Life Sciences; malondialdehyde; Original Papers; photosystem II; plant hormones; Plant Sciences; proline; salicylic acid; seedlings; semilethal temperature; sugars; temperature; heat stress; semilethal temperature; cold stress; plant hormones
• ISSN: 0006-3134; 1573-8264
• DOI: 10.1007/s10535-015-0488-z

The effects of acclimation to cold (4 °C) and heat (36/38/40 °C) on corresponding freezing and heat tolerances of one-year-old Trigonobalanus doichangensis seedlings were studied. In addition, the effects of abscisic acid (ABA) and salicylic acid (SA) pretreatments on the tolerance of this species to temperature extremes were tested. The results show that the content of soluble sugars increased with the duration of acclimation to cold (4 °C), and the relative electrical conductivity and malondialdehyde content increased significantly after 7 d; however, the content of proline did not vary significantly. After acclimation to cold for 3 and 7 d, the semilethal low temperature (LLT₅₀) was 0.8 and 1.1 °C lower, respectively, compared with that of the control. The maximum quantum yield of photosystem II (measured as variable to maximum fluorescence ratio, Fᵥ/Fₘ) decreased significantly after freezing treatments (−4 to −8 °C), however, less when the plants were pretreated with 1–100 mg dm⁻³ABA. Acclimation to heat did not increase the semilethal high temperature (LHT₅₀). A low concentration (1 mg dm⁻³) of SA increased LHT₅₀, but medium and high concentrations (10 and 100 mg dm⁻³) decreased it. Fᵥ/Fₘdecreased significantly after a heat shock (45–54 °C). The pretreatment with 1–50 mg dm⁻³SA ameliorated a subsequent heat (48 °C) stress.