Caracteres fisiológicos e bioquímicos de Sorghum bicolor E Sorghum sudanense sob condições de salinidade

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate some physiological and biochemical variables of two species of sorghum subjected to different growing conditions and salinity. For this, two experiments were set up. In the first study, the variables in Sorghum bicolor and Sorghum sudanense were evaluated according different levels of salinity stress. In the second, the variables were studied in two distinct phases of development of two species of sorghum, to determine which one of these species are more resistant to the deleterious effects of salinity. In the first experiment, treatments were arranged in a 5 × 2 factorial, consisting of two species (S. bicolor and S. sudanense) and five treatments (NaCl at 0, 25, 50, 75 and 100 mM). In this experiment, the gas exchange parameters were little affected by salinity in both species. Plant growth of both species decreased as salinity increased. The osmotic potential (ψs) leaves was strongly reduced by salinity in these plants, which significantly increased the concentration of organic solutes in the two species of sorghum. The concentrations of Na+ and Cl- increased with salinity in both species. S. bicolor and S. sudanense maintained relative water content under saline conditions the same as the control. In sorghum species studied, the soluble carbohydrates and the ions K+ and Cl- were the main contributors to the osmotic adjustment of plants. In leaves of S. bicolor, there was an increase in activity of ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and guaiacol (GPX) and a reduction in activity of catalase (CAT), while superoxide dismutase (SOD) was not affected. In S. sudanense, the activity of GPX and SOD increased with increasing salinity. In roots, just SOD activity in S. bicolor were increased with salt stress. Ribonuclease activity in the leaves of both species increased with increasing doses of NaCl, whereas in roots it was reduced as the salt stress intensified. In the second experiment, treatments were arranged in a factorial 2 × 3 × 2, composed of two species (S. bicolor and S. sudanense), three concentrations of salts in irrigation water (electrical conductivities of 0.0, 4.0 and 8.0 dS m-1) and two periods of application of salt stress to plants [from sowing until 25 days later (Phase I) and from 25th to 50th day after sowing (Phase II)], with five repetitions. The main changes in gas exchange occurred in Phase II development. The salt stress reduced plant growth of sorghum in both phases of development, but this reduction was more pronounced in Phase I. The levels of organic solutes varied according to the phases of development, species and salinity. In Phase I, in both species of sorghum, there were increases in levels of Na+ and K+ and reduced Cl- by salinity, whereas in Phase II development, the levels of Na+ and K+ were reduced and Cl- extended, both in S. bicolor as in S. sudanense. In Phase I of development, only SOD in S. bicolor, and CAT in S. sudanense showed activity increases in response to salt stress. In the Phase II, no increase in the activity of antioxidant enzyme system was observed as a function of salinity in both species. In Phase I, the activity of RNase in both species was reduced by salinity, while in Phase II development, it was expanded. Plant growth of S. sudanense was slightly more affected than the S. bicolor. Sorghum species studied in this work were able to reduce the leaf ψs high concentrations of NaCl, which may have contributed to a better osmotic adjustment. In addition, under the conditions employed in the first experiment, S. bicolor appeared to have a more effective antioxidant system against the effects of salinity than S. sudanense. For the second experiment, the growth of sorghum plants was more affected when the salt stress was applied in the early stage of development. The oxidative stress caused by salinity seems to have been sufficient to stimulate the enzymatic antioxidant defense system in Phase II development in both species. Furthermore, increased activity RNase may indicate the role of this enzyme in protecting against the deleterious effects of salinity in these species of sorghum. Overall, there were no marked differences in plant tolerance between S. bicolor and S. sudanense under salinity.