Muhammad Riaz

Boron alleviates the aluminum toxicity in trifoliate orange by regulating antioxidant defense system and reducing root cell injury

Aluminium (Al) toxicity is the most important soil constraint for plant growth and development in acid soils (pHxa0<xa05.5) globally in agricultural regions. Boron (B) is an essential micronutrient for the growth and development of higher plants. The results of previous studies propose that B might ameliorate Al toxicity; however, none of the studies have been conducted on trifoliate orange to study this effect. Thus, a study was carried out in hydroponics comprising of two different Al concentrations, 0 and 400xa0μM. For every concentration, two B treatments (0 and 10xa0μM as H3BO3) were applied to investigate the B-induced alleviation of Al toxicity and exploring the underneath mechanisms. The results revealed that Al toxicity under B deficiency severely hampered the root growth and physiology of plant, caused oxidative stress and membrane damage, leading to severe root injury and damage. However, application of B under Al toxicity improved the root elongation and photosynthesis, while reduced Al uptake and mobilization into plant parts. Moreover, B supply regulated the activities of antioxidant enzymes, proline, secondary metabolites (phenylalanine ammonia lyase and polyphenol oxidase) contents, and stabilized integrity of proteins. Our study results imply that B supply promoted root growth as well as defense system by reducing reactive oxygen species (ROS) and Al concentrations in plant parts thus B induced alleviation of Al toxicity; a fact that might be significant for higher productivity of agricultural plants grown in acidic conditions.

Boron Deficiency in Trifoliate Orange Induces Changes in Pectin Composition and Architecture of Components in Root Cell Walls

Boron (B) is a micronutrient indispensable for citrus and B deficiency causes a considerable loss of productivity and quality in China. However, studies on pectin composition and architecture of cell wall components in trifoliate orange roots under B deficiency condition are not sufficient. In this study, we investigated the alteration in pectin characteristics and the architecture of cell wall components in trifoliate orange [Poncirus trifoliata (L.) Raf.] roots under B starvation. The results showed that B-deficient roots resulted in a significant enlargement of root tips and an obvious decrease in cell wall B and uronic acid content in Na2CO3-soluble pectin compared with B-adequate roots. Meanwhile, they showed a decrease of 2-keto-3-deoxyoctanoic acid in CDTA-soluble and Na2CO3-soluble pectin in cell walls, while the degree of methylation (DM) of CDTA-soluble pectin was significantly increased under B deficiency. Transmission electron microscope (TEM) micrographs of B deficient plants showed a distinct thickening of the cell walls, with the thickness 1.82 times greater than that of control plant roots. The results from Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) showed that B deficiency changed the mode of hydrogen bonding between protein and carbohydrates (cellulose and hemicellulose). The FTIR spectra exhibited a destroyed protein structure and accumulation of wax and cellulose in the cell walls under B starvation. The 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (13C-NMR) spectra showed that B starvation changed the organic carbon structure of cell walls, and enhanced the contents of amino acid, cellulose, phenols, and lignin in the cell wall. The results reveal that the swelling and weakened structural integrity of cell walls, which induced by alteration on the network of pectin and cell wall components and structure in B-deficient roots, could be a major cause of occurrence of the rapid interruption of growth and significantly enlarged root tips in trifoliate orange roots under B-insufficient condition.

Boron reduces aluminum-induced growth inhibition, oxidative damage and alterations in the cell wall components in the roots of trifoliate orange

Aluminum (Al) toxicity is a major restriction for crops production on acidic soils. The primary symptom of aluminum toxicity is visible in the roots of plants. Recently, several studies reported the alleviation of Al toxicity by the application of Boron (B), however, the information how B alleviates Al toxicity is not well understood. Thus, we investigated the ameliorative response of B on Al-induced growth inhibition, oxidative damages, and variations in the cell wall components in trifoliate orange roots. The results indicated that plants under Al stress experienced a substantial decrement in root length and overall plant growth. The supply of B improved the root elongation by eliminating oxidative stress, membrane peroxidation, membrane leakage, and cell death produced under Al toxicity. Moreover, accumulation of Al on the cell wall and alteration in the cell wall components might be one of the causes resulting in the quick inhibition of root elongation under B-starvation circumstances by providing susceptible negative charges on pectin matrix for binding of Al. The results provide a useful understanding of the insight into mechanisms of B-induced mitigation of Al toxicity especially in the trifoliate orange that might be helpful in the production of crops on acidic soils.

Interaction of boron and aluminum on the physiological characteristics of rape (Brassica napus L.) seedlings

It has been reported that aluminum (Al) toxicity is a major limiting factor for plant growth and production on acidic soils. Boron (B) is indispensable micronutrient for normal growth of higher plants, and its addition could alleviate Al toxicity. The rape seedlings were grown under three B (0.25, 25 and 500xa0μM) and two Al concentrations [0 (−Al) and 100xa0μM (+Al) as AlCl3·6H2O]. The results indicated that Al stress severely hampered root elongation and root activity at 0.25xa0μM B while the normal (25xa0μM) and excess (500xa0μM) B improved the biomass of rape seedlings under Al exposure. Additionally, normal and excess B treatment reduced accumulation of Al in the roots and leaves under Al toxicity, which was also confirmed by hematoxylin with light staining. This indicates that both normal and excess B could alleviate Al toxicity. Furthermore, it also decreased the contents of malondialdehyde and soluble protein under Al toxicity. Likewise, superoxide dismutase activity (SOD) improved by 97.82 and 131.96% in the roots, and 168 and 119.88% in the leaves at 25 and 500xa0µM B, respectively, while the peroxidase and catalase activities dropped as a result of Al stress. The study results demonstrated that appropriate B application is necessary to avoid the harmful consequences of Al toxicity in rape seedlings.

Ameliorative effects of boron on aluminum induced variations of cell wall cellulose and pectin components in trifoliate orange (Poncirus trifoliate (L.) Raf.) rootstock

Aluminum (Al) phytotoxicity is a major limitation in the production of crops in the soils with pHu202f≤u202f5. Boron (B) is indispensable nutrient for the development of higher plants and B role has been reported in the alleviation Al toxicity. Trifoliate orange rootstock was grown in two B and two Al concentrations. The results of the present study showed that Al toxicity adversely inhibited root elongation and exhibited higher oxidative stress in terms of H2O2 and O2- under B-deficiency. Additionally, the X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis confirmed the increase of the cellulose crystallinity in the cell wall (CW). Al-induced remarkable variations in the CW components were prominent in terms of alkali-soluble pectin, 2-keto-3-deoxyoctonic acid (KDO) and the degree of methyl-esterification (DME) of pectin. Interesting, B supply reduced the pectin (alkali-soluble) under Al toxicity. Moreover, the results of FTIR (Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy) and 13C-NMR (13C nuclear magnetic resonance) spectra revealed the decrease of carboxyl groups and cellulose by B application during Al exposure. Furthermore, B supply tended to decrease the Al uptake, CW thickness and callose formation. The study concluded that B could mitigate Al phytotoxicity by shielding potential Al binding sites and by reducing Al induced alterations in the CW cellulose and pectin components.

Assessing the potential of biochar and aged biochar to alleviate aluminum toxicity in an acid soil for achieving cabbage productivity

Biochar has a significant effect on alleviating acid soil aluminum (Al) toxicity and promoting plant growth. The potential effects of aged biochar (long-term applied biochar in soil) on soil amendment have attracted increasing attention. Here, the effects of biochar and aged biochar were evaluated through a pot experiment. The seedlings of cabbage were grown in red soil for 45 days with the following four biochar treatments: CK (0% biochar), PB (2% primary biochar), WB (2% water washed biochar) and AB (2% acidulated biochar) to investigate the potential effect of biochar and aged biochar on mitigating red soil aluminum toxicity and improving cabbage growth. Results indicated that biochar increased the content of available potassium, available phosphorus, and organic carbon in red soil and improved cabbage growth. Biochar not only increased the pH of red soil by 0.42 units, but also reduced exchangeable acid and exchangeable hydrogen (H+) content by 52.74% and 2.86% respectively compared with CK. Additionally, the amount of the total active aluminum and exchangeable Al3+ were reduced by 26.74% and 66.09%, respectively. However, water washed biochar and acidulated biochar decreased the effect of relieving the acidity substantially as compared to the primary biochar. Moreover, acidulated biochar treatment increased the Al3+ content by 8.07% and trend of increasing soil available nutrients was declined with aged biochar. Taken together, it is concluded that biochar can reduce aluminum toxicity by increasing pH of acid soil and available nutrients, thus improves cabbage growth. However, aged biochar had a negative effect on aluminum toxicity reduction and acidic soil improvement, thus inhibited plant growth.

Boron supply alleviates Al-induced inhibition of root elongation and physiological characteristics in rapeseed (Brassica napus L.)

ABSTRACT Aluminum (Al) toxicity is one of the major problems affecting crop production. Boron (B) is an essential micronutrient for higher plants. In the present study, we investigated the alleviation of Al-induced inhibition of root growth and physiological characteristics by B in rapeseed. The rapeseeds were grown in different Al concentrations (0 and 300u2005μM), and for every concentration, two B treatments (2.5 and 25u2005µM as H3BO3) were applied. The results showed that Al toxicity under low B drastically inhibited root growth. The supply of B improved root length, photosynthesis, root activity, total chlorophyll by 60.15%, 104.7%, 102%, and 106.3%, respectively under Al toxicity. This further resulted in improvement of peroxidase, catalase, and ascorbate peroxidase activities while decreasing malondialdehyde, H2O2, and Al contents in roots and leaves. It might be supposed that B alleviates Al toxicity by less mobilization of Al in plant parts and through improving antioxidant enzyme activities.

Metabolic changes in roots of trifoliate orange [Poncirus trifoliate (L.) Raf.] as induced by different treatments of boron deficiency and resupply

Background and aimsBoron (B) deficiency is one of the major abiotic stresses to citrus. Trifoliate orange, as the most important citrus rootstock in China, is sensitive to B deficiency. B deficiency has serious negative effects on metabolic processes in roots, but whether the hazardous effects can be alleviated to some degree with B resupply remains unclear. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of B resupply on metabolites and metabolic pathway in B-starved trifoliate orange [Poncirus trifoliate (L.) Raf.] roots.MethodsGas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used to analyze the metabolic profiles in roots under different treatments of B deprivation and B resupply.ResultsB deficiency induced an obvious enlargement of root tips and significant alterations in metabolites. Changes were also observed in basic or neutral amino acids, several organic acids and carbohydrates of B-starved roots. However, one week of B resupply quickly reversed the changes in the roots with the initiation of new roots across the inflated root tips, and the restored some of metabolites to a normal level, such as proline (Pro), linoleic acid, 6-deoxy-D-glucose and myo-inositol, indicating that these metabolites are very sensitive to B availability.ConclusionsThe data suggest that B resupply may contribute to the obvious, although not full, recovery of the root growth by reversing the central metabolite changes. This study provides a new insight into the relationship between root growth and the alteration on metabolites induced by B deficiency and B resupply, which can be expected to make an important contribution to the scientific application of B fertilizer.

Leaf structure and chemical compositions are correlated with cotton boron efficiency

ABSTRACT In this study, in order to investigate the boron (B) efficiency and response to changes in leaves structure and chemical compositions correlated with B efficiency, two different cotton genotypes including genotype 103 and genotype 122 were treated by B-deficiency (0 mg L−1) or moderate B (0.2 mg L−1). All the seedlings were grown in hydroponics situation with modified Hoagland and Arnon solution under greenhouse conditions for 6 weeks. The changes in chemical compositions and cell structure of leaves as a consequence of B deficiency were revealed by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), 13C nuclear magnetic resonance (13C-NMR) and transmission electron microscope (TEM). The results showed that the leaves of genotype 122 appeared crinkled and prolapsed having more obvious symptoms than genotype 103. Besides, the dry mass of every part was higher while B concentration was lower in genotype 103, indicating that genotype 103 was much tolerant to low B, which was related to higher B utilization efficiency of genotype 103 under B-deprived condition. In addition, B deficiency stunted the synthesis of proteins, carbohydrates, cellulose and lignin, which is noticed more seriously in leaves of genotype 122, and the structure and integrity of cells were significantly destroyed by B starvation. These results indicated that genotype 103 had higher B efficiency than genotype 122, and the changes in the chemical composition and cell structure might be either specific or adaptive responses to B efficiency.

Boron inhibits aluminum-induced toxicity to citrus by stimulating antioxidant enzyme activity

Abstract Aluminum (Al) toxicity is a major factor limiting plant productivity. The objective of the present study was to develop the mechanisms of boron (B) alleviating aluminum toxicity in citrus. The results showed that aluminum toxicity severely hampered root elongation. Interestingly, under aluminum exposure, boron supply improved superoxide dismutase activity while reducing peroxidase, catalase and polyphenol oxidase activities. Likewise, the contents of H2O2, lipid peroxidation, protein and proline in roots were markedly decreased by boron application under aluminum exposure. Our results demonstrated that boron could alleviate aluminum toxicity by regulating antioxidant enzyme activities in the roots.