Terezinha Rangel Camara

This study aimed to identify the antioxidant responses of sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) varieties subjected to water and saline stress. Sugarcane seedlings of six different varieties obtained through micropropagation were subjected to either water or saline stress, or a combination of water + saline stress. The study was carried out in May 2012, in a greenhouse at the Universidade Federal Rural de Pernambuco (UFRPE). The experimental design was randomized, with treatments arranged in a 6 × 4 factorial scheme (six varieties and four treatments), and four replicates. Lipid peroxidation, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) concentrations, and relative water content (RWC) were evaluated. Furthermore, we evaluated the plants’ antioxidative defense systems by measuring the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), and catalase (CAT). The sugarcane varieties had higher lipid peroxidation and/or higher H2O2 concentrations when subjected to the combined water + saline stress. The antioxidant enzymes responded to the water and saline stress treatments differently depending on the sugarcane variety. However, under combined saline + water stress conditions, the enzymes may have become inactivated, which indicates that the response to the combined water + saline stress was different from the sum of the responses to only water stress or only saline stress. High concentrations of malondialdehyde (MDA) associated with low RWC may be an effective indicator of multiple stress sensitivity in sugarcane varieties. The RB99395 and RB867515 sugarcane varieties responded more efficiently to environmental stress, and maintained their cell water content when subjected to either water or saline stress.

The influence of two aromatic cytokinins (CKs), 6-benzylaminopurine (BAP) and meta-topolin (mT), on in vitro propagation and redox metabolism of sugarcane (Saccharum spp., variety RB98710) was investigated. Plants were cultured in Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium supplemented with mT (5 µmol.L^-1) or BAP (5 or 6.66 µmol.L^-1) for 40 days. The use of mT provided an increase in the multiplication rate and stem length of plants and shoots when compared to BAP. Shoots generated from the mT treatment presented low malondialdehyde (MDA) content and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, although they had higher hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) content. Thus, the H₂O₂ did not act as a stress marker, but it is related to plant growth and development processes.

The aim of this study is to compare physiological development of Heliconia bihai cv. Lobster Claw Two plants derived from in vitro culture of zygotic embryos and conventional propagation. Heliconias obtained from rhizomes and from in vitro multiplication were evaluated every 30 days during ten months under greenhouse conditions. The experimental design was completely randomized, with ten repetitions, and the 2x10 factorial arrangement consisted of two plant multiplication methods and ten evaluations performed at different times. The analyzed biometric parameters were plant height, number of leaves, number of tillers, leaf area, and color intensity in the bracts. Plants derived from in vitro culture showed significant differences in the development of the evaluated physiological parameters in comparison to plants derived from rhizomes, and they also showed early flowering. Although the in vitro cultured plants were derived from zygotic embryos, no morphological changes were found in the vegetative and reproductive parts (inflorescence) of the plants or in the colorimetry. It shows that the in vitro cultures of zygotic embryos may be used as a technique to produce seedlings on a large-scale, thus allowing the floriculture sector to grow in the region and all over the country.

Irrigation with brackish water is common in the semiarid region of the Brazilian Northeast, potentiating the process of salinization of the soil in these areas. The hydroponic system stands out as an important strategy for crop management in semiarid regions, since crops show greater tolerance to the salt stress under hydroponic conditions, which minimize the effects of soil salinization. Thus, the objective of this work was to evaluate the effects of salt stress on the growth, fruit yield and mineral nutrition of sweet pepper in hydroponic system, using brackish water and coconut fiber substrate. The experiment was conducted in Recife, State of Pernambuco, Brazil (8°3'15''S, 34°52'53''W). A randomized block experimental design in a 5x2 factorial arrangement with five replications was used, consisting of five water salinity levels of the nutrient solution (2.0; 3.5; 4.5; 5.5 and 6.5 dS m^-1) and two sweet pepper cultivars (Bruno and Rubia). The increasing salinity level of the nutrient solution decreased the fruit yield of the cultivars evaluated, reduced the potassium, phosphorus and sulfur, and increased the sodium and chlorine contents in the leaf tissues. The Ca contents of the cultivar Bruno decreased with increasing salinity, and increased in the cultivar Rubia. The cultivar Rubia stood out with the highest fruit yield and ionic selectivity, accumulating high amounts of potassium and calcium and maintaining low Na and Cl contents. The fruit yield of the cultivar Rubia (39.9 t ha-¹) grown under solution with electrical conductivity of up to 3.5 dS m^-1, denotes the potential viability of growing this cultivar under hydroponic conditions.

The exposure of plants to multiple stress conditions can cause over production of reactive oxygen species promoting an imbalance in the redox system. The aim of this study was to examine the antioxidant response from varieties of sugarcane under adverse conditions, to understand the defense mechanisms of tolerant and sensitive genotypes. Micropropagated sugarcane of six genotypes, RB966928, RB98710, RB855453, RB99395, RB867515, and RB855156, were subjected to isolated action of high-temperature stress and a combination of water and saline stress, and effects were evaluated. Activities of enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and ascorbate peroxidase (APX), as well as stress indicators such as lipid peroxidation (MDA content) and hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) content were evaluated. The RB867515 variety showed synchrony between the enzymatic activity and ROS regulation and detoxification, in the plant cell under environmental stress situations, thereby ensuring the maintenance of the relative water content without increment of lipid peroxidation; and consequently, the maintenance of physiological processes and plant growth. These results indicated that lipid peroxidation associated with relative water content can be good biochemical markers of sensitivity to multiple stresses in sugarcane.

The objective of this work was to evaluate the biomass production and antioxidant enzymatic system activity of irrigated forage sorghum with saline aquaculture effluent under different leaching fractions. The experiment was conducted in the Caatinga Experimental Field of the Embrapa Semiarido, in Petrolina, State of Pernambuco, Brazil. The experimental design was a complete randomized block in a split-plot arrangement with four replications, consisting of three forage sorghum varieties (Volumax, F305 and Sudan) and four leaching fractions (0, 5, 10 and 15%). The vegetal materials were collected when the plants were at the soft-dough stage. The biomass production and activity of the enzymes superoxide dismutase, catalase and ascorbate peroxidase were evaluated. Irrigation with saline aquaculture effluent with leaching fraction of 15% results in low salinity level in the root zone and higher biomass production of forage sorghum Sudan and F305, in semiarid conditions. The antioxidant system was activated in the three sorghum varieties to prevent accumulation of reactive oxygen species, with the synchrony between the enzymes superoxide dismutase and catalase resulting in a better productive response of the varieties Sudan and F305.

La salinidad es uno de los principales factores de estrés ambiental, además de interferir en el crecimiento de las plantas perjudica directamente la producción agrícola. En ese contexto, se destaca la importancia de investigaciones direccionadas a la respuesta de las plantas sometidas al estrés salino, con el fin de evaluar el comportamiento fisiológico y bioquímico con el objetivo de seleccionar genotipos tolerantes a dicha condición. Una de las técnicas más utilizadas para uniformizar la respuesta de las plantas a una condición en particular es el cultivo de tejidos in vitro. Por lo tanto, el objetivo de este estudio fue evaluar la respuesta de dos variedades comerciales de caña de azúcar (RB931011 e RB872552) expuestas a estrés salino con NaCl (56 mM e 112 mM) en diferentes condiciones, gradual y abrupta. Las respuestas del sistema antioxidante enzimático (catalasa, peroxidasa y ascorbato peroxidasa) y prolina libre, asi como las concentraciones de Na+ e K+ fueron evaluadas 30 días después del inicio de los tratamientos. Fueron observadas diferencias en la respuesta de las variedades en función del modo de inducción del estrés salino, graduado o abrupto, y no solo en función de las concentraciones de NaCl en el medio de cultivo. La respuesta al estrés es condicionada no solo por la concentración de sal sino también por la forma de exposición al medio salino.

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of salt stress on production and antioxidative defense metabolism of two bell pepper cultivars (Capsicum annuum L.) grown hydroponically. The experimental design was in randomized blocks, with treatments arranged in a 5 x 2 factorial scheme with five replicates. The treatments consisted of five salinity levels of the nutrient solution (2.0, 3.5, 4.5, 5.5 and 6.5 dS m^-1) with two bell pepper cultivars, ‘Bruno’ and ‘Rúbia’. Biomass and yield were reduced with increasing salinity. The contents of chlorophyll a, b and total decreased with increasing salinity. There was an increase in proline content and activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT) and ascorbate peroxidase (APX), showing the activation of the antioxidant defense mechanism. The higher yield in the cv. ‘Rúbia’, as well as the greater activity of the APX and the lower levels of chlorophyll content, reflect the best acclimatization of this cultivar to saline stress. The estimated yield of the cv. ‘Rúbia’, 39.9 t ha^-1 when grown with ECs of up to 3.5 dS m^-1, indicates the feasibility of its commercial cultivation in hydroponic conditions.

In the northeastern region of Brazil, saline soils are constraints to banana production, becoming necessary to understand the mechanisms of salt tolerance. Two bananas genotypes, Tap Maeo, tolerant, and Berlin, sensitive, were subjected to treatment with 50 mol m-3 NaCl or without salt. This study evaluated the effects of salt on the following physiological aspects: leaf area, content and distribution of Na+, membrane integrity, proton AT Pase activity. Besides, a search for differentially expressed genes was performed using the Differential Display technique. Tap Maeo genotype showed the smallest reduction in leaf area, smaller accumulation of Na+ and malondialdehyde (MDA), and higher activity of proton AT Pase activity. Two sequences differentially expressed in the tolerant genotype, (Musa 07, Musa 23), shared a high degree of identity with the amino acid sequences of the genes SOS1 and SOS2, respectively. The clone Musa 10 was highly similar to amino acid sequence of the ascorbate peroxidase gene, and Musa 26, encodes the enzyme betaine aldehyde dehydrogenase. These significant biological markers indicate that salinity tolerance in banana involves at least two simultaneous mechanisms: the activation of the SOS pathway, increasing the extrusion of Na+, and the activation of antioxidative system, increasing the synthesis of APX and betaine aldehyde dehydrogenase enzyme.