108(2)_str 15

ISSN 1392-3196 / e-ISSN 2335-8947
Zemdirbyste-Agriculture, vol. 108, No. 2 (2021), p. 117–124
DOI 10.13080/z-a.2021.108.015

Impacts of itaconic acid on the physiological traits of crop seedlings

Yaling LU, Xuewen LI, Wan WANG, Shunnian LI, Yafei ZHANG, Liuyang XUAN, Pingfang TIAN

Abstract

Itaconic acid (IA) is an economically important platform chemical, which finds wide applications in chemical industry and agriculture. This study attempted to ascertain the influence of IA on crop seedlings. Four crops including maize, cucumber, sorghum and wheat were grown in hydroponics containing Hoagland’s nutrient solution and one of serially diluted IA. The biomass, the activities of antioxidant enzymes and the content of chlorophyll and malondialdehyde (MDA) in seedlings were investigated. Results showed that low concentration of IA (≤200 mgL^-1) benefited crop growth and alleviated oxidative stress, as it not only improved biomass, leaf area, chlorophyll content, the activities of catalase (CAT) and peroxidase (POD), but also reduced the formation of MDA and the activities of ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and superoxide dismutase (SOD). IA exerted different physiological and antioxidant influences on crops. The physiological impacts of IA on crops in descending order are cucumber > wheat > maize > sorghum. Overall, IA stimulated crop growth through affecting biochemical components such as antioxidant enzymes and chlorophyll. This study provides the basis for future use of IA as a fertilizer.

Key words: itaconic acid, crop seedlings, antioxidant enzymes, physiological impacts.

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