Research Article
Khodayar Hemmati; Bakhtiyar Ardavanpour; Mina Ghazaeian; Vahid Akbarpour
Abstract
Introduction: Essential oils make up a large part of aromatic substances in plants. Generally, essential oils are considered as remnants of main processes of plants metabolism, especially in stressful conditions. Summer savory (Satureja hortensis L.) is one of the most important plants in Lamiaceae family, ...
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Introduction: Essential oils make up a large part of aromatic substances in plants. Generally, essential oils are considered as remnants of main processes of plants metabolism, especially in stressful conditions. Summer savory (Satureja hortensis L.) is one of the most important plants in Lamiaceae family, which it’s more than 30 species grown in the East Mediterranean. It is one of the oldest plants that have been used as vegetables and medicinal and aromatic plants. Dried summer savory has been introduced as one of the most pleasant spices that are planting in large areas of farmland in many countries. Generally, the aerial parts of it, that is usually harvested at flowering stage, has therapeutic effects such as facilitating digestion, stomach tonic, diuretic, astringent, carminative, anti-diarrhea and anti-worm. Summer savory essential oil is used in food (conserves and beverages) and pharmaceutical industries. Various studies on S. hortensis essential oil has been showed that it contains high amounts of phenolic compounds such as Carvacrol, γ-Terpinene, Thymol, p-Cymene, β-Caryophyllene, Linalool and other terpenoids.
Organic fertilizers have been known to improve the biodiversity and may prove a large depository for excess carbon dioxide. These fertilizers increase the number of soil organisms by providing organic matter and micronutrients for organisms such as fungal mycorrhizae, (which aid plants in absorbing nutrients), and can drastically reduce external inputs of pesticides, energy and fertilizer, at the cost of decreased yield. Nevertheless they are as effective as chemical fertilizers over longer periods of use.
The aim of this project was to study the effects of different organic matters on vegetative and reproductive growth and percentage and components of essential oil in three Satureja ecotypes in Gorgan, Golestan, Iran climate.
Materials and Methods: This study was designed as a factorial experiment based on Randomized Complete Block design with four replications and done in research farm of Agriculture and Natural Resource, University of Gorgan in 2010. Treatments were cattle manure, municipal solid waste, leaves compost, the mixture of them and control. Three ecotypes of summer savory studied in this experiment were Kordestan, Shiraz and Yazd.
The plants were harvested at full flowering stage, when they have the highest essential oil and were dried in oven at 45 °C. The essential oils of dried samples were isolated by hydro distillation for 3 h, using a Clevenger-type apparatus.
Statistical analysis was performed by SAS software and the mean comparison were measures by using Duncan tests at 5% level of probability.
Results and Discussion: The analysis of variance showed that media had significant effect on yield components in summer savory. There were no significant differences between ecotypes and media*ecotype effect on some parameters of yield components. The cattle manure showed positive effects on bush height in this experiment. Hendawy et al (2010) showed that the application of cattle manure and sheep manure had reached significantly the 5% level of plant height and essential oils percentages. They concluded that sheep manure have macro and micro nutrients which provide thyme plants with their requirements from these elements. Essential oil percentage also, tended to increase with application of organic fertilizers either cattle manure, sheep manure or compost. Khalil (2002) showed the effect of two kind of organic fertilizers on Rosmarinus officinalis and Jasminum spp growth parameters and yield components. In this experiment organic manure treatments showed increasing in plant fresh and dry weight. This could be related to positive effect of organic manure on soil texture and fertility. Ahmadian et al. (2006) showed that the animal manure significantly enhanced the number of umbers per plant, the number of seed per plant, the biological and seed yield in Cuminum cyminum. Animal manure significantly enhanced cumin aldehyde and r-cymene and decreased b-pinene, g-terpinene and a-pinene in cumin oil.
Due to the results, treatments had no significant effects on essential oil percentages, but were effective on essential oil components. Hussein et al. (2006) showed that compost levels combined with different distances had a pronounced effect on the various essential oil constituents in Dracocephalum moldavica. In this experiment, Although Shiraz ecotype showed the maximum essential oil percentage (1.2 percent) but there was no significant differences between ecotypes. Among essential oil components, the maximum percentages of Carvacrol achieved in mixture media and Yazd ecotype. Control treatment showed the highest amount of γ- terpinen and paracymene in compare to other media. Shiraz and Kordestan showed also, the highest percentages of γ- terpinen and paracymene, respectively. Plants in mixture media had maximum levels of Carvacrol (74.69 percent). Between ecotypes, Yazd had maximum Carvacrol percentages. Between media, Control treatment was maximum contents of γ –terpinen (5.48) and paracymene (1.76) and other treatments had reduction effects on essential oil components. Between ecotypes, the highest γ-terpinen percentage (5/79) was in Shiraz ecotype and the highest p-cymene percentage (1/69) was in kordistan ecotype.
Conclusion: Therefore, by considering the fertilization of savory plants with different organic manure fertilizers in the form of compost that are economic in each region is recommended.
Research Article
Mohammad Hossein Sheikh Mohammadi; Nematollah Etemadi; Ali Nikbakht; Mostafa Arab; Mohammad Mehdi Majidi
Abstract
Introduction: Drought and salinity are the most detrimental abiotic stresses for turfgrass growth across a wide range of geographic locations. Most cool season grass species are not well adapted to extended periods of drought and salinity stress. The decline in turf quality caused by drought and salinity ...
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Introduction: Drought and salinity are the most detrimental abiotic stresses for turfgrass growth across a wide range of geographic locations. Most cool season grass species are not well adapted to extended periods of drought and salinity stress. The decline in turf quality caused by drought and salinity stresses is a major concern in turfgrass cultivation and management. Therefore, developing management practices for improving drought and salinity resistance of turfgrasses has become imperative in arid and semiarid regions. Grass genotypes differ in their responses to drought and salinity stresses, which involve changes in morphological and physiological aspects. Understanding of relative involvement of each morphological and physiological characteristic in drought and salinity tolerance is important in selecting grass genotypes to facilitate breeding of drought and salinity-tolerant genotypes. The purposes of this research were to make selections of genotypes tolerant to drought and salinity stress for turfgrass management program.
Materials and Methods: To study some morphological and physiological responses of six Iranian crested wheatgrasses (Agropyron cristatum L.) under drought and salinity, an experiment was conducted in the greenhouse of College of Abureyhan, University of Tehran, Iran. Six Iranian Agropyron cristatum genotypes were collected from six locations in Iran. Agropyron cristatum genotypes were planted in polyvinyl chloride tubes and kept in the greenhouse. Pots were filled with sandy loam soil which had been sterilized in an oven at 160ºC for 6 h. Irrigation was applied as needed to prevent any visible stress during grass establishment. Grasses were watered three times weekly to maintain plants under well-watered conditions and soil moisture at field capacity. The experiment consisted of three treatments: 1) well-watered plants were irrigated three times per week with distilled water (control), 2) Drought stress was imposed by withholding irrigation for 45 days (drought stress), and 3) plants were irrigated daily with 100 mL of 9 dS.m–1 NaCl solution (salinity stress). To avoid primary salinity shock, the soil in each pot was drenched with 100 mL NaCl solution at incremental electrical conductivity (EC) by 3 dS.m–1 per day until the final EC reached 9 dS.m–1. Data were subjected to analysis based on a split-plot design with water treatments as main-plots and genotypes as sub-plots. Irrigation treatment as the main factor in three levels (control, drought, and salinity) and crested wheatgrass at six levels were considered as sub-plots. Studied characteristics such as height, turf quality, chlorophyll content, soluble carbohydrates, relative water content, electrolyte leakage, root penetration, and effective root depth were recorded. Statistical significance was tested using the analysis of variance procedure in SAS 9.1 (SAS Institute Inc., Cary, NC). Differences between the means were determined using the Fisher’s protected LSD test at the 5% probability level.
Results and Discussion: The results of this study showed that drought and salinity stress decreased the quality of crested wheatgrass masses, and reduced the level of quality varied among the masses. Throughout the experiment, ‘Sabzevar’ and ‘Damavand’ under drought conditions and ‘Sabzevar’, ‘Arak’ and ‘Damavand’ under salinity conditions maintained higher Turf quality compared with other genotypes. Total chlorophyll content of ‘Sabzevar’ and ‘Damavand’ were higher than other genotypes under drought and salinity conditions. The maintenance of higher chlorophyll content has been associated with better drought and salinity tolerance in plant. The soluble sugar content of ‘Sabzevar’ and ‘Damavand’ under drought conditions and ‘Sabzevar’, ‘Arak’ and ‘Damavand’ under salinity conditions were higher than other genotypes during the experiment. Soluble sugar content is an important compatible osmolyte in plants. Increased accumulation of soluble sugar content in stressed plants may be an adaptation process and resistance strategy to abiotic stresses in plants. Throughout the experiment, ‘AEKQI’, ‘Sabzevar’ and ‘Damavand’ genotypes under drought conditions and ‘Sabzevar’ genotypes under salinity conditions maintained higher relative water content in compared with other genotypes. Higher RWC indicates the ability of the leaf to maintain its higher water content under stress conditions with the simultaneous capability of the root system to take up adequate water. Based on morphological and physiological analysis for drought and salinity tolerance in investigated genotypes, the tolerance ranking would appear to be ‘Sabzevar’ > ‘Damavand’ > ‘Arak’ > ‘Urmia’ = Takestan > ‘Hashtgerd’ under drought stress and ‘Sabzevar’> ‘Arak’ > ‘Damavand’ > ‘Takestan’ = ‘Hashtgerd’> ‘Urmia’ under salinity stress. The results of this study showed that ‘Sabzevar’ and ‘Damavand’ genotypes had good tolerance to drought stress, and ‘Sabzevar’ and ‘Arak’ genotypes had good tolerance to salt stress than other Iranian crested wheatgrass genotypes.
Research Article
Seyyedeh Mahdiyeh Kharrazi; Ali Tehranifar; Ahmad Sharifi
Abstract
Introduction: Success in tissue culture technique, especially in bulbous plants, depends on the microbial contamination control during in vitro culture. Applying different treatments, such as heat treatment and usage of fungicides, can control the microbial contamination and consequently increase the ...
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Introduction: Success in tissue culture technique, especially in bulbous plants, depends on the microbial contamination control during in vitro culture. Applying different treatments, such as heat treatment and usage of fungicides, can control the microbial contamination and consequently increase the percentage of explant survival.
Materials and Methods: This study aimed to investigate the effect of heat treatment and fungicide on reducing the contamination during in vitro culture of narcissus. So, an experiment was done as a factorial experiment in a completely randomized design with two factors, including benomyl concentration in the medium (1 and 2 g/l) and heat treatments (two levels, with and without heat treatment), with 10 replications. In order to sterilizing the plant materials, damaged and infected scales were removed firstly and then bulbs were washed for 30 minutes with running tab water and a few drops of dishwashing liquid. For applying heat treatment, bulbs were divided into two groups. In the first group, heat treatment was not applied and in the second group heat treatment 54 °C was applied for one hour using water bath. After this step, bulbs surface were sterilized by dipping in 70% ethanol for one minute and rinsed with sterile distilled water, followed by immersing in 1.5% sodium hypochlorite solution for 30 min. After sterilization with sodium hypochlorite solution, bulbs were washed three times with sterile distilled water under laminar air flow hood. After sterilization step, bulbs were cut into 32 twin scales explants and cultured in MS medium supplemented with 1 mg/l BA and 0.2 mg/l NAA + benomyl (1 or 2 g/l). After 30 days, the response of explants (number of produced bulbs, percentage of explant survival, percentage of bacterial contamination, percentage of fungal contamination, percentage of browning) was evaluated. Data preparation was done in the Excel program and data analysis was done using JMP-8 software. Mean comparison of the treatments was done by LSD test and finally the charts were drawn using the Excel program.
Results and Discussion: The results showed that increasing the concentration of benomyl in the medium and applying heat treatment had negative effect on regeneration potential of explants, so that the maximum regeneration mean were observed when heat treatment was not applied for explants and medium contains 1 g/l benomyl. Using the heat treatment and application of 2 g/l benomyl in the medium leads to the lowest regeneration amount. On the other hand, evaluating the browning percentage of explants showed that the effect of treatments was significant in this trait. Applying the heat treatment and using 2 g/l benomyl in the medium had severe effect on the increasing of explant browning and the maximum mean was observed in this treatment. But reducing the benomyl concentration in the medium and none application of heat treatment caused the lowest amount of explant browning. Contamination percentage that includes bacterial and fungal contamination is an important parameter in this study. Explants that cultured in the medium containing 1 g/l benomyl and applying heat treatment showed the highest contamination percentage, which contains 21% fungal and 14% bacterial contamination. The lowest percentage of contamination was observed when heat treatment applied and medium contains 2 g/l benomyl. However, this treatment caused the highest percentage of explant browning that lead to reduction of explants regeneration potential. Researches showed that the use of fungicides can help to control tissue culture contamination and according to previous studies, benomyl is the most effective treatment against fungal infection. As benomyl is considered as a systemic fungicide, so it is useful to eliminate the internal fungus. On the other hand, there are some reports about the positive effect of heat treatment on the control of tissue culture contamination. As regards this investigations were done in 1914 to 1997 and then stopped, so it seems that application of this treatment had no sufficient efficiency for contamination control during in vitro condition.
Conclusion: Therefore, by considering the browning, regeneration and contamination percentage, non-application of heat treatment and usage of 1g/l benomyl fungicide in the medium for in vitro culture of Narcissus twin scales explants is recommended.
Research Article
Mohammad Behzad Amiri; Parviz Rezvani Moghaddam; Mohsen Jahan
Abstract
Introduction: Maintenance of soil fertility as a permanent bed for continuous production of agricultural products is one of the most important issues affecting the sustainability of food production. In order to achieve healthy food production, application of ecological inputs such as organic fertilizers ...
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Introduction: Maintenance of soil fertility as a permanent bed for continuous production of agricultural products is one of the most important issues affecting the sustainability of food production. In order to achieve healthy food production, application of ecological inputs such as organic fertilizers are inevitable. Organic fertilizers are fertilizer compounds that contain one or more kinds of organic matter. They can improve the soil’s ability to hold water and nutrients. They create a beneficial environment for earthworms and microbial organisms that break the soil down into rich, fine humus. Compost is organic matter that has been decomposed and recycled as a fertilizer and soil amendment. Compost can greatly enhance the physical structure of soil. The addition of compost may provide greater drought resistance and more efficient water utilization. Vermicompost is the final product of composting organic material using different types of worms, such as red wigglers or earthworms, to create a homogenized blend of decomposed vegetable and food waste, bedding materials and manure. Vermicompost helps store nutrients and keeps them safe from leeching and irrigation, functioning to balance hormones within plant physiology, and adding beneficial biology to soil. Vermicompost improves soil aeration, enriches soil with micro-organisms (adding enzymes such as phosphatase and cellulose), attracts deep-burrowing earthworms already present in the soil and improves water holding capacity, enhances germination, plant growth and crop yield, improves root growth and structure. Cow manure is an excellent fertilizer containing nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium and other nutrients. It also adds organic matter to the soil which may improve soil structure, aeration, soil moisture-holding capacity, and water infiltration. Plant density is the number of individuals of a given plants that occurs within a given sample unit or study area. Planting density can impact the overall health of plants. Plantings that are too sparse (the density is too low) may be more susceptible to weeds, while planting that are too dense might force plants to compete over scarce nutrients and water and cause stunted growth. Despite of many researches on the effect of organic fertilizers and plant density on different crops, information on the effects of these factors for many medicinal plants is scarce, therefore, in this study effect of organic fertilizers and plant density on morphological characteristics and yield of Echium amoenum in a low input cropping system was studied.
Materials and Methods: In order to evaluate the effect of different fertilizers on quantitative characteristics of Echium amoenum at different plant densities, a factorial experiment based on RCBD design with three replications was conducted in 2011-2013 growing seasons, in Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Iran. Experimental factors included three plant densities (10, 5 and 3 plant per m2) and five different types of organic and chemical fertilizers (municipal waste compost, vermicompost, cow manure, chemical (urea) fertilizer and control).
Results and Discussion: The results showed that with reduction of plant density, effect of organic fertilizers on increasing the flower yield was exacerbated and at the lowest density, municipal waste compost, vermicompost and cow manures increased flower yield 112, 79 and 223% compared to control, respectively. In all studied densities, length of lateral branches in conditions of organic fertilizers application was more than control. Municipal waste compost, vermicompost, cow manure and chemical fertilizer increased total phenol 106, 54, 66 and 173% compared to control, respectively. In plant mean density (5 plant per m2), application of municipal waste compost, vermicompost and cow manure increased total anthocyanin 83, 74 and 57% compared to control, respectively. In general, result of this study showed that application of organic and chemical fertilizers at optimal plant densities, can improve growth characteristics and quantitative and qualitative yield of Echium amoenum.Organic fertilizers are the most significant resources for development of agricultural soil quality and increase in the yield of different medicinal plants. It has been reported that this ecological inputs provide favorable conditions for plant growth and development through improvement of physical, chemical and biological properties of the soil, therefore, it can be concluded that improvement of the most studied traits in the present study were due to use of organic fertilizers. Fallahi et al., (20) have reported the positive effects of organic fertilizers on the improvement of quantitative and qualitative characteristics in chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla L.). It seems that plants compete with each other over scarce nutrients and water in high plant density and cause stunted growth. Some other studies have reported that suitable plant density can increase the growth and yield of some medicinal plants such as coriander (Coriandrum sativum L.), Ajwain (Carum copticum L.), lemon balm (Melissa officinalis L.) and anise (Pimpinella anisum L.).
Conclusion: In general, results of this study showed that application of organic and chemical fertilizers at optimal plant densities, while improving growth and yield characteristics of Echium amoenum flower can be ensured health of production of this important medicinal plant.
Research Article
Mahnaz Sayadi Nejad; Seyyed Mostafa Sadeghi
Abstract
Introduction: Zamiifolia is a perennial ornamental plant and is one of the most important medicinal plants of the Aracea family. The origin of this evergreen, low-anticipated plant is East Africa. Zamiifolia spreads through the leaves and split rhizomes, which is very time-consuming. The traditional ...
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Introduction: Zamiifolia is a perennial ornamental plant and is one of the most important medicinal plants of the Aracea family. The origin of this evergreen, low-anticipated plant is East Africa. Zamiifolia spreads through the leaves and split rhizomes, which is very time-consuming. The traditional Zamiifolia proliferation method have been done by dividing rhizomes and leaf cuttings, but the production efficiency is low due to the slow growth of the plant, tubers and roots. In addition, due to the warm and humid environment, reproduction is limited to summer season. Due to the traditional reproductive problems in this plant, tissue culture or microbial culture is the best way to replicate rapidly and to achieve a large number of plants with the same genetic structure, as well as the elimination of diseases in the short term and reducing the costs. The aim of this study was to compare different microorganisms in terms of calogenesis and regeneration, as well as to determine the optimum culture medium for Zamiifolia tissue culture.
Materials and Methods: In this study, the explants prepared for the first experiment, including rhizome and petiole and the explants for the second experiment were the leaeaves and shoots. In the first experiment, rhizome and petiole were cultured in three replications in ½ MS medium containing BA (0, 2, 4 mg / L) and 2,4-D (0,1,2 mg / L) in combination with vitamins, 30 g/l sucrose, 5 g / L agar and adjusted to 5.8 PH. The cultivars were cultured for the callus induction under temperature of 27-25 ° C and light conditions of 16 hours light and 8 hours darkness. After 5 weeks, the percentage of callus and fresh callus weight were measured. The callus generated from rhizome and petiole in three replicates on ½ MS medium containing BA (0, 1, 2 mg / L) and 2,4-D (0, 0.5, 1 mg / l) for shoots and after the observation of branches and leaf buds were grafted on to ½ MS medium containing BA (0, 1, 2 mg / L) and NAA (0, 0.5, 1 mg / L) for rooting. Traits such as time to shoot elongation were recorded at regeneration stage, and after 5 weeks, shoot length and the number of leaves were measured. The time to rootstock was also recorded. In the second experiment leaf and shoot explants were cultured in ½ MS medium containing BA (0, 2, 4 mg / l) and NAA (0, 0.5, 1 mg / L) in combination with vitamins, 30 g/l sucrose, 5 g / L agar and PH adjusted to 5.8. The cultivars were cultured for the callus induction under temperature 27-25 °C and light conditions of 16 hours light and 8 hours darkness. The time to reach the callus was recorded and after 5 weeks, the percentage of callus and fresh callus weight were measured. The calli generated from the leaves and shoots were cultures on ½ MS medium containing BA (0, 1, 2 m g / L) and NAA (0, 0.5, 1 mg / L) for shoots and after observation of branch and leaves were transplanted to the ½ MS medium containing BA (0, 1, 2 mg / L) and NAA (0, 1, 2 mg /L) for rooting. The traits such as time to shoot elongation were recorded at the regeneration stage, After 5 weeks, the shoot length and the number of leaves were measured.The time to rootstock was also recorded.
Results and Discussion: The results of the first experiment showed that the effect of the rhizome and petiole type on the callus formation was significant at 1% level. So that the rhizome showed greater ability to callogenesis. The results of the second experiment showed that the effect of the type leaf and shoot on the callus formation was significant at 1% level. So that the leaf showed greater ability to callogenesis. The highest percentage of callosing (94.5%), the shortest time to reach the callus (14 days) and the highest callus weight (1.1 g) in culture medium with 2 mg / l BA and 1 mg / l hormones NAA was observed in leaf samples from the second experiment. The best treatment in the shoot elongation stage, which included the shortest time to shoot formation (10.5 days), the longest shoot length (4.10 cm), and the highest leaf number (8 leaves) in the leaf extract with hormonal concentrations of 2 mg / 0 mg / L NAA was observed from the second experiment. In the rooting stage, the best treatment for petiole extracts with hormonal concentrations was 1 mg / l BA and 0.5 mg / l NAA with 14 days to rooting from the first experiment.
Conclusion: In this study, explants and various concentrations of growth regulators had significant effect on the response to callus induction in Zamiifolia. In the first experiment, the rhizome and in the second experiment the leaf showed a better reaction to callus induction. According to this research, it can be suggested that the treatments applied in both experiments should be applied on all four leaves, petiole, rhizome and shoot samples, and the best culture type and the best culture medium for the cultivation of Zamiifolia plant tissue should be determined in subsequent studies.
Research Article
Mohtaram Abaspour Esfaden; Sepedeh Kallaterjari; Foad Fatehi
Abstract
Introduction: Catharanthus roseus is a beautiful herbaceous plant, belonging to Apocynaceae family, which is widely cultivated due to its unique and beautiful appearance. It is native to the Caribbean Basin and has historically been used to treat a wide assortment of diseases. European herbalists used ...
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Introduction: Catharanthus roseus is a beautiful herbaceous plant, belonging to Apocynaceae family, which is widely cultivated due to its unique and beautiful appearance. It is native to the Caribbean Basin and has historically been used to treat a wide assortment of diseases. European herbalists used this plant for different conditions such as headache and a folk remedy for diabetes. The effects of drought range from morphological to molecular levels and are evident at all phonological stages of plant growth at whatever stage the water deficit takes place.The limitation of water resources in our country is one of the important issues in landscape. However, we can alleviate the adverse effects of water stress with the use of some biological and non-biological stimulators. Under severe stress conditions, the antioxidant capacity may not be sufficient to minimize the harmful effects of oxidative damage. Therefore, synthesis of signal molecules in plants is an important step in our better understanding of how plants respond to environmental stresses. Several such signal molecules have been identified in plants such as jasmonic acid, ethylene and salicylic acid (SA). SA is considered as a hormone-like substance, which plays an important role in regulating a number of plants’ physiological processes including photosynthesis. Besides, L-arginine is an amino acid, which can alleviate the adverse effect of drought. Among the 21 proteinogenic amino acids, arginine has the highest nitrogen to carbon ratio, which makes it especially suitable as a storage form of organic nitrogen. Synthesis in chloroplasts via ornithine is apparently the only operational pathway to provide arginine in plants. Therefore, the present study was conducted to evaluate the effect of salicylic acid (SA) and L-arginine on morpho-physiological properties of C. roseus.
Materials and Methods: This experiment was carried out as a factorial with two factors including the foliar application at five levels (control, L-arginine 1.5 and 3 mM, SA 100 and 200 mg /L) and water stress at three levels (100, 70 and 40% field capacity (FC)) in a completely randomized design with three replications. Water use efficiency (WUE), the root/shoot weight, flower number, flower diameter, leaf chlorophyll content, peroxidase and superoxide dismutase activity of leaf, and leaf macronutrients (nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium) were measured.
Results and Discussion: The results showed that WUE in plants under moderate stress (70% FC) was higher than the plants in control and severe drought condition (40% FC). Root/shoot weight at no foliar application (control) × 40% FC and L-arginine 1.5 mM × 40% FC was higher than other treatments. The number of flowers in the treatments of 100% FC and 70% FC was more than 40% FC. The highest flower diameter was obtained from the L-arginine 3 mM. Total chlorophyll of L-arginine 3 mM was higher relative to other treatments. Drought stress significantly increased the activity of antioxidant enzymes. The lowest amount of phosphorus and nitrogen was observed at no foliar application ×40% FC. Therefore, according to the optimum application of water and amendment substrates, at 70% FC stress, L-arginine 3 mM and SA 100 mg /l increased the nitrogen and phosphorus content. Overall, L-arginine 3 mM and SA 100 mg /l increased the flower number and flower diameter significantly. Accumulation of these organic solutes either actively or passively helps the plants to retain water within cells and protect cellular compartments from injury caused by dehydration or maintain turgor pressure during water stress. Turgor maintenance plays an important role in drought tolerance of plants which may be due to its involvement in stomatal regulation and hence photosynthesis. Foliar application with arginine resulted in elevated proline levels and radiotracer experiments demonstrated that both 3H and 14C from arginine can be recovered as proline. The physiological relevance and the biochemical pathway of the conversion of arginine to proline in plants remain unclear. The most prominent hypothesis is that ornithine, derived from arginine catabolism, is converted by δOAT to GSA/P5C, which then serves as substrate for proline synthesis by P5CR. This model has been doubted, since Arabidopsis δOAT was found to be exclusively localized in mitochondria, while P5CR is localized in the cytosol.
Conclusion: The findings of our study showed that water stress can morphologically and physiological change C. roseus. There was no significant difference between 70% and 100% FC for root/shoot, flower number and flower diameter traits. So, we can reduce the use of water to 70% FC increased the flower number and flower diameter and can be used to alleviate the adverse impact of water stress.
Research Article
Mohammad Norani; Mohammadtaghi Ebadi; Mehdi Ayyari Noushabadi
Abstract
Introduction: Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara L.) from Asteraceae family is a perennial plant. T. farfara is native and widespread from Europe to Western and Northern Asia and North Africa. Coltsfoot distributed in wet mountainous regions of Iran, such as Azerbaijan, Tehran and Northern provinces. Its flowers ...
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Introduction: Coltsfoot (Tussilago farfara L.) from Asteraceae family is a perennial plant. T. farfara is native and widespread from Europe to Western and Northern Asia and North Africa. Coltsfoot distributed in wet mountainous regions of Iran, such as Azerbaijan, Tehran and Northern provinces. Its flowers and leaves have been used traditionally for the treatment of cough, bronchitis and phlegm disorders. T. farfara leaves and flowers have expectorant activity and are used for chronic dry cough and various pulmonary diseases. The extracts of T. farfara were shown to exhibit various activities, such as antioxidant and antimicrobial activity. Biologically active agents of T. farfara have been studied due to their antimicrobial and antioxidant characteristics.
Materials and Methods: For morphological study, the rhizomes of seven Iranian coltsfoot populations were collected in August 2016 from different regions of Iran including Pol-e zangholeh, Damavand, Firoozkooh, Nur, Deylaman, Kaleybar and Namin. The collected samples were planted in the same condition during 2016-2017 in research field of Tarbiat Modares University in Tehran (51º10ʹ23ʺ N, 35º44ʹ17ʺ E), with a randomized complete block design experiment and three replications. The average annual rainfall and temperature of cultivating place is about 220 mm and 16.4 ºC. In order to study the morphological characteristics between different samples, traits such as the number of flowers per plant, stem height, flower length, flower diameter, flower dry weight, root length, root dry weight, leaf area and leaf dry weight had been measured. Morphological traits were measured under the same conditions and for this research, were used ruler, caliper and balance. The leaves and flowers were prepared for phytochemical studies. DPPH method has been used to evaluate the antioxidant activity, and the IC50 was used to compare the antioxidant properties. The absorbance of the samples was measured 