Sodium chloride alleviates cadmium toxicity by reducing nitric oxide accumulation in tobacco

Melatonin alleviates cadmium toxicity by reducing nitric oxide accumulation and IRT1 expression in Chinese cabbage seedlings

Melatonin (MT) is reported as a kind of phytohormone, exerts various biological activities, mediating plant growth and development and responding to abiotic stresses. In the present research, we examined the possibility that MT could involve in the alleviation of cadmium (Cd) toxicity by reducing the accumulation of nitric oxide (NO). The research indicated that the addition of MT significantly increased the biomass and photosynthetic parameters of plants compared with the control treated under Cd stress. Besides, we found that compared with the control treatment, MT also reduced the level of Cd-induced nitric oxide, and at the same time, the enzyme activity related to NO synthesis and the expression of related genes were decreased. In addition, MT treatment significantly reduced the Cd content in Chinese cabbage seedlings compared with the control, which was partially reversed by the addition of SNP (NO donor). PTIO (NO scavenger) addition could reduce the Cd content when seedlings were exposed to Cd stress. At the same time, compared with the Cd stress, the concentration of Cd in MT-treated plants decreased significantly, and the expression levels of related transport genes IRT1 also decreased significantly. Taken together, these results further support the idea that under the stress of Cd, NO increases the expression of IRT1, thus further increasing the absorption of Cd and aggravating the stress of Cd in plants, while exogenously added MT can inhibit the synthesis of NO, reduce the content of Cd, and alleviate the stress caused by Cd.

Roles of nitric oxide in heavy metal stress in plants: Cross-talk with phytohormones and protein S-nitrosylation

Heavy metal (HM) stress is a major hazard, which significantly affects plant growth and development. In order to confront HM stress, plants directly or indirectly regulate the levels of endogenous nitric oxide (NO), a redox-related signaling molecule involved in wide range of plant growth and development as well as in response to HM stress. In addition, there is now compelling experimental evidence that NO usually mediates signaling processes through interactions with different biomolecules like phytohormones to regulate HM tolerance. Apart from phytohormones, NO partly operates through posttranslational modification of proteins, notably via S-nitrosylation in response to HM stress. Recently, the roles of S-nitrosylation as a regulator of plant responses to HM stress and S-nitrosylated candidates have also been established and detected. Here, we describe the roles of NO in confronting HM phytotoxicity in plants with a particular focus on the presentation and discussion of recent data obtained in this field, which involves in the function of various phytohormones and S-nitrosylation during plant responses to HM stress. Additionally, both importance and challenges of future work are outlined in order to further elucidate the specific mechanisms underlying the roles of NO in plant responses to HM stress.

Sodium chloride decreases cadmium accumulation and changes the response of metabolites to cadmium stress in the halophyte Carpobrotus rossii

BACKGROUND AND AIMS

Salinity affects the bioavailability of cadmium (Cd) in soils and Cd accumulation in plants, but the associated mechanisms remain unclear. This study aimed to assess the metabolic response to NaCl and Cd and the relationship between metabolites and Cd accumulation in the halophyte Carpobrotus rossii, which has potential for Cd phytoextraction.

METHODS

Plants were grown in nutrient solution with 0-400 mm NaCl in the presence of 5 or 15 µm Cd, with varied or constant solution Cd2+ activity. Plant growth and Cd uptake were measured, and the accumulation of peptides, and organic and amino acids in plant tissues were assessed.

KEY RESULTS

The addition of NaCl to Cd-containing solutions improved plant growth along with 70-87 % less shoot Cd accumulation, resulting from decreases in Cd root uptake and root-to-shoot translocation irrespective of Cd2+ activity in solutions. Moreover, Cd exposure increased the concentration of phytochelatins, which correlated positively with Cd concentrations in plants regardless of NaCl addition. In comparison, Cd inhibited the synthesis of organic acids in shoots and roots in the absence of NaCl, but increased it in shoots in the presence of NaCl. While Cd increased the concentrations of amino acids in plant shoots, the effect of NaCl on the synthesis of amino acids was inconsistent.

CONCLUSIONS

Our data provide the first evidence that NaCl decreased Cd shoot accumulation in C. rossii by decreasing Cd root uptake and root-to-shoot translocation even under constant Cd2+ activity. The present study also supports the important role of peptides and organic acids, particular of phytochelatins, in Cd tolerance and accumulation although the changes of those metabolites was not the main reason for the decreased Cd accumulation.