Ali Abid, Zafar Sara, Mehmood Kashf, Hasnain Zuhair, Nawaz Muhammad, Gilani Syed Muhammad Junaid Jalal, Siddiqui Manzer H, Alamri Saud, Khan Shahbaz
Department of Botany, Government College University, Faisalabad, Pakistan.
Department of Biological Sciences, Superior University, Lahore, Pakistan.
Naturwissenschaften. 2025 Sep 10;112(5):70. doi: 10.1007/s00114-025-02021-y.
Drought stress is the most vulnerable abiotic factor affecting plant growth and yield. The use of silicic acid as seed priming treatment is emerging as an effective approach to regulate maize plants susceptibility to water stress. The study was formulated for investigating the effect of silicic acid seed priming treatment in modulating the oxidative defense and key physio-biochemical attributes of maize plants under drought stress conditions. Silicic acid (control, 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, and 1 mM) primed seeds of maize cultivars Gohar-19 and Pak Afghoi were sown in soil filled pots at 100% and 60% field capacity. At 60% field capacity, a marked decline in fresh (1.23, 1.03 g) and dry (0.45, 0.38 g) biomass was observed as compared to 100% field capacity (1.34, 1.13 g; 0.53, 0.50 g) in Gohar-19, which exhibited better performance as compared to Pak Afghoi under control and drought stress conditions. Notably, seed priming with 1 mM silicic acid markedly enhanced antioxidant enzyme activities including peroxidase, superoxide dismutase, and catalase, thereby strengthening the antioxidant defense system. Additionally, primed seeds exhibited improved accumulation of primary and secondary metabolites critical for stress adaptation. Principal component analysis confirmed a distinct separation of attributes with respect to silicic acid pretreatment under water stress in maize plants. These findings demonstrate that silicic acid seed priming effectively enhances maize growth and biochemical resilience under drought stress by activating antioxidant defenses and modulating key metabolic pathways. This approach holds a significant potential as a sustainable agronomic practice to mitigate drought effects and to improve crop productivity through nutri-priming.
干旱胁迫是影响植物生长和产量的最脆弱的非生物因素。使用硅酸作为种子引发处理正成为一种调节玉米植株对水分胁迫敏感性的有效方法。本研究旨在调查硅酸种子引发处理对干旱胁迫条件下玉米植株氧化防御和关键生理生化特性的影响。将硅酸（对照、0.3、0.5、0.7和1 mM）引发处理的玉米品种Gohar-19和Pak Afghoi的种子播种在田间持水量为100%和60%的装满土壤的花盆中。在田间持水量为60%时，与Gohar-19在田间持水量为100%时（1.34、1.13 g；0.53、0.50 g）相比，观察到鲜重（1.23、1.03 g）和干重（0.45、0.38 g）显著下降，在对照和干旱胁迫条件下，Gohar-19的表现优于Pak Afghoi。值得注意的是，用1 mM硅酸进行种子引发显著提高了包括过氧化物酶、超氧化物歧化酶和过氧化氢酶在内的抗氧化酶活性，从而增强了抗氧化防御系统。此外，引发处理的种子表现出对胁迫适应至关重要的初级和次级代谢产物积累增加。主成分分析证实了在水分胁迫下玉米植株中硅酸预处理相关特性的明显分离。这些发现表明，硅酸种子引发通过激活抗氧化防御和调节关键代谢途径，有效地增强了干旱胁迫下玉米的生长和生化恢复力。这种方法作为一种可持续的农艺实践，通过营养引发减轻干旱影响并提高作物生产力具有巨大潜力。
