Vol. 81 No: 4

Title:
Effect of seed pre-treatment by low-dose gamma-ray radiation on reducing ultraviolet-B-induced injury in ryegrass seedlings

Authors:
YINAN YAO, JIAN REN, QIANN YI ZHANG and ZHUYING XUAN

pp: 676-680

Abstract:
Ryegrass (Lolium perenne L., cv. ´Victorian`) seedlings from seed pre-treated by low-dose gamma irradiation (LDG) were exposed to 6.5 kJ m^-2 d^-1 UV-B radiation under controlled environmental conditions. The high level of UV-B radiation caused serious plant injury, such as accelerated senescence, growth inhibition and lipid oxidation in cell membranes, but UV-B-induced injury was alleviated significantly by LDG-pretreatment, in particular by 20 Gy and 30 Gy (1 Gy = 1 J kg^-1). Both ascorbic acid and UV-absorbing compounds were increased by LDG-pretreatment, and the latter were further increased 2-fold by UV-B irradiation. During UV-B exposure, the levels of photosynthetic pigments remained high in seedlings from seed pre-treated with 30 Gy. We suggest that increased plant tolerance to UV-B damage, caused by LDG-pretreatment, may be due, in part, to higher contents of ascorbic acid and UV-absorbing compounds, and the ability to maintain high levels of photosynthetic pigments. The possible implications of these observations are discussed.

Full text: JHSB Subscribers     ISHS members & other users
(PDF 89340 bytes)

Go back to previous page