article · Plants
Chilling stress significantly impedes crop growth, biomass accumulation, pigment synthesis, and photosynthetic performance. Exogenous root priming with ascorbic acid at a concentration of 0.5 millimolar counters these damaging effects in tomato seedlings subjected to acute cold stress at 4 degrees Celsius. The treatment reduces chilling-induced oxidative damage by decreasing electrolyte leakage, lipid peroxidation, and hydrogen peroxide accumulation. Concurrently, ascorbic acid priming enhances the activity of antioxidant enzymes and boosts essential ion uptake in both unstressed and cold-stressed plants. At the molecular level, the application of ascorbic acid leads to a significant reduction in the expression of catalase and heat shock protein genes during chilling exposure. These biochemical and transcriptional adjustments collectively demonstrate that ascorbic acid root treatment strengthens the physiological resilience of young tomato plants under severe cold conditions.
Cold spells can devastate crops, lowering agricultural yields and threatening food supplies. Tomatoes are particularly sensitive to low temperatures during early development. Demonstrating that a common, affordable compound such as ascorbic acid can protect seedlings against sudden temperature drops provides a biological strategy to improve crop survival and maintain productivity in regions prone to unseasonal chilling.
The findings indicate potential use for crop seedling treatments, which could benefit commercial nurseries, greenhouse growers, and tomato farmers managing sudden cold snaps. The treatment uses a readily available substance applied via root priming. However, because the study was conducted on seedlings under controlled laboratory conditions, the technology represents early-stage research that requires further field testing and formulation work before commercial adoption.
AI-generated from the published abstract. Always read the original work before citing.
Chilling, a sort of cold stress, is a typical abiotic ecological stress that impacts the development as well as the growth of crops. The present study was carried to investigate the role of ascorbic acid root priming in enhancing tolerance of tomato seedlings against acute chilling stress. The treatments included untreated control, ascorbic acid-treated plants (AsA; 0.5 mM), acute chilling-stressed plants (4 °C), and chilling stressed seedlings treated by ascorbic acid. Exposure to acute chilling stress reduced growth in terms of length, fresh and dry biomass, pigment synthesis, and photosynthesis. AsA was effective in mitigating the injurious effects of chilling stress to significant levels when supplied at 0.5 mM concentrations. AsA priming reduced the chilling mediated oxidative damage by lowering the electrolyte leakage, lipid peroxidation, and hydrogen peroxide. Moreover, up regulating the activity of enzymatic components of the antioxidant system. Further, 0.5 mM AsA proved beneficial in enhancing ions uptake in normal and chilling stressed seedlings. At the gene expression level, AsA significantly lowered the expression level of CAT and heat shock protein genes. Therefore, we theorize that the implementation of exogenous AsA treatment reduced the negative effects of severe chilling stress on tomato.
This page summarises published work. The authoritative version sits with the publisher.
DOI: 10.3390/plants9040431
Is something wrong with this record? Report it or request removal.
Discussion
Have you built on this work, tried to replicate it, or seen it applied in practice? Share what you know. Verified researchers and MARATTO™ domain experts can open a discussion, and any member can reply. Contributions are reviewed before they appear.
No discussion yet. Open the first thread.
New to MARATTO™? Create a free account.
