Goñi et al., (2018) Plant Physiology and Biochemistry 126:63
Ascophyllum nodosum extract biostimulants and their role in enhancing tolerance to drought stress in tomato plants
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0981942818300767
Summary
While drought is a recurring natural phenomenon driven by meteorological patterns, the ongoing impact of climate change is causing disturbances in the usual distribution of rainfall worldwide, leading to a lack of reliability and predictability. This inconsistency is in turn affecting both water availability and the assurance of a dependable and sustainable food production system.
Our researchers at Brandon Bioscience have conducted a study on the potential of biostimulants to induce stress tolerance in tomato plants, through evaluating the phenological, physiological, biochemical, and transcriptome changes that occur when faced with drought-induced stress. The study examined three products derived from Ascophyllum nodosum seaweed (referred to as ANE A, ANE B, and ANE C). ANE B and C were produced with high temperature through a high pH manufacturing processes while ANE A was produced with high temperature with a neutral pH. The objective was to determine whether these various ANE products conferred similar levels of resilience to tomato plants when subjected to a specific period of drought.
A characterization process was carried out to investigate the impact of different extraction methods on the macro-molecule composition of Ascophyllum nodosum extract (ANE). The ANEs consisted of uronic acids (alginates), fucose, mannitol, laminarin, polyphenols, and ash, though at varying proportions. Notably, the composition did not directly correlate with solid content. ANE A, despite having lower solids, exhibited higher levels of mannitol, uronic acid, and fucose.
The experiment applied Ascophyllum nodosum extract (ANE) through foliar spray on 35-day-old plants. After 24 hours, a 7-day drought stress was applied, followed by rewatering. ANE was applied before and after drought to assess its impact on plant response to stress.
ANE treatment led to significant reductions in MDA (a marker of membrane damage), while also inducing positive changes in chlorophyll levels, osmolytes content including soluble sugars and proline, and dehydrin gene regulation. Plants treated with ANE A showed fewer drought stress symptoms and increased height compared to ANE B and C treatments. ANE A-treated plants exhibited higher relative water content (RWC), indicating better tolerance to water deficit. ANE A had a notable impact on soluble sugar accumulation, while B + C did not significantly affect soluble sugars. ANE A-treated plants consistently exhibited the highest chlorophyll levels across the study periods. Results showed distinct differences in dehydrin-like profiles among ANE-treated tomato plants. Only ANE A treatment substantially altered the dehydrin response in drought-stressed tomato plants. The tas14 dehydrin gene was activated in all plants during stress. Analysis of the tas14 dehydrin gene revealed that ANE A exhibited an 8-fold increase in expression
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