Effect of salt on malondialdehyde and antioxidant enzymes in seedling roots of Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus L.)

Two cultivars of Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus L.) differing in genotype, Red skin (cv. R., salt-tolerant but low-yield) and White skin (cv. W., salt-sensitive but high-yield), were used to investigate malondialdehyde (MDA) content and antioxidant enzyme activity changes in their roots under a hydroponic culture system with 250 mM NaCl. The results showed that MDA contents in roots of the two genotypes increased, but MDA content of cv. R. was higher than that of cv. W. Changes in all antioxidant enzymes in roots of both varieties exhibited a similar trend, namely increased initially and then decreased. However, there were still some differences existing between the two cultivars. In other words, activities of the other two antioxidant enzymes except catalase (CAT) and peroxidase (POD) in roots of cv. R. were less than controls at 48 h, while all others except ascorbate peroxidase (APX) in roots of cv. W. were greater than controls. The peak of superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity of cv. W. was observed to appear earlier than that of cv. R. CAT activity of cv. W. was significantly greater than the value of cv. R. and the latter showed a moderate trend. POD activity of cv. R. obtained the maximum at 6 h, whereas the peak of cv. W. displayed at 24 h. APX activity of cv. R. declined more than that of cv. W. These results suggested that there was a lower efficiency of scavenging reactive oxygen species (ROS) in cv. R. roots. Concomitantly, salt stress caused more severe damage to roots of cv. R. Antioxidant enzymes in roots were inadequate to elucidate salt-tolerance mechanisms of the whole plant.