Natural Variation for Salt Tolerance among Basil Accessions from Iran Based on Fluorescence Transient and Morphological and Growth Characteristics

Document Type : Original Research

Authors
S. Shirahmadi 1
M. Esna-Ashari 1
S. Aliniaeifard 2
G. Abbas Akbari 3
1 Department of Horticultural Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture, Bu-Ali Sina University, Hamedan, Islamic Republic of Iran.
2 Department of Horticulture, Aburaihan Campus, University of Tehran, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran.
3 Department of Agronomy and Plant Breeding Sciences, Aburaihan Campus, University of Tehran, Tehran, Islamic Republic of Iran.
Abstract
To study salinity tolerance of 15 basil accessions widely distributed across Iran, they were grown under two salt levels including control (no NaCl) and 40 mM NaCl (Hoagland nutrient solutions with EC of 1.1 and 5.5 dS m-1, respectively). The studied parameters included morphological characteristics and chlorophyll a fluorescence transient (OJIP) measurements. According to the results, the accessions were categorized into three clusters under the salt stress. Salinity had significant effects on morphological and growth parameters in all basil plants. Compared to the control, NaCl decreased plant height. The number of leaves in Khash, Zabol, and Orumiyeh accessions was more than the others. Both salt and accession caused a decrease up to 43% in leaf fresh weight, emphasizing the major role of accession when salinity was applied. Salinity influenced negatively the biomass yield in basil plants. These decreases varied from 19 to 45% depending on the accessions. Salt treatment of basil plants decreased photosystem II activity, as evaluated from chlorophyll fluorescence data. The parameters that were most affected by salt treatment were maximal quantum yield of PSII photochemistry (FV/FM) and calculated Performance Index (PIABS). Overall, among the studied basil accessions, genotype Ardabil had superior tolerance to salt stress. Furthermore, the most of accessions can be used for studying the mechanism of salinity tolerance in basil plant.

Keywords

Subjects

1-Aghaali, Z., Darvishzadeh, R. and Aghaei, M. 2017. Association Analysis for Morphological Traits in Iranian Basil Accessions Using ISSR Marker. Iran J. Biotechnol., 9(1): 93-102.
2. Akbari, G.A., Soltani, E., Binesh, S. and Amini, F. 2018. Cold tolerance, productivity and phytochemical diversity in sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) accessions. Ind Crops Prod., 124: 677-684.

3. Akbari, G. A., Binesh, S., Ramshini, H., Soltani, E., Amini, F. and Mirfazeli, M.S. 2019. Selection of basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) full-sib families from diverse landraces. JARMAP., 12: 66-72.
4. Bekhradi, F., Luna, M., Delshad, M., Jordan, M., Sotomayor, J., Martínez-Conesa, C. and Gil, M. 2015. Effect of deficit irrigation on the postharvest quality of different genotypes of basil including purple and green Iranian cultivars and a Genovese variety. Postharvest Biol Tec., 100: 127-135.

5. Bernstein, N., Kravchik, M. and Dudai, N. 2010. Salinity‐induced changes in essential oil, pigments and salts accumulation in sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum) in relation to alterations of morphological development. Ann App Biol., 156(2): 167-177.

6. Bhargava, A., Shukla, S. and Ohri, D. 2012. Implications of direct and indirect selection parameters for improvement of grain yield and quality components in Chenopodium quinoa Willd. Int J Plant Prod., 2(3):183-192.
7. Bie, Z., Ito, T. and Shinohara, Y. 2004. Effects of sodium sulfate and sodium bicarbonate on the growth, gas exchange and mineral composition of lettuce. Sci Hortic., 99(3-4):215-224.

8. Bisbis, M. B., Gruda, N. and Blanke, M. 2018. Potential impacts of climate change on vegetable production and product quality–A review. J. Clean.Prod., 170:1602-1620.
9. De Santis, G., D’Ambrosio, T., Rinaldi, M. and Rascio, A.2016. Heritabilities of morphological and quality traits and interrelationships with yield in quinoa (Chenopodium quinoa Willd.) genotypes in the Mediterranean environment. J.Cereal Sci., 70:177-185.
10. Flowers, T. 2004. Improving crop salt tolerance. J.Exp.Bot., 55(396): 307-319.
11. Flowers, T. and Yeo, A .1995. Breeding for salinity resistance in crop plants: where next?. Funct Plant Biol., 22(6): 875-884.
12. Govender, P. and Sivakumar,V. 2019. Application of k-means and hierarchical clustering techniques for analysis of air pollution. Atmos Pollut Res.11:40-56.
13. Kainer, D., Lanfear, R., Foley, W. J. and Külheim, C. 2015. Genomic approaches to selection in outcrossing perennials: focus on essential oil crops. Theor appl genet., 128(12): 2351-2365.
14. Maia, S. S., da Silva, R. C., Oliveira, F. d. A. d., Silva, O. M. d. P., Silva, A. C. d. and Candido, W. d. S. 2017. Responses of basil cultivars to irrigation water salinity. Rev Bras Eng Agr Amb., 21(1):44-49.
15. Moghaddam, M. and Mehdizadeh, L. 2015.Variability of total phenolic, flavonoid and rosmarinic acid content among Iranian basil accessions. LWT-Food Sci. Technol.,63(1): 535-540.
16. Morales, M. R. and J. E. Simon. 1996. New basil selections with compact inflorescences for the ornamental market. In: J. Janick, Ed. Progress in new crops. ASHS Press, Arlington, VA., 543-546.
17. Moghaddam, M., Omidbiagi, R. and Naghavi, M. R. 2011. Evaluation of genetic diversity among Iranian accessions of Ocimum spp. using AFLP markers. Biochem. Syst. Ecol. 39(4-6): 619-626.
18. Mosadegh, H., Trivellini, A., Ferrante, A., Lucchesini, M. Vernieri, P. and Mensuali, A. 2018.
Applications of UV-B lighting to enhance phenolic accumulation of sweet basil. Sci Horti., 229: 107-116.
19. Munns, R. and M, Tester. 2008. Mechanisms of salinity tolerance. Annu. Rev. Plant Biol., 59: 651-681.
20. Paton, A. 1992. A synopsis of Ocimum L. (Labiatae) in Africa. Kew Bull. 47(3): 403-435.
21. Paton, A. Harley, R. and Harley, M.1999. Ocimum: an overview of classification and relationships Basil. In: Holm, Y and Hiltunen, R. Eds., Hardwood Academic, Amesterdam. CRC Press., 11-46.
22. Potashev, K., Sharonova, N. and Breus, I. 2014. The use of cluster analysis for plant grouping by their tolerance to soil contamination with hydrocarbons at the germination stage. Sci Total Environ., 485-486: 71-82.
23. Rouphael, Y., Petropoulos, S.A., Cardarelli, M. and Colla, G. 2018. Salinity as eustressor for enhancing quality of vegetables. Sci Hortic., 234: 361-369.
24. Pushpangadan, P. and George, V. 2012. 4 - Basil. In K. V. Peter (Ed.), Handbook of Herbs and Spices (Second Edition) (pp. 55-72): Woodhead Publishing.
25. Said-Al Ahl, H., Meawad, A., Abou-Zeid, E. and Ali, M. 2010. Response of different basil varieties to soil salinity. Int. Agrophysics, 24, 183-188.
26. Scagel, C. F., Lee, J. and Mitchell, J. N. 2019. Salinity from NaCl changes the nutrient and polyphenolic composition of basil leaves. Industrial crops prod., 127:119-128.
27. Singh, A. 2015. Poor quality water utilization for agricultural production: An environmental perspective. Land use policy., 43: 259-262.
28. Singh, S., Lal, R. K., Maurya, R. and Chanotiya, C. S. 2018. Genetic diversity and chemotype selection in genus Ocimum. J Appl Res Med Aroma., 9:19-25.

29. Zhu, J.-K. 2001. Plant salt tolerance. Trends Plant Sci., 6(2): 66-71.
Journal of Agricultural Science and Technology
Volume 24, Issue 1
January and February 2022
Pages 183-198