Role of Endophytic Bacillus subtilis SSA4 and Melatonin in Enhancing Paddy Seedling Growth under Salt Stress
摘要
NaCl stress significantly limits the growth and yield of paddy crop plants. Plant growth-promoting endophytes significantly affected plant health. Melatonin (N-acetyl-5-methoxytryptamine; MT) is a plant hormone and multifunctional signalling molecule plays a significant role in NaCl stress tolerance. In the present study, paddy seedlings treated with B. subtilis strain SSA4 egg cell-based bioformulation and MT (50 μM and 100 μM) significantly (P < 0.001) enhanced paddy seedlings growth parameters, photosynthetic pigments, photosynthesis, respiration and leaves gas exchange parameters. A significant decline (P < 0.001) in oxidative stress biomarkers and antioxidant enzymes activities under NaCl (0–100 mM) lower and higher dose stress was noted due to B. subtilis strain SSA4 and MT treatments. Regression analyses exhibited positive relationship between O2 evolution and respiration O2 with antioxidant enzymes CAT (R2 = 0.5487; R2 = 0.3131), SOD (R2 = 0.2943; R2 = 0.262) and POX (R2 = 0.6162; R2 = 0.6266) indicates significant improvement in paddy seedlings. In conclusion, endophyte co-inoculation with signalling molecule found an effective bio-tools to mitigating NaCl stress in paddy seedlings.