Effects of Different Selenium Concentrations on Physiology of Prunus davidiana Seedlings

College of Horticulture, Sichuan Agricultural University, Chengdu, Sichuan, 611130, China

^* Corresponding author’s e-mail: lman@sicau.edu.cn

Abstract

To study the effects of selenium on physiology, Prunus davidiana seedlings were treated with the irrigation of different selenium concentrations solution. The result showed that the photosynthetic pigment content was relatively higher at selenium concentrations of 0, 0.05 and 0.1 mg/L except for carotenoid content which was the highest at 0.1 mg/L but the lowest in control seedlings. In terms of antioxidant enzyme activity, the activities of peroxidase (POD), catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) in selenium-treated seedlings were all higher than that in control seedlings and especially at the selenium concentration of 1 mg/L. The soluble protein content accumulated most at 0.25 mg/L selenium concentration. The content of malondialdehyde (MDA), as membrane lipid peroxidation index, was the lowest at selenium concentration of 0.5 mg/L. In a word, irrigating lower selenium concentrations could increase the photosynthetic pigment content and higher selenium concentrations enhanced the antioxidant enzyme activity to increase cell protection and kept the P. davidiana seedlings good growth and resistance to adverse environments.