Ameliorative effects of Ca 2+ on the growth, metabolism, cationic status and cell wall degrading enzymes of induced salinity stress Vicia faba L.

Vicia faba L. Plant was grown in a pot experiment to study the positive role of CaCl2 on NaCl induced stress in terms of growth parameters, metabolic, cation contents and cell wall degrading enzymes in different plant organs. The salinity treatments were having an osmotic potential of (0.0; -0.23;-0.46; -0.92 and -1.15 MPa), respectively. A hundred ml of 10 mM CaCl2 were added to the previous concentrations for seven weeks. The data revealed that, NaCl treatments reduced the growth parameters; which most sensitive in root than shoot. Organic cytosolutes were much higher in root than shoot organ except for protein accumulation. The amount of inorganic cytosolutes (Na+ and Ca++) in general increased markedly in shoot than root and vice versa for K+ and Mg++. CaCl2 treatment alone induces these parameters than control one. Mixed salts of NaCl and CaCl2 positively improve the aforementioned parameters with varying degrees depending on the organs. While root seems to be the more sensitive organ for growth parameters measured, it also seems most accumulator organ than shoot for many metabolites. For the ionic contents, shoot and root varies between the mono and divalent cations. Cell wall degrading enzymes significantly and progressively increased as salinity level of treated plants increased. However, CaCl2 treatments induced a significant reduction in the activity of these enzymes when compared with their respective NaCl treatments. The ameliorative percentage due to calcium application of stressed faba bean on growth parameters ranges from 17.53 to 79.55 %; for metabolites from 8.69 to 194.91; for ionic status from 9.94 to 56.67 %, and for cell wall degrading enzymes from 16.76 to 39.15 %. These data leads to strongly recommend adding CaCl2 to saline environment to decrease the deleterious effects of salinity.