Cadmium Priming Alleviates Salinity Induced Oxidative Stress in Pigeon Pea

Plants are regularly exposed to an adverse environment due to their sessile nature which has negative impacts on plant development and productivity. In this study, the effect of seeds priming with 50 µM CdCl2 in ameliorating the salinity (200 mM NaCl) induced oxidative stress in pigeon pea was assessed. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) and malondialdehyde (MDA) content was reduced in Cd+SS (50 µM CdCl2 primed followed by 200 mM NaCl treatment) tissues as compared to salt stressed (SS) tissues. The activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), catalase (CAT), and guaicol peroxidase (GPX) were increased in Cd+SS tissues as compared to SS tissues. Moreover, the concentrations of ascorbic acid (ASC) and proline were also increased in Cd+SS tissues as compared to SS tissues. Thus, a low dose Cd priming provided tolerance to pigeon pea seedlings by activating the antioxidant machinery.