Abstract

Salinity affects ~ 950 million ha of the world’s land area. More importantly, this worldwide problem is gradually increasing and limiting productivity. The aim of the present study was to investigate the protective effects of Ca²⁺ against NaCl induced salt stress in Lens culinaris. We comparatively analyzed growth, oxidative stress, photosynthetic potential and antioxidant enzyme activities in red and green lentils. Plants were allowed to germinate and then treated with or without NaCl (50, 200 mM) and/or CaCl₂ (5, 10 mM) for seven days. NaCl treatment decreased growth, chlorophyll content, carotenoid content and the activities of CAT and Ascorbate peroxidase (APX in both tested plants. Moreover MDA, H₂O₂ and proline levels were increased by NaCl treatment in red and green lentils, indicating that antioxidant system was disrupted by salinity. This study indicated that Ca²⁺ ameliorated the inhibitory effects of NaCl on growth and photosynthesis by regulating the activities of pivotal antioxidant enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), APX and catalase (CAT) in red and green lentils. Further studies are needed to investigate the underlying molecular mechanisms of Ca²⁺ dependent protective effects under salt stress. 

Key words: Lens culinaris, calcium, salt stress, oxidative stress, antioxidant enzymes, lipid peroxidation.