In a laboratory based study, Salvinia natans L. was pre-treated with reduced glutathione (GSH) following transfer under 2, 4-Dicholro phenoxy acetic acid (2,4-D), peroxide (H2O2), dark and irradiation. Plants recorded 2, 4-D bio-accumulation and tolerance maximally under 500 µM following absorption kinetics modulated with GSH in changes of relative water content (20.98%), growth rate (3.04%) and net assimilation rate (1.3 fold) over control. GSH pre-treatment minimized the oxidative revelation with reactive oxygen species (ROS) by 5.55% decrease under 2, 4-D and 1.3, 1.2, 0.8 fold increase through the other stresses. Apoplastic NADPH-oxidase expression was moderated by GSH with 11.76% less over the control. Also the activity of alcohol dehydrogenase and glutathione-S-transferase had their altered values by 1.5 and 9.0 fold increases respectively and may serve as biomarkers. The oxidized:reduced glutathione was positively correlated with glutathione-peroxidase (r=+0.99) and negatively with glutathione reductase (r=-0.04). The induced activities sustained oxidized:reduced GSH pool by 1.09 fold and had varied polymorphic gene expression under 2, 4-D and allied stresses. This study may be relevant to consider Salvinia as a potent weed species remediating 2, 4-D toxicity in soil with its wider hyper-accumulating efficiency. The cellular responses in tolerance to oxidative stress and thereby, induced physiological attributes may opt for selection pressures in other weed flora for broader aspects of phytoremediation against xenobiotics like 2, 4-D.
Keywords: 24-D; Aquatic fern; Bioaccumulation; Glutathione; Reactive oxygen species.
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