Physiological and biochemical changes in Moroccan barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) cultivars submitted to drought stress

Mohamed Ferioun; Nassira Srhiouar; Said Bouhraoua; Naïma El Ghachtouli; Saïd Louahlia

doi:10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e13643

Physiological and biochemical changes in Moroccan barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) cultivars submitted to drought stress

Heliyon. 2023 Feb 10;9(2):e13643. doi: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2023.e13643. eCollection 2023 Feb.

Authors

Mohamed Ferioun^{1

2}, Nassira Srhiouar¹, Said Bouhraoua¹, Naïma El Ghachtouli², Saïd Louahlia¹

Affiliations

¹ Natural Resources and Environmental Laboratory. Taza Polydisciplinary Faculty, Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University, Fez, Morocco.
² Microbial Biotechnology and Bioactive Molecules Laboratory, Sciences and Technology Faculty, Sidi Mohamed Ben Abdellah University, Fez, Morocco.

Abstract

Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) is the second most consumed and cultivated cereal by the Moroccan population. However, it is predicted that frequent drought periods, caused by climate change, can cause problems in plant growth. Thus, the selection of drought-tolerant barley cultivars is essential to ensure the security of barley's needs. We aimed to screen drought stress tolerance in Moroccan barley cultivars. We tested the drought tolerance of nine Moroccan barley cultivars ('Adrar', 'Amalou', 'Amira', 'Firdaws', 'Laanaceur', 'Massine', 'Oussama', 'Taffa', and 'Tamellalt') based on physiological and biochemical parameters. Drought stress was applied by maintaining field capacity at 40% (90% for the control), and plants were randomly arranged in a greenhouse at 25 °C under natural light conditions. Drought stress decreased relative water content (RWC), shoot dry weight (SDW), and chlorophyll content (SPAD index), but significantly increased electrolyte leakage, hydrogen peroxide, malondialdehyde (MDA), water-soluble carbohydrates, and soluble protein contents, as well as catalase (CAT) and ascorbate peroxidase (APX) activities. High levels of SDW, RWC, CAT, and APX activities were recorded in 'Firdaws', 'Laanaceur', 'Massine', 'Taffa', and 'Oussama', which can be interpreted by high drought tolerance. On the other hand, 'Adrar', 'Amalou', 'Amira', and 'Tamellalt' showed higher values of MDA and H₂O₂ content, which can be linked with drought sensitivity. Physiological and biochemical parameter changes are discussed in terms of barley's tolerance to drought. Tolerant cultivars could be a good background for barley breeding in areas known for the alternative of long dry spells.

Keywords: Barley; Drought stress; Drought tolerance; Hordeum vulgare; Physiological parameters.