Carrageenans as biostimulants and bio-elicitors: plant growth and defense responses

Md Motaher Hossain; Farjana Sultana; Sabia Khan; Jannatun Nayeema; Mahabuba Mostafa; Humayra Ferdus; Lam-Son Phan Tran; Mohammad Golam Mostofa

doi:10.1007/s44154-023-00143-9

Carrageenans as biostimulants and bio-elicitors: plant growth and defense responses

Stress Biol. 2024 Jan 3;4(1):3. doi: 10.1007/s44154-023-00143-9.

Authors

Md Motaher Hossain¹, Farjana Sultana², Sabia Khan³, Jannatun Nayeema¹, Mahabuba Mostafa¹, Humayra Ferdus¹, Lam-Son Phan Tran⁴, Mohammad Golam Mostofa^{5

6}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Plant Pathology, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University, Gazipur, 1706, Bangladesh.
² College of Agricultural Sciences, International University of Business Agriculture and Technology, Dhaka, 1230, Bangladesh.
³ Department of Agriculture, Faculty of Science, Noakhali Science and Technology University, Noakhali, 3814, Bangladesh.
⁴ Institute of Genomics for Crop Abiotic Stress Tolerance, Department of Plant and Soil Science, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, 79409, USA. son.tran@ttu.edu.
⁵ Department of Energy Plant Research Laboratory, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48824, USA. mostofam@msu.edu.
⁶ Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI, 48824, USA. mostofam@msu.edu.

Abstract

In the context of climate change, the need to ensure food security and safety has taken center stage. Chemical fertilizers and pesticides are traditionally used to achieve higher plant productivity and improved plant protection from biotic stresses. However, the widespread use of fertilizers and pesticides has led to significant risks to human health and the environment, which are further compounded by the emissions of greenhouse gases during fertilizer and pesticide production and application, contributing to global warming and climate change. The naturally occurring sulfated linear polysaccharides obtained from edible red seaweeds (Rhodophyta), carrageenans, could offer climate-friendly substitutes for these inputs due to their bi-functional activities. Carrageenans and their derivatives, known as oligo-carrageenans, facilitate plant growth through a multitude of metabolic courses, including chlorophyll metabolism, carbon fixation, photosynthesis, protein synthesis, secondary metabolite generation, and detoxification of reactive oxygen species. In parallel, these compounds suppress pathogens by their direct antimicrobial activities and/or improve plant resilience against pathogens by modulating biochemical changes via salicylate (SA) and/or jasmonate (JA) and ethylene (ET) signaling pathways, resulting in increased production of secondary metabolites, defense-related proteins, and antioxidants. The present review summarizes the usage of carrageenans for increasing plant development and defense responses to pathogenic challenges under climate change. In addition, the current state of knowledge regarding molecular mechanisms and metabolic alterations in plants during carrageenan-stimulated plant growth and plant disease defense responses has been discussed. This evaluation will highlight the potential use of these new biostimulants in increasing agricultural productivity under climate change.

Keywords: Antioxidants; Biostimulants; Carrageenan; Defense genes; Metabolites; Oligo carrageenans; Red seaweed; Signaling pathways.

Publication types

Review