Physiological and Biochemical Responses of 13 Cultivars of Triticale (x Triticosecale Wittmack) to Salt Stress

High salinity in soil is probably one of the most significant abiotic factors limiting plant/crop growth and development in arid and semi-arid regions. The objective of this study was to screen triticale varieties for tolerance or susceptibility to salt stress. Seedlings from 13 triticale varieties, durum wheat and rye genotypes were subjected to different salinity levels (0, 50, 100, 150, 200, 250 and 300 mM NaCI) and several physiological and biochemical parameters related to salinity tolerance traits were evaluated upon treatment. Seed germination significantly reduced up to 17% under 300 mM NaCI treatment. The results related to physiological traits indicated that Bera, Tatlicak97 and Alperbey had the highest seed germination with over 60% under 250 mM salinity treatment. In addition, although increasing NaCl concentration decreased coleoptile and radicle length, Tatlicak97 had the highest coleoptile and radicle length under 250 mM NaCI stress conditions. Biochemical analysis results indicated that proline, malondialdehyde (MDA) and hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) levels were strongly upregulated for all genotypes with an increase of NaCI concentration. These results suggest that although triticale varieties are tolerant to high salinity, there is variation in tolerance among different genotypes. The experiments provided preliminary evidence such as better growth parameters and increased proline content that Tatlicak97 could serve as genetic resource for improved triticale tolerance to salinity both future studies and plant breeding.