Physiological and antioxidant responses of three leguminous species to saline environment during seed germination stage

The study investigated the physiological behaviors and antioxidant responses of Medicago sativa, Melilotus officinalis and Astragalus adsurgens to saline environment during seed germination stage. At 300 mM NaCl treatments, the final germination percentage of M. officinalis was much higher than that of M. sativa and of A. adsurgens and the initiation of germination process of A. adsurgens was 5 days later than the others. Moreover, after being treated in 300 mM NaCl, much weaker catalase (CAT) activity in seed of M. officinalis, peroxidase (POD) activity in seed of A. adsurgens and glutathione reductase (GR) activity in seed of M. sativa were found in the controls and salt treatments. Thus, oxidative stress could be an influential component of salt stresses on plant seeds during seed germination stage.