The effect of trehalose feeding on antioxidant system of Arabidopsis thaliana ntrc mutant

Trehalose is the alpha, alpha-1,1-linked glucose disaccharide which plays pivotal roles in plants growth, development and resistance to stress. The NADPH-dependent thioredoxin reductase C (NTRC) acts as redox regulatory factor and involved in different chloroplastic processes. The aim of present study was to gain further insight into the effect of trehalose on plant antioxidant system activity. For this purpose, the seeds of Arabidopsis thaliana (WT) and ntrc mutant plants (as sensitive plants to stress) were grown on MS medium with or without 100 mM sucrose and/or trehalose for 14 days. The results showed that trehalose treatment induced peroxidase, ascorbate peroxidase and polyphenol oxidase in both mutant lines and WT seedlings, compared to control and sucrose treatment. Meanwhile these enzyme activities were higher in WT seedlings than that of ntrc mutants. Trehalose treatment decreased hydrogen peroxide and malon dialdehyde content in WT seedlings but increased phenol and anthocyanin content, compared to control. Also, the amount of hydrogen peroxide in WT seedlings was lower than mutant seedlings by trehalose feeding. The results revealed that trehalose eliminates reactive oxygen species by inducing plant antioxidant system. The obtained data can be useful to understand the role of trehalose in plant stress resistance.