Abstract: | Soil contamination with toxic heavy metals such as cadmium (Cd)] is becoming a serious global problem due
to rapid development of social economy. Iron (Fe), being an important element, has been found effective in enhancing
plant tolerance against biotic and abiotic stresses. The present study investigated the extent to which different levels of
Ferrous sulphate (FeSO4) modulated the Cd tolerance of rice (Oryza sativa L.), when maintained in artificially Cd
spiked regimes. A pot experiment was conducted under controlled conditions for 146 days, by using natural soil,
mixed with different levels of CdCl2 0 (no Cd), 0.5 and 1 mg/kg] together with the exogenous application of FeSO4
at 0 (no Fe), 1.5 and 3 mg/kg] levels to monitor different growth, gaseous exchange characteristics, oxidative stress,
antioxidative responses, minerals accumulation, organic acid exudation patterns of O. sativa. Our results depicted that
addition of Cd to the soil significantly (P < 0.05) decreased plant growth and biomass, gaseous exchange parameters,
mineral uptake by the plants, sugars (soluble, reducing, and non-reducing sugar) and altered the ultrastructure of
chloroplasts, plastoglobuli, mitochondria, and many other cellular organelles in Cd-stressed O. sativa compared to
those plants which were grown without the addition of Cd in the soil. However, Cd toxicity boosted the production of
reactive oxygen species (ROS) by increasing the contents of malondialdehyde (MDA), which is the indication of
oxidative stress in O. sativa and was also manifested by hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) contents and electrolyte leakage to
the membrane bounded organelles. Although, activities of various antioxidative enzymes like superoxidase dismutase
(SOD), peroxidase (POD), catalase (CAT) and ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and non-enzymatic antioxidants like
phenolics, flavonoid, ascorbic acid, anthocyanin and proline contents increased up to a Cd level of 0.5 mg/kg in the
soil but were significantly diminished at the highest Cd level of 1 mg/kg in the soil compared to those plants which
were grown without the addition of Cd in the soil. The negative impacts of Cd injury were reduced by the application
of FeSO4 which increased plant growth and biomass, improved photosynthetic apparatus, antioxidant enzymes, minerals uptake together with diminished exudation of organic acids as well as oxidative stress indicators in roots and
shoots of O. sativa by decreasing Cd retention in different plant parts. These results shed light on the effectiveness of
FeSO4 in improving the growth and upregulation of antioxidant enzyme activities of O. sativa in response to Cd
stress. However, further studies at field levels are required to explore the mechanisms of FeSO4-mediated reduction of
the toxicity of not only Cd, but possibly also other heavy metals in plants. |