Copper (Cu) is an abundant essential micronutrient element in various rocks and minerals and is required for a variety of metabolic
processes in both prokaryotes and eukaryotes. However, excess Cu can disturb normal development by adversely affecting biochemical
reactions and physiological processes in plants. The present study was conducted to explore the potential of gibberellic acid (GA3)
on fibrous jute (Corchorus capsularis L.) seedlings grown on Cu mining soil obtained from Hubei Province China. Exogenous
application of GA3 (10, 50, and 100 mg/L) on 60-day-old seedlings of C. capsularis which was able to grow in highly Cucontaminated
soil (2221 mg/kg) to study different morphological, physiological, and Cu uptake and accumulation in different parts
of C. capsularis seedlings. According to the results, increasing concentration of GA3 (more likely 100 mg/L) alleviates Cu toxicity in
C. capsularis seedlings by increasing plant growth, biomass, photosynthetic pigments, and gaseous exchange attributes. The results
also showed that exogenous application of GA3 reduced oxidative stress in C. capsularis seedlings by the generation of extra reactive
oxygen species (ROS). The reduction in oxidative stress in C. capsularis seedlings is because that plant has strong enzymatic
antioxidants [superoxidase dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), ascorbate peroxidase (APX), and catalase (CAT)], which ultimately
increased their activities to overcome oxidative damage in the cells/tissues. In addition to the plant growth, biomass, and photosynthesis,
foliar application ofGA3 also helps to increasemetal (Cu) concentration in different parts of the plants when compared to 0mg/L
of application of GA3. From these findings, we can conclude that foliar application of GA3 plays a promising role in reducing ROS
generation in the plant cells/tissues and increased phytoextraction of Cu in different plant parts. However, more investigation is needed
on field experiments to find a combination of GA3 with a very higher concentration of Cu using fibrous C. capsularis. |
