Effect of salt stress on lipid peroxidation and superoxide dismutase and peroxidase activities of Lycopersicon esculentum and L. pennellii

In this study, a relationship between lipid peroxidation, the antioxidant defense system and salt stress in salt-sensitive cultivated tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum) and its salt-tolerant wild relative (L. pennellii) was established. Superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities were significantly higher in the leaves of L. pennellii than those of L. esculentum after 12 and 84 d. POX activity showed a gradual increase in both cultivars under 70 mM NaCl. POX activity in L. pennellii significantly increased after 6 and 84 d whereas showed no remarkable change in leaves of L. esculentum under 140 mM NaCl. A higher salinity tolerance of L. pennellii was also correlated with a lower lipid peroxidation, which might be due to a higher content of antioxidant enzymes studied.Ege Üniversitesi: 2000-FEN-027Received 16 November 2004, accepted 24 May 2005. Abbreviations: APOX - ascorbate peroxidase; BSA - bovine serum albumine; DAB - diaminobenzidine-tetrahydrochloride dehydrate; EDTA - ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid; GR - glutathione reductase; MDA - malondialdehyde; NBT - nitroblue tetrazolium; POX - peroxidase; PVPP - polyvinylpolypyrrolidone; ROS - reactive oxygen species; SOD - superoxide dismutase. Acknowledgements: This study was supported by Ege University, Research Project Foundation; project no: 2000-FEN-027. The authors wish to thank Tijen Demiral for her excellent assistance in the preparation of the paper. * Corresponding author; fax: (+90) 232 3881036, e-mail: ismail.turkan@ege.edu.tr -