Action of Biotic Elicitors on Cherry Tomato Under Saline Stress: Physiological and Biochemical Variables

Using reverse osmose wastewater is an alternative to cope with water scarcity in the semiarid. Due to the high concentration of salts in brine, strategies have been developed to improve salinity tolerance. Thus, an experiment was carried out to investigate the protective role of salicylic acid (SA) and jasmonic acid (JA) in cherry tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L. var. cerasiforme cv. Samambaia) under non-saline (2.16 dS m⁻¹), moderate saline (4.50 dS m⁻¹), and severe saline (9.00 dS m⁻¹) nutrient solutions prepared with diluted reverse osmosis brine. 500 µM SA and 50 µM JA were sprayed, single or combined (SA + JA), exogenously on leaves, and water was sprayed as control. Results showed that moderate and severe salinity reduced plant growth and productivity due to accumulation of Na⁺ and reduced K⁺ and Ca²⁺ in plant tissues, increased lipid peroxidation and cell electrolyte leakage, and reduced photosynthetic pigment content. Foliar spray of SA and JA mitigated damages caused by salt stress by reducing Na⁺ content and maintaining membrane integrity, although it did not influence plant growth and productivity. In conclusion, adding brine to the nutrient solution reduces cherry tomato growth and productivity, and exogenous SA and JA alleviate salt toxicity.