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<p>Drought stress severely limits lentil (<i>Lens culinaris</i> Medik.) productivity in dryland farming systems, necessitating effective and sustainable mitigation strategies. This field study evaluated the individual and combined effects of the plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) <i>Pseudomonas fluorescens</i> inoculation and foliar applications of melatonin and spermidine on growth, physiological traits, antioxidant responses, yield, and drought-related gene expression under rainfed conditions. Bacterial inoculation significantly increased plant height (45%), total dry weight (234%), and grain yield (273%) compared to untreated controls. Foliar application of melatonin (100 µM) enhanced plant height (36%) and total dry weight (256%). The combined melatonin–spermidine treatment resulted in the greatest improvements in plant height (63%), leaf area index (230%), and grain yield (314%). Photosynthetic pigment content, antioxidant enzyme activities, including superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and peroxidase (POD), and relative water content were significantly increased under combined treatments, while thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) content decreased by 46.5%, indicating reduced oxidative damage. Gene expression analysis showed that <i>P. fluorescens</i> inoculation was associated with elevated expression of the aquaporin gene aquaporin plasma membrane intrinsic protein 2 (AQPIP2) (1.7-fold) and fructose-1,6-bisphosphate aldolase (FBA;24-fold), coinciding with improved physiological performance related to water status and carbon metabolism. Melatonin–spermidine co-application also enhanced expression of these genes, suggesting coordinated physiological and molecular responses under drought stress. Overall, these results indicated that integrating PGPR inoculation with targeted foliar applications of melatonin and spermidine can improve lentil performance under dryland conditions through complementary physiological and molecular adjustments.</p>

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Physiological and molecular responses of lentil to plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) inoculation and targeted foliar application of melatonin and spermidine under dryland drought stress

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年8月4日

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  • Mehdi Movahedi,
  • Ahmad Gholami,
  • Valiallah Ghasemi Omran,
  • Mehdi Baradaran Firouzabadi,
  • Mustafa Heydari

摘要

Drought stress severely limits lentil (Lens culinaris Medik.) productivity in dryland farming systems, necessitating effective and sustainable mitigation strategies. This field study evaluated the individual and combined effects of the plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) Pseudomonas fluorescens inoculation and foliar applications of melatonin and spermidine on growth, physiological traits, antioxidant responses, yield, and drought-related gene expression under rainfed conditions. Bacterial inoculation significantly increased plant height (45%), total dry weight (234%), and grain yield (273%) compared to untreated controls. Foliar application of melatonin (100 µM) enhanced plant height (36%) and total dry weight (256%). The combined melatonin–spermidine treatment resulted in the greatest improvements in plant height (63%), leaf area index (230%), and grain yield (314%). Photosynthetic pigment content, antioxidant enzyme activities, including superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and peroxidase (POD), and relative water content were significantly increased under combined treatments, while thiobarbituric acid reactive substances (TBARS) content decreased by 46.5%, indicating reduced oxidative damage. Gene expression analysis showed that P. fluorescens inoculation was associated with elevated expression of the aquaporin gene aquaporin plasma membrane intrinsic protein 2 (AQPIP2) (1.7-fold) and fructose-1,6-bisphosphate aldolase (FBA;24-fold), coinciding with improved physiological performance related to water status and carbon metabolism. Melatonin–spermidine co-application also enhanced expression of these genes, suggesting coordinated physiological and molecular responses under drought stress. Overall, these results indicated that integrating PGPR inoculation with targeted foliar applications of melatonin and spermidine can improve lentil performance under dryland conditions through complementary physiological and molecular adjustments.