Differential Impact of SiO<sub>2</sub> Foliar Application on Lettuce Response to Temperature, Salinity, and Drought Stress
Silicon dioxide (SiO<sub>2</sub>) foliar application offers a promising strategy for enhancing lettuce (<i>Lactuca sativa</i> L.) resilience under temperature extremes, salinity, and drought stress. This study investigated the effects of SiO<sub>2</sub> treatment...
Saved in:
| Main Authors: | , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2025-06-01
|
| Series: | Plants |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/12/1845 |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| _version_ | 1849431416997150720 |
|---|---|
| author | Ivan Simko Rebecca Zhao Hui Peng |
| author_facet | Ivan Simko Rebecca Zhao Hui Peng |
| author_sort | Ivan Simko |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Silicon dioxide (SiO<sub>2</sub>) foliar application offers a promising strategy for enhancing lettuce (<i>Lactuca sativa</i> L.) resilience under temperature extremes, salinity, and drought stress. This study investigated the effects of SiO<sub>2</sub> treatment on three lettuce cultivars exposed to varying temperature, salinity, and drought conditions in a controlled growth chamber environment. Silicon treatment (3.66 mM) significantly enhanced plant biomass under suboptimal (15 °C), optimal (20 °C), and salinity stress conditions. Notably, the SiO<sub>2</sub> effect was most positive under severe salinity stress (100 mM NaCl), where its application increased plant weight together with chlorophyll and anthocyanin content. When increasing SiO<sub>2</sub> concentrations from 0 to 29.30 mM were tested, optimal results to alleviate severe salinity stress were consistently observed at 3.66 mM, with peak performance in fresh weight, plant diameter, chlorophyll, and anthocyanin content. Higher SiO<sub>2</sub> concentrations progressively diminished these beneficial effects, with 29.30 mM treatment leading to reduced growth and increased leaf chlorosis. Comprehensive mineral composition analysis revealed complex interactions between silicon treatment and elemental profiles at 100 mM salinity stress. At 3.66 mM SiO<sub>2</sub>, plants accumulated the highest levels of both K (20,406 mg/kg dry weight, DW) and Na (16,185 mg/kg DW) while maintaining the highest K/Na ratio (1.26). This suggests that Si enhances cellular ion compartmentalization rather than exclusion mechanisms, allowing plants to manage higher total ion content better while minimizing cytoplasmic damage. Drought stress conditions unexpectedly revealed negative impacts from 3.66 mM SiO<sub>2</sub> application, with decreased plant fresh weight at moderate (50% soil water content, SWC) and severe (30% SWC) water limitations, though results were statistically significant only under severe drought stress. The study highlights silicon’s potential as a stress mitigation agent, particularly under salinity stress, while emphasizing the need for concentration-specific and stress-specific approaches. These findings suggest that foliar SiO<sub>2</sub> application could be a valuable tool for enhancing lettuce crop productivity under both optimal and challenging environmental conditions, with future research warranting field validation and full market maturity assessments. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-19bf55bc5bcf4a3b85b96cebf2eccc04 |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 2223-7747 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Plants |
| spelling | doaj-art-19bf55bc5bcf4a3b85b96cebf2eccc042025-08-20T03:27:39ZengMDPI AGPlants2223-77472025-06-011412184510.3390/plants14121845Differential Impact of SiO<sub>2</sub> Foliar Application on Lettuce Response to Temperature, Salinity, and Drought StressIvan Simko0Rebecca Zhao1Hui Peng2Sam Farr United States Crop Improvement and Protection Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Salinas, CA 93905, USASam Farr United States Crop Improvement and Protection Research Center, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Salinas, CA 93905, USAEverglades Research and Education Center–Horticultural Sciences Department, University of Florida, Belle Glade, FL 33430, USASilicon dioxide (SiO<sub>2</sub>) foliar application offers a promising strategy for enhancing lettuce (<i>Lactuca sativa</i> L.) resilience under temperature extremes, salinity, and drought stress. This study investigated the effects of SiO<sub>2</sub> treatment on three lettuce cultivars exposed to varying temperature, salinity, and drought conditions in a controlled growth chamber environment. Silicon treatment (3.66 mM) significantly enhanced plant biomass under suboptimal (15 °C), optimal (20 °C), and salinity stress conditions. Notably, the SiO<sub>2</sub> effect was most positive under severe salinity stress (100 mM NaCl), where its application increased plant weight together with chlorophyll and anthocyanin content. When increasing SiO<sub>2</sub> concentrations from 0 to 29.30 mM were tested, optimal results to alleviate severe salinity stress were consistently observed at 3.66 mM, with peak performance in fresh weight, plant diameter, chlorophyll, and anthocyanin content. Higher SiO<sub>2</sub> concentrations progressively diminished these beneficial effects, with 29.30 mM treatment leading to reduced growth and increased leaf chlorosis. Comprehensive mineral composition analysis revealed complex interactions between silicon treatment and elemental profiles at 100 mM salinity stress. At 3.66 mM SiO<sub>2</sub>, plants accumulated the highest levels of both K (20,406 mg/kg dry weight, DW) and Na (16,185 mg/kg DW) while maintaining the highest K/Na ratio (1.26). This suggests that Si enhances cellular ion compartmentalization rather than exclusion mechanisms, allowing plants to manage higher total ion content better while minimizing cytoplasmic damage. Drought stress conditions unexpectedly revealed negative impacts from 3.66 mM SiO<sub>2</sub> application, with decreased plant fresh weight at moderate (50% soil water content, SWC) and severe (30% SWC) water limitations, though results were statistically significant only under severe drought stress. The study highlights silicon’s potential as a stress mitigation agent, particularly under salinity stress, while emphasizing the need for concentration-specific and stress-specific approaches. These findings suggest that foliar SiO<sub>2</sub> application could be a valuable tool for enhancing lettuce crop productivity under both optimal and challenging environmental conditions, with future research warranting field validation and full market maturity assessments.https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/12/1845silicon dioxidefoliar applicationabiotic stresssalinity tolerancelettuce (<i>Lactuca sativa</i>)mineral composition |
| spellingShingle | Ivan Simko Rebecca Zhao Hui Peng Differential Impact of SiO<sub>2</sub> Foliar Application on Lettuce Response to Temperature, Salinity, and Drought Stress Plants silicon dioxide foliar application abiotic stress salinity tolerance lettuce (<i>Lactuca sativa</i>) mineral composition |
| title | Differential Impact of SiO<sub>2</sub> Foliar Application on Lettuce Response to Temperature, Salinity, and Drought Stress |
| title_full | Differential Impact of SiO<sub>2</sub> Foliar Application on Lettuce Response to Temperature, Salinity, and Drought Stress |
| title_fullStr | Differential Impact of SiO<sub>2</sub> Foliar Application on Lettuce Response to Temperature, Salinity, and Drought Stress |
| title_full_unstemmed | Differential Impact of SiO<sub>2</sub> Foliar Application on Lettuce Response to Temperature, Salinity, and Drought Stress |
| title_short | Differential Impact of SiO<sub>2</sub> Foliar Application on Lettuce Response to Temperature, Salinity, and Drought Stress |
| title_sort | differential impact of sio sub 2 sub foliar application on lettuce response to temperature salinity and drought stress |
| topic | silicon dioxide foliar application abiotic stress salinity tolerance lettuce (<i>Lactuca sativa</i>) mineral composition |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/12/1845 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT ivansimko differentialimpactofsiosub2subfoliarapplicationonlettuceresponsetotemperaturesalinityanddroughtstress AT rebeccazhao differentialimpactofsiosub2subfoliarapplicationonlettuceresponsetotemperaturesalinityanddroughtstress AT huipeng differentialimpactofsiosub2subfoliarapplicationonlettuceresponsetotemperaturesalinityanddroughtstress |