Interactive Effects of <i>Epichloë</i> Endophyte, Dormancy-Breaking Treatments and Geographic Origin on Seed Germination of <i>Achnatherum inebrians</i>
Background: the cool-season grass <i>Achnatherum inebrians</i> (drunken horse grass) is an important species in the northwest grasslands of China. This grass engages in a symbiotic relationship with <i>Epichloë</i> endophytes, which affect host plants by increasing growth, re...
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| Autores principales: | , , , |
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| Formato: | article |
| Lenguaje: | EN |
| Publicado: |
MDPI AG
2021
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| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://doaj.org/article/67873609752b4b299db603e4a3b067d8 |
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| Sumario: | Background: the cool-season grass <i>Achnatherum inebrians</i> (drunken horse grass) is an important species in the northwest grasslands of China. This grass engages in a symbiotic relationship with <i>Epichloë</i> endophytes, which affect host plants by increasing growth, repelling herbivores, and increasing tolerance to stressful environments. Methods: in this work, we evaluated the interaction effects of the endophyte on various dormancy-breaking treatments on A. <i>inebrians</i> seeds from six different locations. We used both endophyte-infected plants and noninfected plants and applied four dormancy-breaking methods to test germination. Results: our results showed that the germination rate of endophytic <i>Achnatherum inebrians</i> seeds from the Xiahe site (with highest altitude) was significantly higher than that from other sites when water soaking was applied (<i>p</i> < 0.05). Endophytic seeds had a greater germination rate, and soluble sugar, indole acetic acid (IAA), and gibberellin (GA) contents, under any condition. There was a significant interaction among the method, endophyte status, and origin regarding germination (<i>p</i> < 0.001); particularly, the effects of warm water soaking and endophyte infection on the germination of seeds from the Xiahe site was significant (<i>p</i> < 0.05). Conclusions: the infection of <i>Epichloë</i> endophyte is able to increase the content of soluble sugar, IAA, and GA, and stimulate the seed germination of A. <i>inebrians</i>. |
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