Inhibition of deoxyhypusine synthase by GC7 induces the modification of fruit setting and polyamine catabolism in tomato plants exposed to salt stress

Tomato is one of the primary agricultural plants, grown in various areas affected by salt stress. Protein translation is a crucial process in the stress tolerance of crop plants. There is evidence to indicate that hypusination, which is a polyamine‑dependent metabolic post‑translational modification of eukaryotic translation factor 5A, may play a crucial role in tolerance to salt stress. In the present study, in order to clarify the importance of the first step of hypusination, the deoxyhypusine synthase (DHS) pharmacological inhibitor, GC7, was applied. A pot experiment was undertaken to examine the effects of the inhibition of DHS by GC7 on tomato (<em>Solanum lycopersicum</em>) flower and fruit parameters under conditions of salt stress. The results revealed that GC7 promoted the formation of more flowers and fruits in tomato plants subjected to salt stress, and effectively increased the bioactive lycopene content during conditions of salt stress. On the whole, the findings of the present study demonstrate that the modulation of hypusination may be a promising breeding target with which to enhance the tolerance of tomato plants to salt stress.