Impact of heavy metals on germination and seedling growth of Triticale plants after seed priming with zeatin

The effect of heavy metal compounds (cadmium, cobalt, manganese) on germination and seedlings growth of Triticale (×Triticosecale Wittmack, cv. ADM9 Synthetic) after pre-sowing seed priming with cytokinin was studied. Contamination of agricultural land with pollutants of anthropogenic origin has become a particular threat in Ukraine, where the content of heavy metal compounds in soil has increased significantly as a result of military actions. Plants, especially cereals, absorb heavy metals and accumulate them in themselves, which prevents their growth and poses a health hazard to consumers. One way to mitigate the negative effects of heavy metals on plants is an application of exogenous phytohormones. In the present research, the effect of CdCl2, Co(NO3)2 and MnSO4 solutions at concentrations of 50 μM, 100 μM, 250 μM on germination and growth of Triticale seedlings after priming seeds with a zeatin solution (10−6 M) was studied. The experiments showed that heavy metals negatively affect the germination of Triticale seeds and the further seedling growth. They had a particularly detrimental effect on the development of the root system. Cadmium, cobalt and manganese at different concentrations altered the final germination rate and the seedling linear parameters differ- ently. Cadmium demonstrated the most toxic effect on seedling growth whereas manganese was not toxic at low con- centrations. All the elements studied had a harmful impact at a concentration of 250 μM. The results of seed priming with cytokinins to mitigate the inhibitory effect of heavy metals on Triticale plant growth depended on the nature of the metal and its concentration. The obatined data can be taken into account in the future in developing experimental designs for continuing research aimed at developing biotechnologies to overcome the consequences of soil contamina- tion with cadmium, cobalt and manganese compounds.