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Enhancing potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) resilience: The role of selenium in modulating growth, antioxidant capacity, and tuber quality under salinity stress

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Salt stress significantly reduces potato yield by affecting plant growth, physiology, and tuber quality. However, selenium is a beneficial micronutrient that can mitigate salt-induced damage. This study explores the effects of sodium selenite on potato performance under varying salinity levels. A pot experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of exogenous sodium selenite (S 0 : 0, S 1 : 10, S 2 : 20, and S 3 : 30 mg L −1 ) on potato ( Solanum tuberosum L.) grown under varying salinity levels (SL 0 : 0, SL 1 : 3, and SL 2 : 6 g kg −1 NaCl). The results revealed that salt stress significantly reduced the growth and biomass production of potato plants; however, the exogenous application of sodium selenite at 20 mg L −1 exhibited a significant increase in morpho-physiological growth, antioxidant enzyme activities, and tuber quality attributes. Malondialdehyde (MDA) contents were highest in control treatments, and maximum reduction in MDA content was observed in SL 1 S 2 at the budding stage and in SL 2 S 2 at the flowering stage. A similar trend was observed for proline contents in potato plants under salinity stress. Antioxidant enzymatic activities, were lowest in SL 2 S 0 , and the maximum increase in SOD activity was recorded in SL 1 S 2 at the budding and flowering stages (42.6 % and 58.6 %, respectively), followed by SL 2 S 2 (35.2 % and 47.8 %, respectively). However, CAT (63.5 % and 170.9 %) and POD (209.7 % and 54.9 %) activities were highest in SL 2 S 2 at the budding and flowering stages, respectively. It was further noticed that exogenous application of selenium showed more promising results in terms of better tuber quality. In the SL 1 S 2 treatment, starch, amylose, and amylopectin contents increased by 56.9 %, 154.5 %, and 12.9 %, respectively. Sodium selenite thus shows promise for enhancing potato resilience in saline soils, supporting food security in challenging environments. • Na 2 SeO 3 boosts potato growth, antioxidants & biomass under salinity stress. • Na 2 SeO 3 reduces MDA & elevates antioxidant enzymes under salt stress. • Na 2 SeO 3 enhances tuber starch, amylopectin & amylose under salinity.

Source: Journal of Agriculture and Food Research

DOI: 10.1016/j.jafr.2025.102259