The effect of silicon on reducing oxidative damage caused by cadmium in wheat in hydroponic conditions

 Abstract: The use of silicon has been considered as an effective strategy in reduce of cd uptake and affecting the oxidative damage caused by cd toxicity. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of the presence silicon (0.1 mM/L) and different levels of cadmium (0.10, 50 μmol/L) in wheat plants under hydroponic conditions. The results showed that increasing the concentration of cd increased the concentration of malondialdehyde (MDA) significantly and reduced MDA compared to plants treated only with cd. The results also showed that cd stress caused significant decrease in superoxide dismotase (SOD), polyphenoloxidase. (POD), and Catalase (CAT) activity in wheat leaves and roots. The results showed that the use of silicon significantly increased the activity of SOD, POD, APX enzymes in both leaves and roots, while it had no effect on CAT activity in leaves, but significantly increased catalase in roots. The results demonstrated that the use of silicon in cd stress conditions improves the damage caused by oxidative stress in the plant.