Abstract
This study aims to assess the effects of biostimulants, including seaweed extracts and its related substances (polyphenols, polysaccharides, amino acids, and mannitol), under three different abiotic stress conditions: drought, salinity, and hypoxia. The experiment involved treating Arabidopsis plants with different concentrations of biostimulants and subjecting them to the stress conditions, on a primed state (drought and hypoxia) or during the stress (salinity). Assessments were made through leaf elongation rates and RNA sequencing. The results showed that the application of biostimulants improved leaf elongation, and dysregulated key genes involved in stress response, growth, and recovery. The biostimulants also showed positive effects on the antioxidant defence. Overall, this study provides valuable insights into the potential use of biostimulants in mitigating the negative impacts of abiotic stress on plant growth and productivity and shed lights on following questions and procedures in biostimulant research.Thesis is embargoed unitl 31 July 2026.
| Date of Award | Jul 2024 |
|---|---|
| Original language | English |
| Awarding Institution |
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| Supervisor | Fuquan Liu (Supervisor) & Thomas Fleming (Supervisor) |
Keywords
- Abiotic stress
- biostimulants
- Arabidopsis
- hypoxia
- salinity
- drought