Abstract
Salinity stress is a primary abiotic constraint limiting global crop productivity, with progressive soil salinization inducing growth inhibition and physiological dysfunction in plants. Although melatonin (MT) has been extensively documented to enhance stress adaptation, the underlying mechanisms through which it mediates salt tolerance by integrating physiological processes remain unclear. This study investigated the effects of varying MT concentrations on photosynthetic performance, plant water relations, water-use efficiency, and stress-responsive physiological parameters in tomatoes, aiming to identify the key physiological pathways for MT-mediated salt stress mitigation. The results showed that salt stress significantly reduced the leaf relative water content and root hydraulic conductivity, suppressed the photosynthetic rate, and ultimately caused significant reductions in the aboveground and root biomass. MT spraying effectively improved leaf water status and root water uptake capacity, enhancing the photosynthetic rate and water-use efficiency, thereby providing material and energy support for plant growth. Furthermore, MT spraying increased the total antioxidant capacity in leaves and promoted the synthesis of phenolic and flavonoid compounds, thereby reducing oxidative damage. Simultaneously, it stimulated the accumulation of osmolytes to enhance cellular osmotic adjustment capacity and optimized ion uptake to maintain cellular ion homeostasis. Among the tested concentrations, 100 μM MT showed the most significant alleviative effects. This concentration comprehensively enhanced the salt tolerance and growth performance of tomato plants by synergistically optimizing water use, photosynthetic function, antioxidant defense, and ion balance. In conclusion, these findings provide experimental evidence for elucidating the physiological mechanisms underlying MT-mediated salt tolerance in tomatoes and offer theoretical references for the rational application of MT in crop production under saline conditions.
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Claims 11
Claim · model-written summary
Salt stress significantly reduced leaf relative water content and root hydraulic conductivity.
- Taxon
- Tomato
Solanum lycopersicumt0 - Treatment
- salt stresse0
- Outcome
- leaf relative water content and root hydraulic conductivitye0
- Direction
- reducede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“salt stress significantly reduced the leaf relative water content and root hydraulic conductivity”
t0“Tomato”
Claim · model-written summary
Salt stress suppressed photosynthetic rate.
- Taxon
- TomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Outcome
- photosynthetic ratee0
- Direction
- suppressede0
Not reportedTreatmentComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“suppressed the photosynthetic rate”
t0“Tomato”
Claim · model-written summary
Salt stress significantly reduced aboveground and root biomass.
- Taxon
- TomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Outcome
- aboveground and root biomasse0
- Direction
- reductionse0
Not reportedTreatmentComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“significant reductions in the aboveground and root biomass.”
t0“Tomato”
Claim · model-written summary
Melatonin spraying improved leaf water status and root water uptake capacity.
- Taxon
- TomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Treatment
- MT sprayinge0
- Outcome
- leaf water status and root water uptake capacitye0
- Direction
- improvede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“MT spraying effectively improved leaf water status and root water uptake capacity, enhancing the photosynthetic rate and water-use efficiency”
t0“Tomato”
Claim · model-written summary
Melatonin spraying enhanced photosynthetic rate and water-use efficiency.
- Taxon
- TomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Treatment
- MT sprayinge0
- Outcome
- photosynthetic rate and water-use efficiencye0
- Direction
- enhancinge0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“MT spraying effectively improved leaf water status and root water uptake capacity, enhancing the photosynthetic rate and water-use efficiency”
t0“Tomato”
Claim · model-written summary
Melatonin spraying increased total antioxidant capacity in leaves.
- Taxon
- TomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Treatment
- MT sprayinge0
- Outcome
- total antioxidant capacity in leavese0
- Direction
- increasede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“MT spraying increased the total antioxidant capacity in leaves and promoted the synthesis of phenolic and flavonoid compounds, thereby reducing oxidative damage.”
t0“Tomato”
Claim · model-written summary
Melatonin spraying promoted synthesis of phenolic and flavonoid compounds.
- Taxon
- TomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Treatment
- MT sprayinge0
- Outcome
- synthesis of phenolic and flavonoid compoundse0
- Direction
- promotede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“MT spraying increased the total antioxidant capacity in leaves and promoted the synthesis of phenolic and flavonoid compounds, thereby reducing oxidative damage.”
t0“Tomato”
Claim · model-written summary
Melatonin spraying reduced oxidative damage.
- Taxon
- TomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Treatment
- MT sprayinge0
- Outcome
- oxidative damagee0
- Direction
- reducinge0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“MT spraying increased the total antioxidant capacity in leaves and promoted the synthesis of phenolic and flavonoid compounds, thereby reducing oxidative damage.”
t0“Tomato”
Claim · model-written summary
Melatonin spraying stimulated osmolyte accumulation and enhanced osmotic adjustment.
- Taxon
- TomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Outcome
- accumulation of osmolytese0
- Direction
- stimulatede0
Not reportedTreatmentComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“it stimulated the accumulation of osmolytes to enhance cellular osmotic adjustment capacity”
t0“Tomato”
Claim · model-written summary
Melatonin spraying optimized ion uptake and maintained ion homeostasis.
- Taxon
- TomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Outcome
- ion uptakee0
- Direction
- optimizede0
Not reportedTreatmentComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“optimized ion uptake to maintain cellular ion homeostasis.”
t0“Tomato”
Claim · model-written summary
The 100 μM melatonin treatment had the strongest alleviative effects and enhanced salt tolerance and growth.
- Taxon
- TomatoSolanum lycopersicumt0
- Treatment
- 100 μM MTe0
- Outcome
- salt tolerance and growth performancee0
- Direction
- enhancede0
- Comparator
- tested concentrationse0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Among the tested concentrations, 100 μM MT showed the most significant alleviative effects. This concentration comprehensively enhanced the salt tolerance and growth performance of tomato plants”
t0“Tomato”
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Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.