Influence of parental NaCl treatment on salinity tolerance of offspring in Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench

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Abstract
Summary: Adaptation and resistance responses to NaCl salinity Have been expressed in Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench (genotype MP610) by exposure to 150 mol m−3 NaCl respectively 8 of 21 d after germination. Offspring of the adapted or the resistant plants (respectively named Al and Rl) were compared with offspring of control plants (Cl). Eighteen days after germination in presence nr absence of 75 mol m−3 NaCl, the Al plants showed a large increase in vigour, and a reduction in Na+ accumulation into the shoot, compared with the Cl plants. The Rl plants were widely heterogeneous and presented intermediate characteristics between the Al and Cl plants. When first exposed to salinity 21 d after germination, the AI plants showed a significant increase in salinity tolerance, when compared with Cl plants. Conversely, the Rl plants remained very similar to the Cl plants after late exposure to salinity. These results indicate that the exposure of Sorghum plants to salinity induced an increase in vigour in the progeny. Moreover, an enhanced salinity‐tolerance is specifically observed for offspring of adapted plants, suggesting that this property is not a simple consequence of parents grown in a saline environment. The possible nature of the observed effects on offspring is discussed.