Enhancement of Seed Germination, Growth, Yield, and Nutritional Composition Using Low-Frequency Glow Discharge (LFGD) Plasma in Wheat (Triticum Aestivum)

Several factors affect germination and seedling growth for the successful establishment of crops. This study investigates the effect of medium pressure (~10 torr) low-frequency glow discharge (LFGD) (Ar+Air) plasma-treated seeds for different periods (1, 3, 6, 8, and 10 min) of wheat. The scanning electron microscopy (SEM) image of the seed surface showed notable changes due to plasma treatment. The germination results showed a significant increase of 4.35%, and the agronomical parameters exhibited a meaningful upgrade result in treated plants compared to control. The catalase (CAT) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities significantly improved in shoot and root of plants along with their expression candidate genes (TaCAT and TaSOD) in roots relative to control. Besides, 2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) scavenging activity substantially increased in shoots of plants. A dissimilarity effect was observed in ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and the candidate gene for Ta APX. Further, hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), soluble protein, and sugar content showed significant changes in the leaves and roots but not in nitric oxide (NO) due to plasma treatment. In addition, thousand grain mass (TGM) and nutritional compositions including iron grain, iron shoot, manganese grain, fat, fiber, and ash were significantly increased in contrast to controls. Also, zinc concentration showed no changes in plants, while the moisture content showed significant decreases. Thus, these findings unveil the potentialities of LFGD plasma to improve the germination and growth of wheat plants.