plants Article Exogenous Application of Zinc to Mitigate the Salt Stress in Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek—Evaluation of Physiological and Biochemical Processes Hassan S. Al-Zahrani 1, Hesham F. Alharby 1, Khalid Rehman Hakeem 1,* and Reiaz Ul Rehman 2 1 Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia;
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[email protected] Abstract: Salt stress adversely affects the growth and productivity of crops. However, reports suggest that the application of various micronutrients could help the plant to cope with this stress. Hence, the objective of the study was to examine the effect of exogenous application of Zinc (Zn) on salt tolerance in Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek (mungbean). Mungbean is considered to be an economically important crop and possess a strategic position in Southeast Asian countries for sustainable crop production. It is rich in quality proteins, minerals and vitamins. Three weeks old grown seedlings were subjected to NaCl (150 mM and 200 mM) alone or with Zn (250 µM). After 21 days of treatment, Citation: Al-Zahrani, H.S.; Alharby, plants were harvested for investigating morphological, physiological and biochemical changes. We H.F.; Hakeem, K.R.; Rehman, R.U. found that the Zn application mitigates the negative effect upon plant growth to a variable extent. Exogenous Application of Zinc to This may be attributed to the increased shoot and root length, improved chlorophyll and carotenoid Mitigate the Salt Stress in Vigna contents, enhanced total soluble sugar (TSS), total soluble protein (TSP) and proline accumulation, radiata (L.) Wilczek—Evaluation of decreased H2O2 content and increased enzymatic antioxidant activities.