Nitric oxide mediates alginate oligosaccharides-induced root development in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

• NO generation was a novel mechanism for AOS regulating the plant growth.
• AOS promoted the formation and elongation growth of wheat roots.
• AOS-induced NR-mediated NO generation in wheat roots.
• NR inhibitor Tu inhibited AOS-induced root development.

Alginate oligosaccharides (AOS), which are marine oligosaccharides, are involved in regulating plant root growth, but the promotion mechanism for AOS remains unclear. Here, AOS (10–80 mg L−1) were found to induce the generation of nitric oxide (NO) in the root system of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), which promoted the formation and elongation of wheat roots in a dose-dependent manner. NO inhibitors suggested that nitrate reductase (NR), rather than nitric oxide synthase (NOS), was essential for AOS-induced root development. Further studies confirmed that AOS-induced NO generation in wheat roots by up-regulating the gene expression and enzyme activity of NR at the post-transcriptional level. The anatomy and RT-PCR results showed that AOS accelerated the division and growth of stele cells, leading to an increase in the ratio of stele area to root transverse area. This could be inhibited by the NR inhibitor, sodium tungstate, which indicated that NO catalyzed by the NR was involved in AOS regulation of root development. Taken together, in the early stage of AOS-induced root development, NO generation was a novel mechanism by which AOS regulated plant growth. The results also showed that this marine resource could be widely used for crop development.