Effect of Chitosan and Trichoderma on Pisum sativum Germinating Seeds under Induced cadmium toxicity

Abstract

The present study was done to evaluate the ameliorating role of chitosan and Trichoderma against cadmium stress. The pea seedlings (Pisum sativum L.) were exposed to different concentrations of cadmium (50 and 100 µM) for 7 days or to the co-treatment of chitosan concentration (0.1 and 0.2%) and Trichoderma with different cadmium concentrations. The application of chitosan and trichoderma mitigated the growth of radicle and plumule of pea seedlings under cadmium stress. They increased tolerance of pea seedlings to metals and restricted translocation and cadmium accumulation inside seedlings. The level of MDA and H<inf>2</inf>O<inf>2</inf> were significantly lower in chitosan and trichoderma treated seedlings and their interactions are positive when applied in combination as compared to cadmium-treated plants. Chitosan and Trichoderma also ameliorated negative effects of cadmium on nitrate reductase activity, α-amylase activity, total protein, and soluble sugar content. Application of chitosan and trichoderma also upregulated the antioxidant enzyme activity, viz. SOD and CAT to confer cadmium tolerance in pea seedlings. Taken together, our results suggest that application of chitosan and trichoderma to germinating pea seedlings can be a promising alternative to improve cadmium tolerance in plants. © The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2025.