Abstract:
The present study was carried out to determine interactive effects of salinity and drought stress on growth and
antioxidative enzymes such as superoxide dismutase (SOD), guaiacol peroxidase (POX), and polyphenol oxidase
(PPO) in hydroponically grown plants of maize, Zea mays L.cv DKC647. Plants were treated two salt (NaCl)
concentrations and PEG 6000 to create water stress The results obtained from this experiment show that high
salinity reduced shoot and root dry and fresh weight but PEG treatment had no significant effect on this
parameters. SOD, POX and PPO activities were increased with the increase in the intensity of NaCl stress, but
PEG treatment in addition to NaCl had more significant effect on this enzyme activity. However, the interactive
effects of salinity and water stress induced highest SOD, POX, and PPO activities compared to the other
treatments in maize plants. These results suggest that maize plants may be increased the activity of antioxidant
enzymes to have a better protection against reactive oxygen species (ROS) under salt and water stress.
