Activity of ion transporters and salt tolerance in barley

The authors attempted to relate the cultivar-specific salt tolerance in barley (Hordeum distichum L.) to the efficiency of ion transporters in the plasmalemma and tonoplast. The study involved plasmalemma and tonoplast membrane vesicles isolated from roots and leaves of the 7-day-old barley seedlings exposed to elevated NaCl concentrations. Two barley cultivars were employed: salt-tolerant cv. Elo and salt-susceptible cv. Belogorskii. The vesicles were used to measure the transport activity of plasmalemma and tonoplast proton pumps and the cation/anion exchange. The data obtained in the experiments demonstrated that the changes in the activity of ion transporters under salt stress conditions correlated with the barley cultivar-specific tolerance to elevated NaCl concentrations.