Modifications of strawberry fruit antioxidant pools and fruit quality under NaCl stress

The responses of fruit antioxidants in two strawberry cultivars differing in their sensitivity to NaCl stress were studied. The sensitive cv. Elsanta and the less sensitive cv. Korona were treated with NaCl solutions of 40 and 80 mmol/L in the nutrient solution. In general, moderate salinity resulted in increases of antioxidant capacity. In cv. Korona, salt stress increased the activity of superoxide dismutase and the contents of glutathione, phenols, and anthocyanins, while that of ascorbic acid decreased. In cv. Elsanta, changes of superoxid dismutase activity and of ascorbic acid concentration were comparable to those of cv. Korona, but the decrease of ascorbic acid was more distinct. The contents of anthocyanins decreased, and those of phenols remained similar. The glutathione content was reduced at the highest NaCl level. The results indicate that less salt-sensitive strawberry cultivars may be grown under moderate salinity stress to optimize fruit quality.