Alleviation of oxidative stress induced by drought stress through priming by β-aminobutyric acid (BABA) in Rapeseed (Brassica napus L.) plants. Neda Mohamadi1,2, Amin Baghizadeh3*, Sara Saadatmand1, Zahra Asrar4

The objective of this study was to investigate the role of β-aminobutyric acid(BABA) (0, 300µM) in reduction of oxidative damages in leaves and roots of Brassica napus L. under drought stress (0, -0.2, -0.4 MPa). β-aminobutyric acid was investigated as an internal regulator hormone and its role in defense  mechanisms against biotic and abioticstresses. In this study, BABA pretreatment prevented drought induced decrease in K+ content and increase in lipid peroxidation and H2O2 content. Mild and severe drought stress increased leaf and root MDA and other aldehydes content. In BABA pretreated plants under stress, leaf and root MDA and other aldehydes content significantly decreased as compare to drought condition.In addition, in drought stressed plants non-enzymatic antioxidants [GSH] were elevated over the control and BABA pretreatment increased GSH content. The Na+ and K+ concentration increased under mild and severe drought stress. On the basis of the results, BABA-treated plants exhibited enhanced drought tolerance.