Assessing tolerance in chickpea (Cicer arietinum) via sucrose induced drought stress
September 9, 2026
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| Article Title: | Assessing tolerance in chickpea (Cicer arietinum) via sucrose induced drought stress |
| Authors: | Vasileva I., Ninova S., Georgieva N., Kosev V., Kolaksazov M. |
| Affiliation: | Institute of Forage Crops-Pleven, Agricultural Academy – Sofia, 5800 Pleven, 89 “Vladimir Vazov” str. |
| Abstract: | Seed germination is a critical stage for crop establishment and is highly sensitive to osmotic stress, which limits water uptake and can disturb the plant’s internal balance. This study evaluates the way 22 different chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) genotypes, a crop with increasing importance for the food industry and agriculture in Bulgaria, respond to sucrose-induced osmotic stress. Seeds were treated with sucrose concentrations of 50, 150, and 250 mM, that correspond to osmotic potentials of -0.12, -0.37, and -0.61 MPa. The results indicate that sucrose-induced stress restricts seedling development with the increment of concentration; however, the degree varied significantly by genotype. Kabuli-type accessions (Variants 11 and 12) proved to be highly susceptible to the stressor and showed a complete lack of germination at -0.61 MPa. On the other hand, Desi-type genotypes (Variants 14 and 15) demonstrated very high resilience, sustaining germination rates above 90%. The resilience in Desi-types hypotheses of its superior capacity for maintaining redox homeostasis through mitigating the oxidative burst triggered by osmotic imbalance. This indicates that vigor inhibition is linked to disrupted metabolic signaling and antioxidant defenses rather than mere dehydration. Our findings validate sucrose-based assays as rapid, cost-effective tools for identifying promising genotypes for breeding programs in water-scarce regions. |
| Keywords: | germination, germ length, germ weight, inhibition, seed vigor index. |
| *Correspondence: | Ivanina Vasileva, Institute of Forage Crops-Pleven, Agricultural Academy – Sofia, 5800 Pleven, 89 “Vladimir Vazov” str., email: ivanina_vasileva1@abv.bg |
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