Fenotipagem computacional e viabilidade de sementes de cultivares de trigo (Triticum spp) pelo teste de tetrazólio

Abstract

Given the importance of obtaining faster and more efficient methodology for carrying out the tetrazolium test on different wheat cultivars, the present work aimed to propose a faster method than that recommended in the literature for the tetrazolium test on five wheat cultivars. three of them used in the semi-arid northeast, with the help of image analysis. The experiment was conducted in the phytotechnics laboratory, on the Engineering and Agricultural Sciences Campus, at the Federal University of Alagoas, Rio Largo, AL, Brazil. Five wheat seed cultivars were used (Brilliant, Duque, BRS 404, BRS 394 and BRS 264). Pre-moistening: four replications of 50 seeds were used for the test, pre-moistened by soaking in 20 mL water for 16 hours at 25°C and 6 hours at 30°C. After the two immersion times, a longitudinal bisection was made along the embryo with the aid of a #22 scalpel blade. After staining, the seeds were classified into four classes: class I: vigorous and viable; class II: viable; class III: non-viable seed and class IV: dead seed. This classification was carried out with the help of a camera that enlarged the image at the ideal resolution. The experiment followed a completely randomized design and the data were subjected to analysis of variance at 1% probability of error, Seed viability data were related to the germination test using Spearman's correlation. In the vigor analysis, the Brilhante cultivar seeds immersed for 6 hours had a higher percentage of vigorous seeds (C1) compared to the control treatment. In the viability analysis, the BRS 404 and BRS 264 cultivars, used in the northeastern semi-arid region, had a higher percentage of viable seeds (C2) in the 6-hour immersion treatment, compared to the control. Correlation analysis using data from the germination test with the percentages of viable seeds in the two treatments (16h and 6h). The percentages of seeds that passed the tetrazolium test with six hours of immersion had a correlation of r=0.97 in relation to the germination test, higher, for example, than the test carried out with 16 hours of immersion, which is what it proposes the methodology, which was r=0.92. This indicates that the methodology suggested by the present work can be an alternative to evaluate whether a batch of these wheat cultivars is viable. It is feasible to reduce the concentration of the tetrazolium solution to 0.075%, without this affecting the results obtained. This reduction could result in benefits, such as a reduction in the amount of tetrazolium salt needed to prepare the compound and, consequently, a reduction in financial costs for carrying out the tetrazolium test with the five cultivars analyzed. The use of image analysis in the interpretation of the tetrazolium test provides a detailed evaluation of all tissues of the seed under analysis, thus enabling the provision of increasingly precise data.