Physiological and Biochemical Responses of Fifteen Rice Cultivars to UV-B Radiation

This study was conducted to examine the physiological and biochemical responses against UV-B radiation in the seedling of 15 different rice cultivars, having the different physiological sensitivities. Out of 15 rice cultivars tested, moderate and susceptible groups showed significant decreases in biomass and RGR (relative growth rate). Contents of total chlorophyll were reduced remarkedly by irradiation of UV-B. In all rice cultivars tested, the content of chlorophyll a was strongly decreased, while the contents of chlorophyll b were slightly reduced without showing clear different among three groups and 15 cultivars. Carotenoid content was largely reduced by UV-B radiation, whereas polyamine content was moderately increased. The contents of MDA (malondialdehyde) that reflect the level of lipid peroxidation of cell membranes were clearly increased by UV-B stress, showing higher content in susceptible cultivars than moderate and torelant cultivars. The physiological important parameters highly related to visible injury were leaf color, chlorophyll, carotenoid, and lipid peroxidation, whereas biomass and polyamines were not closely correlated. Based on this results, it was concluded that changes of visible injury and the contents of chlorophyll and MDA could be adequately applied and utilized as physiological indicators to UV-B radiation.