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Protective role of lycopene against salinity-induced oxidative stress in Medicago sativa L. seedlings
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  • Published: 04 March 2026

Protective role of lycopene against salinity-induced oxidative stress in Medicago sativa L. seedlings

  • Antonia Adeublena de Araujo Monteiro1,
  • Bárbara Rayanne da Silva Teles1,
  • Jean-Paul Kamdem3,
  • Carlos Alonso Leite dos Santos2,
  • Antonia Eliene Duarte1,
  • Haifa A. Alqhtani4,
  • Mostafa R. Abukhadra5,
  • Ahmed A. Allam6 &
  • …
  • Mohammad Ibrahim7 

Scientific Reports , Article number:  (2026) Cite this article

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Subjects

  • Biotechnology
  • Physiology
  • Plant sciences

Abstract

Soil salinization is one of the major challenges to agriculture, reducing productivity and directly affecting plant growth, germination, and physiology, especially in economically important crops such as Medicago sativa. Conventional soil management methods are not always sufficient to mitigate the adverse effects of salinity, highlighting the need for alternative and sustainable strategies. This study evaluated the phytoprotective potential of lycopene (LCP) against NaCl-induced stress in M. sativa. Seeds were treated with 256 µg/mL and 512 µg/mL of LCP combined with 50 mM NaCl and compared to a control group containing NaCl only. The combination of 256 µg/mL LCP with NaCl significantly increased germination, root and leaf growth, and reduced oxidative stress markers such as TBARS and iron content level, demonstrating a protective antioxidant effect. In contrast, the combination with 512 µg/mL LCP showed a lower protective effect, indicating that higher concentrations may induce additional oxidative stress. In silico molecular analysis revealed LCP affinity with the target protein (–5.062 kcal/mol), involving hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions, suggesting stability and functional effects on the protein. The results demonstrate that LCP exerts a dose-dependent phytoprotective effect, especially when associated with NaCl, promoting resistance to salt stress and improving morphological and biochemical parameters in M. sativa. These findings indicate the potential of LCP as a promising natural compound to mitigate the adverse effects of salinity in agriculture.

Data availability

All data generated or analyzed during this study are included in this published article.

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Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University Researchers Supporting Project number (PNURSP2026R458), Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Funding

The authors acknowledge Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University Researchers Supporting Project number (PNURSP2026R458), Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biological Sciences, Regional University of Cariri, Campus Pimenta, Crato, Ceara, CEP63105-000, Brazil

    Antonia Adeublena de Araujo Monteiro, Bárbara Rayanne da Silva Teles & Antonia Eliene Duarte

  2. Center of Agricultural Sciences and Biodiversity, Federal University of Cariri, Crato, CE, Brazil

    Carlos Alonso Leite dos Santos

  3. Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology (BMI) College of Medicine, University of Saskatchewan, 107 Wiggins Road, Saskatoon, SK S7N 5E5, Canada

    Jean-Paul Kamdem

  4. Department of Biology, college of Science, Princess Nourah bint Abdulrahman University, P.O. BOX 84428, Riyadh, 11671, Saudi Arabia

    Haifa A. Alqhtani

  5. Geosciences Department, College of Science, United Arab Emirates University, Al Ain, 15551, United Arab Emirates

    Mostafa R. Abukhadra

  6. Department of Biology, College of Science, Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University, Riyadh, 11623, Saudi Arabia

    Ahmed A. Allam

  7. Department of Chemistry, Abdul Wali Khan University, Mardan, 23200, Pakistan

    Mohammad Ibrahim

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  1. Antonia Adeublena de Araujo Monteiro
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Contributions

Each author participated sufficiently in taking public responsibility for appropriate portions of the content. Study conception and design: AAAM and BRST, conceived the idea and designed experiments and wrote manuscript. JPK, CALS and AED analyzed the data performed the experiments; HAA, AAA, MRA and MI analyzed the data and revised the manuscript. All authors reviewed and approved the final version.

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Correspondence to Antonia Eliene Duarte, Mostafa R. Abukhadra or Mohammad Ibrahim.

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de Araujo Monteiro, A.A., da Silva Teles, B.R., Kamdem, JP. et al. Protective role of lycopene against salinity-induced oxidative stress in Medicago sativa L. seedlings. Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-42699-2

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  • Received: 11 July 2025

  • Accepted: 26 February 2026

  • Published: 04 March 2026

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-42699-2

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Keywords

  • Agriculture
  • Salt stress
  • Molecular docking
  • Morphological
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