Isolated Thellungiella shoots do not require roots to survive NaCl and Na2SO4 salt stresses.

Shoots of Thellungiella derived by micropropagation were used to estimate the plants' salt tolerance and ability to regulate Na+ uptake. Two species with differing salt tolerances were studied: Thellungiella salsuginea (halophilla), which is less tolerant, and Thellungiella botschantzevii, which is more tolerant. Although the shoots of neither ecotype survived at 700 mM NaCl or 200 mM Na2SO4, micropropagated shoots of T. botschantzevii were more tolerant to Na2SO4 (10-100 mM) and NaCl (100-300 mM). In the absence of roots, Na2SO4 salinity reduced shoot growth more dramatically than NaCl salinity. Plantlets of both species were able to adapt to salt stress even when they did not form roots. First, there was no significant correlation between Na+ accumulation in shoots and Na+ concentration in the growth media. Second, K+ concentrations in the shoots exposed to different salt concentrations were maintained at equivalent levels to control plants grown in medium without NaCl or Na2SO4. These results suggest that isolated shoots of Thellungiella possess their own mechanisms for enabling salt tolerance, which contribute to salt tolerance in intact plants.