Drought is a multifaceted stress condition that inhibits crop growth. Seed germination is one of the critical and sensitive stages of plants, and its process is inhibited or even entirely prevented by drought. Polyamines(PAs) are closely associated with plant resistance to drought stress and seed germination. However, little is known about the effect of PA on the seed germination of wheat under drought stress. This study investigated the involvement of PAs in regulating wheat seed germination under drought stress. Six wheat genotypes differing in drought resistance were used, and endogenous PA levels were measured during seed germination under different water treatments. In addition, external PA was used for seed soaking and the variation of hormones, total soluble sugar and starch were measured during the seed germination under different water treatments. These results indicated that the free spermidine(Spd) accumulation in seeds during the seed germination period favored wheat seed germination under drought stress; however, the free putrescine(Put) accumulation in seeds during the seed germination period may work against wheat seed germination under drought stress. In addition, seed soaking in Spd and spermine(Spm) significantly relieved the inhibition of seed germination by drought stress; however, soaking seeds in Put had no significant effect on seed germination under drought. External Spd and Spm significantly increased the endogenous indole-3-acetic acid(IAA), zeatin(Z)+zeatin riboside(ZR), abscisic acid(ABA), and gibberellins(GA) contents in seeds and accelerated the seed starch degradation and increased the concentration of soluble sugars in seeds during seed germination. This may promote wheat seed germination under drought stress. In conclusion, free Spd and Put are key factors for regulating wheat seed germination under drought stress and the effects of Spd and Put on seed germination under drought notably related to hormones and starch metabolism.
