Abstract: Using water proof installations, a systematic study was conducted determine the effects of water stress on the protective enzyme activities and lipid peroxidation were determined. The results showed that: Under water stress, the activities of superoxide dismutase(SOD), catalase(CTA),and peoxidase(POD) in leaves and roots increased sharply at prophase and metaphase growth stages such as male tetrad stage, while declined at the evening developmental stages such as milky stage.The protective enzyme activities in root are lower than that in leaves. The content of malondialdehyde (MDA) increased following the stronger water stress, and also the content of MDA in roots was lower than that in leaves. The protective enzyme activities and lipid peroxidation in root were positively related to that in leaf, and furthermore the most of correlated coefficients showed the significant difference. In addition, the soluble protein in roots and leaves decreased. The ear characteristics were deteriorated and the economic yields of maize decreased significantly under water stress. The main factors that caused reduction of yields were the decrease of ear kernel number and 100-kernel weight.

Key words: Maize, Water stress, Protective enzyme activities, Lipid peroxidation