en Biology Research (Original) <span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="background:white"><span style="line-height:normal"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><span sans-serif="" style="font-family:Calibri,"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times=""><span style="color:#0f1115">Cold plasma is an emerging physical technology for seed priming; however, its effects on sage (<i>Salvia officinalis</i>&nbsp;L.) remain poorly characterized. This study investigated the effects of dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) argon plasma on germination indices, seedling growth, and biochemical traits of sage seeds. A completely randomized design with four treatments (control, 3, 5, and 10 min plasma exposure) and three replications was employed.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br> <span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="background:white"><span style="line-height:normal"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><span sans-serif="" style="font-family:Calibri,"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times=""><span style="color:#0f1115">Plasma treatment significantly (p < 0.001) enhanced all germination traits. Germination percentage increased from 75.67% (control) to 94.00% (10 min), while germination rate rose from 3.20 to 4.90. Mean germination time decreased from 6.20 to 4.00 days. Radicle and plumule lengths increased by 92% and 64%, respectively, at 10 min. Soluble carbohydrates and total proteins reached their maximum values at 5 min (17.47 and 11.20 mg/g FW), showing 44% and 43% increases over the control. Vegetative growth parameters, including root length, shoot length, and leaf number, were also maximized at 5 min.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br> <span style="font-size:11pt"><span style="background:white"><span style="line-height:normal"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><span sans-serif="" style="font-family:Calibri,"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><span new="" roman="" style="font-family:" times=""><span style="color:#0f1115">Seedling vigor index showed a remarkable increase from 16.74 (control) to 45.08 (10 min), representing a 2.7-fold improvement. The 5-min treatment was optimal for vegetative growth and biochemical accumulation, while 10-min was superior for germination traits. These improvements are attributed to enhanced seed coat permeability, increased enzyme activity, and improved reserve mobilization induced by plasma-generated reactive species. Therefore, cold plasma is proposed as a non-chemical, eco-friendly priming method for medicinal plant cultivation.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span><br> &nbsp; Cold plasma, Seed priming, Salvia officinalis L., Germination, Biochemical traits, Seedling vigor 33 42 http://tbsrj.mazums.ac.ir/browse.php?a_code=A-10-3639-1&slc_lang=en&sid=1 sareh rezaie sarhrezae9@gmail.com 100319475328460032137 100319475328460032137 Yes fatemeh hashemi juybari Fatemehashemi7591@gmail.com 100319475328460032138 100319475328460032138 No