Publication Type | J |
Authors | Bautista, I., M. Boscaiu, A. Lidon, J. V. Llinares, C. Lull, M. P. Donat, O. Mayoral and O. Vicente |
Title | Environmentally induced changes in antioxidant phenolic compounds levels in wild plants |
Source | Acta Physiologiae Plantarum |
Author Keywords | Dunes Salt marshes Gypsum habitats Salt stress Water stress uv-b radiation chalcone synthase gene solar-radiation polyphenolic extracts flowering heads in-vivo flavonoids leaves biosynthesis accumulation |
Abstract | Different adverse environmental conditions cause oxidative stress in plants by generation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). Accordingly, a general response to abiotic stress is the activation of enzymatic and non-enzymatic antioxidant systems. Many phenolic compounds, especially flavonoids, are known antioxidants and efficient ROS scavengers in vitro, but their exact role in plant stress responses in nature is still under debate. The aim of our work is to investigate this role by correlating the degree of environmental stress with phenolic and flavonoid levels in stress-tolerant plants. Total phenolic and antioxidant flavonoid contents were determined in 19 wild species. Meteorological data and plant and soil samples were collected in three successive seasons from four Mediterranean ecosystems: salt marsh, dune, semiarid and gypsum habitats. Changes in phenolic and flavonoid levels were correlated with the environmental conditions of the plants and were found to depend on both the taxonomy and ecology of the investigated species. Despite species-specific differences, principal component analyses of the results established a positive correlation between plant phenolics and several environmental parameters, such as altitude, and those related to water stress: temperature, evapotranspiration, and soil water deficit. The correlation with salt stress was, however, very weak. The joint analysis of all the species showed the lowest phenolic and flavonoid levels in the halophytes from the salt marsh. This finding supports previous data indicating that the halophytes analysed here do not undergo oxidative stress in their natural habitat and therefore do not need to activate antioxidant systems as a defence against salinity. |
Author Address | [Bautista, Inmaculada; Lidon, Antonio; Lull, Cristina] Univ Politecn Valencia, Inst Ingn Agua & Med Ambiente, ReForest, E-46022 Valencia, Spain. [Boscaiu, Monica; Llinares, Josep V.] Univ Politecn Valencia, Inst Agroforestal Mediterraneo, E-46022 Valencia, Spain. [Donat, Ma Pilar; Mayoral, Olga] Univ Politecn Valencia, Inst Invest Gest Integral Zonas Costeras, Gandia 46730, Spain. [Vicente, Oscar] Univ Politecn Valencia, Inst Biol Mol & Celular Plantas UPV CSIC, E-46022 Valencia, Spain. Lidon, A (reprint author), Univ Politecn Valencia, Inst Ingn Agua & Med Ambiente, ReForest, Camino Vera S-N, E-46022 Valencia, Spain. alidon@qim.upv.es |
ISSN | 0137-5881 |
ISBN | 0137-5881 |
Publication Date | Jan |
Year Published | 2016 |
Volume | 38 |
Issue | 1 |
Digital Object Identifier (DOI) | 10.1007/s11738-015-2025-2 |
Unique Article Identifier | WOS:000368015100009 |
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