The carnivorous plant
J. Ellis (Venus flytrap) is a widely known medical herb, capable of producing various phenolic compounds known for their strong antioxidant and antibacterial properties. In the ...pharmaceutical industry, Venus flytrap is grown in tissue cultures, as the natural population of
is very limited. Here, we describe an improved method to increase the quantity and quality of phenolic compounds produced in
This is achieved by combining biotic elicitation (using
bacteria lysate) of
cultured with rotary shaking (hydromechanical stress), which we describe here for the first time. The antibacterial activity and the antioxidant properties of the obtained compounds were studied on two antibiotic-resistant human pathogenic bacteria. The proposed plant culture conditions resulted in an increase in fresh weight, as well as a higher total phenolic content, in comparison to traditional tissue cultures on agar-solidified medium. With the use of high-performance liquid chromatography, we demonstrated that the described elicitation strategy leads to an increased synthesis of myricetin, caffeic acid, ellagic acid and plumbagin in
tissue. We also found that a higher level of antioxidant activity, exhibited by the plant extract, corresponded with its higher phenylpropanoid content. The bactericidal activity of the extract against
was dependent on the duration of plant culture under described elicitation conditions, whereas neither elicitation condition (duration or elicitor concentration) seemed relevant for the bactericidal activity of the extract towards
. This suggest that Gram-negative bacteria are less sensitive to compounds derived from Venus flytrap tissue.
Plants from the family Droseraceae, especially Drosera sp. and Dionaea sp., are naturally rich in phenolic derivatives such as plumbagin, among others. Plumbagin is known both for its pharmacological ...significance and its protective properties against light stress. Light stress – high light intensity or/and light spectral composition – activates plants' response mechanisms including, among others, hormonal (salicylic acid, jasmonic acid) pathways and secondary metabolite (phenolic compounds, proline) pathways. Short-wavelength radiation, due to its high energy, will induce the synthesis of protective secondary metabolites, including those with pharmaceutical properties. The aim of the study was to describe and compare acclimation strategies of Drosera peltata and Dionaea muscipula to blue–red light in the context of phenolic compound accumulation, and salicylic acid, jasmonic acid and proline synthesis.
For the first time, differences in the responses of D. muscipula and D. peltata to blue–red light (in the ratio 6:1) were established. In Dionaea sp., it was associated with the use of redox equivalents (in particular, plastoquinone pool) for the synthesis of primary metabolites used in the process of growth and development. In Drosera sp., a rapid adjustment of redox state led to the synthesis of secondary metabolites, constituting a reservoir of carbon skeletons and allowing for a quick defence response to stress factors. In both species, blue–red light did not induce the jasmonic acid pathway. However, the salicylic acid pathway was induced as an alternative to the phenolic compound synthesis pathway. Nevertheless, the applied blue–red light was not an effective elicitor of phenolic compounds in the plants examined.
•Blue-red light induces different response of Dionaea and Drosera plants.•Dionaea expands growth at the expense of protective secondary metabolites synthesis.•Drosera synthesizes proline for a quick defence response to stress factors.•Blue-red (6:1 ratio) causes no changes in phenolic compounds accumulation.
Grass pea (
) is a leguminous plant of outstanding tolerance to abiotic stress. The aim of the presented study was to describe the mechanism of grass pea (
L.) photosynthetic apparatus ...acclimatisation strategies to salinity stress. The seedlings were cultivated in a hydroponic system in media containing various concentrations of NaCl (0, 50, and 100 mM), imitating none, moderate, and severe salinity, respectively, for three weeks. In order to characterise the function and structure of the photosynthetic apparatus, Chl
fluorescence, gas exchange measurements, proteome analysis, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) analysis were done inter alia. Significant differences in the response of the leaf and stem photosynthetic apparatus to severe salt stress were observed. Leaves became the place of harmful ion (Na
) accumulation, and the efficiency of their carboxylation decreased sharply. In turn, in stems, the reconstruction of the photosynthetic apparatus (antenna and photosystem complexes) activated alternative electron transport pathways, leading to effective ATP synthesis, which is required for the efficient translocation of Na
to leaves. These changes enabled efficient stem carboxylation and made them the main source of assimilates. The observed changes indicate the high plasticity of grass pea photosynthetic apparatus, providing an effective mechanism of tolerance to salinity stress.
The present study investigated the response of non-metallicolous (NM) and metallicolous (M) Alyssum montanum shoots cultured in vitro on a medium supplemented simultaneously with heavy metals (HMs) ...to identify mechanisms involved in alleviating metal-induced damage. Plant status in respect to photosynthetic apparatus efficiency was determined and linked with changes in biochemical composition of shoots, namely phenolic acids' and stress-related phytohormones. Results showed the considerable inter-ecotype differences in (1) the photosynthetic pigments' amount, (2) the functioning of membrane electron transporters as well as (3) the linear and alternative electron transport pathways, whose lower values were reported in NM than in M HM-treated culture. Photosynthetic apparatus protection in M specimens was assured by the activation of cinnamic acid synthesis (by phenylalanine ammonia lyase) and its further transformations to benzoic acid derivatives with high ability to counteract oxidative stress, that was accompanied by the overexpression of jasmonic acid stimulating antioxidant machinery. In turn, detrimental HM effects on NM shoots could result from the diminution of most phenolics' accumulation, and only the content of coumarate (produced by bifunctional phenylalanine/tyrosine ammonia lyase) and rosmarinic acid increased. All these together with an enhanced concentration of abscisic acid might suggest that NM strategy to cope with HMs is based mostly on a restriction of metal movement with transpiration flow and their limited distribution in leaves. Summarizing, our findings for the first time point out the physiological and metabolic adaptation of pseudometallophyte A. montanum to adverse conditions.
Plant transformation with rol oncogenes derived from wild strains of Rhizobium rhizogenes is a popular biotechnology tool. Transformation effects depend on the type of rol gene, expression level, and ...the number of gene copies incorporated into the plant's genomic DNA. Although rol oncogenes are known as inducers of plant secondary metabolism, little is known about the physiological response of plants subjected to transformation.
In this study, the physiological consequences of rolB oncogene incorporation into the DNA of Dionaea muscipula J. Ellis was evaluated at the level of primary and secondary metabolism. Examination of the teratoma (transformed shoots) cultures of two different clones (K and L) showed two different strategies for dealing with the presence of the rolB gene. Clone K showed an increased ratio of free fatty acids to lipids, superoxide dismutase activity, synthesis of the oxidised form of glutathione, and total pool of glutathione and carotenoids, in comparison to non-transformed plants (control). Clone L was characterised by increased accumulation of malondialdehyde, proline, activity of superoxide dismutase and catalase, total pool of glutathione, ratio of reduced form of glutathione to oxidised form, and accumulation of selected phenolic acids. Moreover, clone L had an enhanced ratio of total triglycerides to lipids and accumulated saccharose, fructose, glucose, and tyrosine.
This study showed that plant transformation with the rolB oncogene derived from R. rhizogenes induces a pleiotropic effect in plant tissue after transformation. Examination of D. muscipula plant in the context of transformation with wild strains of R. rhizogenes can be a new source of knowledge about primary and secondary metabolites in transgenic organisms.
Ceylon leadwort (
) is ornamental plant known for its pharmacological properties arising from the abundant production of various secondary metabolites. It often grows in lead polluted areas. The aim ...of presented study was to evaluate the survival strategy of
to lead toxicity via photosynthetic apparatus acclimatization. Shoots of
were cultivated on media with different Pb concentrations (0.0, 0.05, and 0.1 g Pb∙l
). After a four-week culture, the efficiency of the photosynthetic apparatus of plants was evaluated by Chl
fluorescence measurement, photosynthetic pigment, and Lhcb1, PsbA, PsbO, and RuBisCo protein accumulation, antioxidant enzymes activity, and chloroplast ultrastructure observation. Plants from lower Pb concentration revealed no changes in photosynthetic pigments content and light-harvesting complex (LHCII) size, as well as no limitation on the donor side of Photosystem II Reaction Centre (PSII RC). However, the activity and content of antioxidant enzymes indicated a high risk of limitation on the acceptor side of Photosystem I. In turn, plants from 0.1 g Pb∙l
showed a significant decrease in pigments content, LHCII size, the amount of active PSII RC, oxygen-evolving complex activity, and significant remodeling of chloroplast ultrastructure indicated limitation of PSII RC donor side. Obtained results indicate that
plants acclimate to lead toxicity by Pb accumulation in roots and, depending on Pb concentration, by adjusting their photosynthetic apparatus via the activation of alternative (cyclic and pseudocyclic) electron transport pathways.
ABOUT GOOD TASTE (POLISH: GUST) AND DELICIOUS TASTE (POLISH: SMAK): IN OTHER WORDS: WHY THE POLISH WORD GUST LOST ITS ETYMOLOGICAL MEANING
The word gust was borrowed from Western European Languages ...in 17th century in a few meanings, including perception of taste and flavour of food and appetite. The author of this article discusses the very etymological meaning of the word gust and also words derived from it: the adjective gustowny and adverb gustownie. The author presents the reasons why this etymological meaning disappeared from Polish language, which is compared in the context of the synonymic Polish word smak and other borrowings with the core of word (-gust-). The article discusses the etymology and history of the Polish word gust along with the examples of its exact meaning found in texts from 17th and 18th centuries, especially in cookbooks. The article also explains the semantic evolution of gust. In order to achieve her objective, the author used historical dictionaries, descriptions of cultural changes associated with the French idea of bon goût, and also linguistic descriptions concerning semantic changes of the lexis of taste evolving into their metaphorical meanings. This article underlines the evolution of the meaning of the Polish words gust and smak during the past centuries.
Understanding the mechanisms of plant tolerance to osmotic and chemical stress is fundamental to maintaining high crop productivity. Soil drought often occurs in combination with physiological ...drought, which causes chemical stress due to high concentrations of ions. Hence, it is often assumed that the acclimatization of plants to salinity and drought follows the same mechanisms. Grass pea (Lathyrus sativus L.) is a legume plant with extraordinary tolerance to severe drought and moderate salinity. The aim of the presented study was to compare acclimatization strategies of grass pea seedlings to osmotic (PEG) and chemical (NaCl) stress on a physiological level. Concentrations of NaCl and PEG were adjusted to create an osmotic potential of a medium at the level of 0.0, −0.45 and −0.65 MPa. The seedlings on the media with PEG were much smaller than those growing in the presence of NaCl, but had a significantly higher content percentage of dry weight. Moreover, the stressors triggered different accumulation patterns of phenolic compounds, soluble and insoluble sugars, proline and β-N-oxalyl-L-α,β-diamino propionic acid, as well as peroxidase and catalase activity. Our results showed that drought stress induced a resistance mechanism consisting of growth rate limitation in favor of osmotic adjustment, while salinity stress induced primarily the mechanisms of efficient compartmentation of harmful ions in the roots and shoots. Furthermore, our results indicated that grass pea plants differed in their response to drought and salinity from the very beginning of stress occurrence.
The objective of this study was to investigate the response of the photosynthetic apparatus of the Venus flytrap (Dionaea muscipula J. Ellis) to UV-A radiation stress as well as the role of selected ...secondary metabolites in this process. Plants were subjected to 24 h UV-A treatment. Subsequently, chl a fluorescence and gas exchange were measured in living plants. On the collected material, analyses of the photosynthetic pigments and photosynthetic apparatus proteins content, as well as the contents and activity of selected antioxidants, were performed. Measurements and analyses were carried out immediately after the stress treatment (UV plants) and another 24 h after the termination of UV-A exposure (recovery plants). UV plants showed no changes in the structure and function of their photosynthetic apparatus and increased contents and activities of some antioxidants, which led to efficient CO2 carboxylation, while, in recovery plants, a disruption of electron flow was observed, resulting in lower photosynthesis efficiency. Our results revealed that D. muscipula plants underwent two phases of adjustment to UV-A radiation. The first was a regulatory phase related to the exploitation of available mechanisms to prevent the over-reduction of PSII RC. In addition, UV plants increased the accumulation of plumbagin as a potential component of a protective mechanism against the disruption of redox homeostasis. The second was an acclimatization phase initiated after the running down of the regulatory process and decrease in photosynthesis efficiency.
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