Article

Exogenous trans-cinnamic acid applications affect leaf, flower and peel essential oils of Banzhair lime cultivated on arid region

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Abstract

The leaves, flowers and fruit peels of Banzhair lime trees are rich in essential oils (EOs), which are characterized by odor, antiseptic and antimicrobial properties. Arid regions (ARR) are characterized by stress properties that have a negative impact on the production of Banzhair lime EOs. Trans-cinnamic acid (t-CA) is an antioxidant substance that has an anti-bad effect when plants are exposed to stress. The aim of this investigation was to reduce the harmful effect of stress factors on Banzhair lime trees by adapting them to ARR through t-CA. Various EOs were analyzed by GC and GC/MS. The major compound of leaf and peel EOs was limonene, while geranial was in flower EO. The major chemical group in leaf and flower EOs was oxygenated monoterpenes, while it was monoterpene hydrocarbons in peel EO. Trees exposed to 40 mg/L t-CA acid resulted in the maximum contents of leaf (0.5%, w/w), flower (0.2%, w/w) and (0.3%, w/w) peel essential oils. Leaf EO obtained from trees subjected to 20 mg/L t-CA resulted in the greatest value of limonene, while flower EO produced from trees treated with t-CA at 40 mg/L resulted in the highest value of geranial. This trial recommends the cultivation of Banzhair lime trees in ARR under the application of t-CA to improve the productivity of their EOs.

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... It produces honeydew on their leaves, which promotes the formation of sooty mould and lowers the nutritional value as well as the harvested crops' viability for the market. Honeydew lime, Key lime [7], and especially is called Banzhair lime in Egypt [8]. It has spread all over the world, from Southeast Asia to Brazil [9] and can thrive widely in hot tropical and subtropical areas [10]. ...
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This study was designed to find correlations between the rates of phosphorous and essential oil extracted from anise, coriander and sweet fennel plants grow in arid regions. The highest essential oil contents (% ) and yield (ml plant -1 & liter plot-1) were recorded under the level of 75 kg P ha-1 with the values of 3.3 %, 0.3 ml plant -1 and 0.2 liter plot-1 (for anise); 0.6 %, 0.1 ml plant -1 and 0.1 liter plot-1 (for coriander); 2 %, 0.5 ml plant -1 and 0.3 liter plot-1 (for sweet fennel) compared with control and other treatments. An increase in the amount of phosphorous of the plants resulted in the enhanced accumulation of essential oil, as well as in a rise in the major constituent's concentration. Groups of essential oils were changed with various phosphorous levels.
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An enzyme catalysing the glucosylation of quercetin at the 7-hydroxyl group using uridine diphosphate-d-glucose (UDPGlc) as the glucosyl donor was partially purified ca 100-fold from ripening strawberry (Fragaria ananassa Duch. cv Tillikum) fruit. The apparent Km values for UDPGlc and quercetin were 0.14 and 0.04 mM, respectively. The optimum pH of this glucosylation reaction was 7.5. Enzymatic activity was slightly stimulated by Ca2+ and Mg2+, but was completely inhibited by Cu2+ and p-chloromercuribenzenesulphonic acid (PCMBS). A Mr of ca 55 000 was determined by gel filtration. The substrate specificity was broad. Flavonoids glucosylated included flavonols, flavonones and a flavone, but the highest activity was observed with the isoflavone, biochanin A.
Article
In this review, the distribution of phenylpropanoic acids in dicotyledons is visualized by using the Dahlgren diagram. Notably derivatives of caffeic acid show a close correlation with the taxonomic arrangement of plant families and orders. Generally, the hydroxycinnamic acids are ester bound to various alcohols, most frequently sugars, giving mono-, di- and trisaccharide esters. The monosaccharide esters are fairly common in all dicotyledons, whereas di- and trisaccharide esters occur exclusively in sympetalous orders. In these orders, rosmarinic acid and quinic acid esters, i.e. chlorogenic acid, have an alternative distribution to that of the disaccharide esters. Hence, chlorogenic acid is common in Asteraceae, Solanaceae and Rubiaceae, whereas rosmarinic acid and related compounds are restricted to Lamiaceae and Boraginaceae, and the disaccharide esters mainly to Scrophulariaceae and Oleaceae. Of more restricted occurrence are ferulic acid in Caryophyllales and derivatives with sinapic acid in Brassicaceae. The distribution is discussed in relation to the supposed evolution of chemical structures by derivation of intermediates in the biosynthetic route. Hence, the most derived compounds are found in the most remote groups of the Lamianae, e.g. Orobanchaceae.
Article
A uridine 5′-diphosphoglucose: hydroxycinnamic acid acyl-glucosyltransferase (HCA-GT) which catalyses the formation of 1-O-sinapoyl-β-glucose (EC 2.4.1.120) in seedlings of Raphanus sativus has been partially purified. Kinetic analysis of the reversible enzymatic reaction revealed a sequential binding mechanism for catalysis. Estimation of the reaction equilibrium constant, calculated from the kinetic properties of the forward and reverse reactions by means of a Haldane equation, gave a Keq of 0.2 1. From the estimated ΔGeq0′ of 3.9 kJ mol−1 of the reaction and the known standard free energy of hydrolysis for UDP-glucose and its hydrolysis constant, the corresponding values for 1-O-sinapoyl-β-glucose of −35.7 kJ mol−1 and 1.45 × 106 were deduced. These results justify the conclusion that the 1-O-acylglucosides of hydroxycinnamic acids are high-energy acyl donor molecules with a high group-transfer potential in 1-O-acylglucose-dependent acyltransferase reactions involved in the formation of various hydroxycinnamic acid O-esters in plants.
Article
Flooding is a major problem for soybean crop as it reduces the growth and grain yield. To investigate the function of the soybean cell wall in the response to flooding stress, cell wall proteins were analyzed. Cell wall proteins from roots and hypocotyls of soybeans, which were germinated for 2 days and subjected to 2 days of flooding, were purified, separated by two-dimensional polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis and stained with Coomassie brilliant blue. Sixteen out of 204 cell wall proteins showed responses to flooding stress. Of these, two lipoxygenases, four germin-like protein precursors, three stem 28/31 kDa glycoprotein precursors, and one superoxide dismutase [Cu-Zn] were downregulated. A copper amine oxidase was found to have shifted from the basic to acidic zone following flooding stress. Based on these results, it was confirmed by the lignin staining that the lignification was suppressed in the root of soybean under the flooding stress. These results suggest that the roots and hypocotyls of soybean caused the suppression of lignification through decrease of these proteins by downregulation of reactive oxygen species and jasmonate biosynthesis under flooding stress.
Article
To obtain insight into interspecies interactions mediated by allelochemicals, the response of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L. cv Jinyan No.4) and figleaf gourd (Cucurbita ficifolia Bouché) seedlings to trans-cinnamic acid (CA) (1) was investigated. While trans-CA is an autotoxin in cucumber root exudates, figleaf gourd is resistant to it. Cucumber, however, had a high rate of trans-CA uptake by the roots, leading to reduced root growth. The trans-CA treatment also resulted in an intracellular release of Ca(2+) from the vacuole to the cytoplasm, and, thus, an increased [Ca(2+)](cyt) level accompanied by gradual loss of cell viability in cucumber roots. Taken together, these results suggest that [Ca(2+)](cyt) homeostatic disturbance is one of the primary triggers for trans-CA phytotoxicity in cucumber.
Article
Phenolic acid compounds seem to be universally distributed in plants. They have been the subject of a great number of chemical, biological, agricultural, and medical studies. Hydroxycinnamic acid compounds occur most frequently as simple esters with hydroxy carboxylic acids or glucose, while the hydroxybenzoic acid compounds are present mainly in the form of glucosides. Furthermore, phenolic acids may occur in food plants as esters or glycosides conjugated with other natural compounds such as flavonoids, alcohols, hydroxyfatty acids, sterols, and glucosides. Also, hydroxycinnamic acid amides appear to be common constituents. The occurrence of the different natural phenolic acid compounds in foods is reviewed, and data of the content in fruit, vegetables, and spices are given. The distribution of the main phenolic acid compounds in food plants as well as their changes during development and maturation of fruits are considered. Furthermore, the hydroxycinnamic acids bound to cell wall polymers, the phenolic acid compounds in coffee, cereals, oil seed, and tree nuts, and the analysis of phenolic acid derivatives are reviewed.
Article
A uridinediphosphateglucose:thiohydroximate glucosyltransferase (EC 2.4.1.-) has been purified 3700-fold from Brassica napus L. seedlings. The enzyme catalyzes the formation of desulfoglucosinolates by transfer of glucose from UDP-glucose to thiohydroximates and is believed to be the second to last step involved in glucosinolate biosynthesis. The enzyme was purified to near homogeneity, exhibiting a single band by non-denaturing polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE) and on sodium dodecyl sulfate-PAGE (M(r) 46,000) but showed multiple isoforms between pH 4.6 and 4.3 when resolved by IEF. The enzyme is stable at temperatures up to 30 degrees C for at least 1 h and shows maximum activity rates at pH 6.0 and has no absolute requirements for cations. The Km values for UDP-glucose and phenylacetothiohydroximate were calculated to be 0.46 and 0.05 mM, respectively. This enzyme possesses a high degree of specificity for the thiohydroximic functional group but little specificity for the associated side-chain groups. Similar enzyme activity has been detected in all other members of the Brassicaceae family tested and is believed to be a common thiohydroximate glucosylating enzyme present in these and other glucosinolate producing plants.
Article
We isolated a cDNA clone encoding limonoid UDP-glucosyltransferase (limonoid GTase) from the albedo of Satsuma mandarin (Citrus unshiu Marc.) and investigated the contribution to limonoid glucoside accumulation in fruit. The isolated cDNA clone (CitLGT) was 1732 bp in length encoding 511 deduced amino acids with a predicted molecular mass of 57.5 kDa. The products of in vitro translation from an expression vector had the limonoid GTase activity. Southern blot analysis of genomic DNA indicated that CitLGT was present as a single copy gene in the Citrus genome. The amount of transcript corresponding to CitLGT mRNA changed the same way as the fluctuation of limonin glucoside content during fruit development of navel orange (Citrus sinensis Osb.). This indicates that the transcription of CitLGT regulates the conversion of limonoid aglycones to glucosides in citrus fruit.
Article
Two types of experimental evidence are presented which suggest that the monoterpenes of peppermint (Mentha piperita L.) are subject to metabolic turnover. In kinetic studies with (14)CO(2), peppermint cuttings rapidly incorporate label into the monoterpenes and then lose most of the label from the monoterpenes, without corresponding changes in the amount of monoterpenes present. When peppermint plants are grown in a controlled environment (16-hr photoperiod, 24 degrees day, 8 degrees night) and analyzed at intervals leaf pair by leaf pair, there is a steady increase in monoterpenes until the time of floral initiation, followed by a rapid decrease. It is suggested that monoterpenes may serve as substrates for energy metabolism in the secretory cells after other stored substrates have been depleted.
Article
The terms 'antioxidant', 'oxidative stress' and 'oxidative damage' are widely used but rarely defined. This brief review attempts to define them and to examine the ways in which oxidative stress and oxidative damage can affect cell behaviour both in vivo and in cell culture, using cancer as an example.
Flowering with Citrus oils
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Impact of cinnamic acid on physiological and anatomical changes in maize plants (Zea mays L.) grown under salinity stress
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  • V K Chaturvedi
Effect of cattle and liquid manures on essential oil and antioxidant activities of celery (Apium graveolens L.) fruits
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Statistical Methods, 11th edn
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