Document Detail


The effect of ultraviolet-depleted light on the flavonol contents of the cactus species Opuntia wilcoxii and Opuntia violacea.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  17638334     Owner:  NLM     Status:  MEDLINE    
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
An early investigation at the Biosphere-2 Laboratory, an artificial ecosystem in the Arizona desert, had shown that the flavonoid content of cacti grown in glass-filtered solar light was lower than of cacti grown in normal solar light. This was attributed to the absence of ultraviolet (UV) radiation, which is required for flavonoid biosynthesis. In this study, two species of Opuntia cacti were grown in solar and UV-depleted light, and their flavonol contents of different tissues were determined by HPLC. O. wilcoxii, previously raised in the absence of UV light, was exposed to normal solar light. The flavonol content of young O. wilcoxii pads was 28-fold higher when grown in solar light as compared to UV-depleted light. The flavonol contents of mature outer tissues were only slightly higher. O. violacea, previously raised in solar light, was also maintained in the same UV-depleted artificial ecosystem. The flavonol content after hydrolysis of outer tissues was similar, whether grown in solar light or UV-depleted light. We attribute these responses to different biosynthetic and metabolic rates of young vs. mature plant tissues; slow-growing mature tissues neither produce nor metabolize compounds as quickly as immature tissues. These findings indicate that artificial ecosystems can influence the production of natural products in cultivated plants.
Authors:
John M Berger; Yasuhiro Itagaki; Koji Nakanishi
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Publication Detail:
Type:  Comparative Study; Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't    
Journal Detail:
Title:  Chemistry & biodiversity     Volume:  4     ISSN:  1612-1880     ISO Abbreviation:  Chem. Biodivers.     Publication Date:  2007 Jul 
Date Detail:
Created Date:  2007-07-30     Completed Date:  2007-09-07     Revised Date:  2009-11-19    
Medline Journal Info:
Nlm Unique ID:  101197449     Medline TA:  Chem Biodivers     Country:  Switzerland    
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  1525-32     Citation Subset:  IM    
Affiliation:
Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Montclair State University, Montclair, NJ 07043, USA. bergerj@mail.montclair.edu
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MeSH Terms
Descriptor/Qualifier:
Flavonols / isolation & purification,  radiation effects*
Opuntia / chemistry,  radiation effects*
Plant Extracts / chemistry,  isolation & purification,  radiation effects
Plant Structures / chemistry,  radiation effects
Sunlight
Ultraviolet Rays*
Chemical
Reg. No./Substance:
0/Flavonols; 0/Plant Extracts

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine


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