Increased biomass and salicylic acid elicitor activity in fennel (Foeniculum vulgare Miller)

Abstract

Fennel is a medicinal and aromatic plant that is commonly used in Brazilian cuisine and in the manufacture of cosmetics. The exogenous application of salicylic acid (SA) can act on the hormonal action stimulating plant growth and development and the induction of plant defense responses under stressful conditions. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of the foliar application of SA on the production of biomass and synthesis of secondary compounds in fennel plants. For this purpose, an experiment was carried out in potted plants in a greenhouse with the application of SA at concentrations of 0, 0.25, 0.50 and 1.00 mM, 20 days and 90 days after transplanting the seedlings to the pots. The effect of SA on the metabolism of the fennel plants was evaluated using growth and biochemical parameters. The exogenous application of SA increased the plant shoots dry weight at the concentration of 0.50 mM, whereas an improved dry root mass and root/shoot ratio was achieved with the concentration of 0.25 mM. The elicitor effect was observed at 0.25 mM of SA, resulting in greater economic value of the biomass due to the higher production of secondary compounds, such as phenolic compounds and flavonoids. In addition, an increase in antioxidant activity of the plant extracts and of the essential oil content of the species was obtained at the concentration of 1.00 mM. Keywords: Fennel; Antioxidant activity; Phenolic compounds; Essential oil; Secondary metabolism. ResumoO funcho é uma planta medicinal, condimentar e ornamental, utilizada na culinária brasileira e na fabricação de cosméticos e de fitoterápicos. A aplicação exógena do ácido salicílico (AS) pode agir na ação hormonal, estimulando o crescimento e o desenvolvimento vegetal, e na indução das respostas de defesa das plantas. O objetivo deste trabalho foi determinar o efeito da aplicação foliar de AS sobre a produção de biomassa e a síntese de compostos secundários em plantas de funcho, uma espécie medicinal produzida comercialmente como matéria-prima para a indústria mundial de fitomedicamentos. O experimento foi conduzido em plantas envasadas em estufa, sem controle de umidade e temperatura. A aplicação do AS foi efetuada nas concentrações 0; 0,25; 0,50 e 1,00 mM, aos 20 dias e 90 dias após o transplante das mudas para os vasos. O efeito do AS sobre o metabolismo das plantas de funcho foi avaliado através de parâmetros biométricos de crescimento e bioquímicos. Conclui-se que a aplicação exógena de AS constitui-se em técnica de manejo vantajosa para a obtenção de aumento na biomassa das plantas de funcho: massa seca da parte aérea, na concentração de 0,50 mM, e massa seca de raízes e razão raiz/parte aérea, na concentração de 0,25 mM. O efeito elicitor foi obtido na concentração de 0,25 mM de AS, resultando em maior valor econômico da matéria-prima, devido ao aumento na produção de compostos secundários, tais como fenóis totais e flavonoides, além de um concomitante aumento na atividade antioxidante do extrato vegetal e no teor do óleo essencial ...

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“…In this study, increased growth attributes with concomitant increase of some biochemical parameters in SA treated plant samples are well established from repeated experiment. The use of plant growth regulators particularly salicylic acid on various plants to improve vegetative growth, metabolism and essential oil productivity were documented earlier by different workers 27,28,29,30 . In our present study the beneficial role of SA on some growth parameters the physiological data like shoot length, leaf number, leaf area, plant biomass and branch number per plant of mint corroborated the previous findings.…”

Induce of Plant Growth Regulators with and without Bio-fertilizer for Enhances the Adverse Effect of Salinity on Germination, Growth and Photosynthetic Pigments

“…The results agree with these results by Yildirim et al [83]; Ekinci et al [84]; Hniličková et al [85] they reported that salinity conditions could adversely affect the shoot and root fresh and dry weights of lettuce. The exogenous application of SA can act on the hormonal action stimulating plant growth and development and the induction of plant defense responses under stressful conditions [86][87][88][89].…”

Ascophyllum nodosum extract improves phenolic compound content and antioxidant activity of medicinal and functional food plant Achillea millefolium L.

“…Elicitors refer to chemicals or natural products that can trigger physiological and morphological responses and accumulation of secondary metabolites, such as polyphenols in plants (Dong et al, 2010). For instance, the use of salicylic acid or utilization of a product based on a mix of hormones (cytokinins, auxins and gibberellic acid) elicited the production of phenolic compounds in marigold, yarrow, and fennel leaves, so increasing the quality of their raw material (Machado et al, 2014;Gorni and Pacheco, 2016;Gorni et al, 2017). Medicinal plant farming should be carried out under organic system (Mógor et al, 2008).…”