A review of the role of metabolites in vegetative desiccation tolerance of angiosperms

Resurrection Plants—A Valuable Source of Natural Bioactive Compounds: From Word-of-Mouth to Scientifically Proven Sustainable Use

“…Metabolic profiling of resurrection plants is performed by applying contemporary extraction procedures and analytical methods and machinery [21]. With respect to primary metabolism, it is widely accepted that sugars are among the major players in the plant desiccation tolerance complex [18,21].…”

“…Metabolic profiling of resurrection plants is performed by applying contemporary extraction procedures and analytical methods and machinery [21]. With respect to primary metabolism, it is widely accepted that sugars are among the major players in the plant desiccation tolerance complex [18,21]. The dynamics of both sucrose and raffinose family oligosaccharides (RFOs) is well-outlined [31,32], and the specific key role in some resurrection species of relatively rare molecules-e.g., octolose, stachyose, and trehalose-is also discussed [33][34][35].…”

“…The data on secondary metabolism in resurrection plants are much more limited, at least in part due to the fact that these plants are still not regarded as sources of valuable natural compounds [21]. The few exceptions available-M. flabellifolius, and the members of the Gesneriaceae (Haberlea rhodopensis, Ramonda ssp., Boea hydrometrica) and of the Linderniaceae (Craterostigma plantagineum, Lindernia brevidens) [32,[38][39][40][41][42][43][44]-outline the high abundance and diversity of phenolics, flavonoids, etc.…”

“…Hispidulin 8-C-(6-O-acetyl-2-O-syringoyl-β-glucopyranoside) was isolated for the first time recently [47] from leaves of H. rhodopensis as acylated hispidoline C-glicoside, possessing some unique features like 2-O-syringoyl and 6-O-acetyl moieties. The secondary compounds play a significant role in ROS scavenging, thus underlying the desiccation tolerance of the plants [21,30]. The strong antioxidant activity of phenolic compounds also predetermines the interest in using the extracts of resurrection plants for various applications.…”

“…To survive and recover after extreme water deficit, resurrection plants have evolved complex strategies, including dynamic changes of primary and secondary metabolites [18]. In parallel, the metabolism of these plants attracts additional attention to them as potential sources of compounds with various applications [19][20][21]. Moreover, in comparison with typical medicinal plants, the resurrection species accumulate and/or maintain valuable bioactive compounds in the highest concentrations under desiccation.…”