Biodiversity of Volatile Organic Compounds from Five French Ferns

Abstract

Five French ferns belonging to different families were investigated for volatile organic compounds (VOC) by GC-MS using organic solvent extraction. Fifty-five VOC biosynthesized from the shikimic, lipidic and terpenic pathways including monoterpenes, sesquiterpenes and carotenoid-type compounds were identified. The main volatile compound of Adiantum capillus-veneris L. (Pteridaceae) was (E)-2-decenal with a plastic or "stink bug" odor. The volatile profiles of Athyrium filixfemina (L.) Roth (Woodsiaceae) and Blechnum spicant (L.) Roth (Blechnaceae) showed similarities, with small amounts of isoprenoids and the same main volatile compounds, i.e., 2-phenylethanal (odor of lilac and hyacinth) and 1-octen-3-ol (mushroom-like odor). The main volatile compound of Dryopteris filix-mas (L.) Schott (Dryopteridaceae) was (E)-nerolidol with a woody or fresh bark note. Polyketides, as acylfilicinic acids, were mainly identified in this fern. Oreopteris limbosperma (Bellardi ex. All.) J. Holub (Thelypteridaceae), well-known for its lemon smell, contained the highest biodiversity of VOC. Eighty percent of the volatiles was issued from the terpenic pathway. The main volatiles were (E)-nerolidol, α-terpineol, β-caryophyllene and other minor monoterpenes (for example, linalool, pinenes, limonene, and γ-terpinen-7-al). It was also the fern with the highest number of carotenoid-type derivatives, which were identified in large amounts. Our results were of great interest underlying new industrial valorisation for ferns based on their broad spectrum of volatiles.

Volatile organic compounds in the strongly fragrant fern genus Melpomene (Polypodiaceae)

“…Bearing these limitations in mind, the number of VOCs found in our six study species (22-33) was comparable to those recorded in other fern species analysed to date (Briggs & Sutherland 1947;Juliani et al 2004;Cheng & Mao 2005;Naseri et al 2006;Miyazawa et al 2007;Radulovi c et al 2008;Imbiscuso et al 2009;Fons et al 2010;Fletcher et al 2011). More direct comparisons are hampered by methodological differences in the extraction and analytical procedures in the different studies.…”

“…Chemically, these compounds belonged to fatty acid derivatives (FADs; 16 substances), aromatics (eight), Table 1. VOCs recorded in the six study species, with numbers representing percentage of amounts relative to all recorded VOCs, as well as indication of previous records of these substances among ferns (based on Briggs & Sutherland 1947;Juliani et al 2004;Cheng & Mao 2005;Naseri et al 2006;Miyazawa et al 2007;Radulovi c et al 2008;Imbiscuso et al 2009;Fons et al 2010;Fletcher et al 2011) and angiosperms (based mainly on Knudsen et al 2006). monoterpenes (ten), sesquiterpenes (one), sulphur-containing compounds (one), irregular terpenes (one) and heterocyclic aldehydes (one).…”

“…Although a number of fern species have long been known to be fragrant (already Linnaeus described the species Dryopteris fragrans (L.) Schott), there are few studies of VOCs in ferns, so far covering 26 species in the families Adiantaceae, Anemiaceae, Aspleniaceae, Athyriaceae, Blechnaceae, Dennstaedtiaceae, Dryopteridaceae, Equisetaceae, Lygodiaceae, Pteridaceae, Thelypteridaceae and Woodsiaceae (Briggs & Sutherland 1947;Juliani et al 2004;Cheng & Mao 2005;Naseri et al 2006;Miyazawa et al 2007;Radulovi c et al 2008;Imbiscuso et al 2009;Fons et al 2010Fons et al , 2013Fletcher et al 2011;Froissard et al 2011). In the only functional study to date, Imbiscuso et al (2009) showed that Pteris vittata L. reacts to herbivory by increasing the production of VOCs, in this case mostly consisting of mono-and sesquiterpenes, which are well known defence substances in plants (Par e & Tumlinson 1999;Cheng et al 2007;Mumm et al 2008).…”

Identification of compounds from non-polar fractions of Blechnum spp and a multitarget approach involving enzymatic modulation and oxidative stress

“…This study is the first report of GC analysis data for the three Blechnum species, including B. binervatum, B. brasiliense and B. occidentale. Fons et al [25] have already described the evaluation of volatile organic compounds by gas chromatography found in Blechnum spicant ether extract. Eight compounds were identified, and the major components were 2-phenylethanal (45%) and 1-octen-3-ol (37.5%).…”

Volatile emissions of six New Zealand fern species in response to physical damage and herbivory

“…To identify the compounds that constitute the chemical profiles of the different species, we compared two collection methods that have been previously used to characterise fern scent in other species: solvent extraction (Fons et al 2010;Froissard et al 2011;Halarewicz & Szumny 2010), and headspace collection (Imbiscuso et al 2009;Kessler et al 2015;Radhika et al 2012).…”