Vitamin E in legume nodules: Occurrence and antioxidant function

Although the biosynthesis and function of tocochromanols in leaves and seeds have been extensively studied, their occurrence and function in underground tissues, such as roots and nodules, is very poorly understood. Here, we performed a comparative study of the presence of tocochromanols in different plant organs (leaves, roots and nodules) of three legumes (soybean, alfalfa and pea plants). Additionally, we measured variations in tocochromanols as a function of the severity of water stress and evaluated their relationship with the extent of membrane lipid peroxidation and nodule performance (as indicated by thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances assay and N isotope labeling, respectively). Results showed the presence of endogenous tocopherols, mainly α-tocopherol, in the three studied organs of the three legumes. Nodules showed higher concentrations of α-tocopherol than roots, but lower than leaves. α-Tocopherol content increased under water shortage in nodules, roots and leaves of soybean as well as in roots of alfalfa, but not in the other plant systems. A strong negative correlation between α-tocopherol and thiobarbituric acid-reactive substances contents was found for roots and especially for nodules. Furthermore, nodule α-tocopherol content positively correlated with nodule N fixation (estimated by N isotope labeling). We conclude that α-tocopherol is a major antioxidant found in legume nodules.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Soba, David, Müller, Maren, Aranjuelo, Iker, Munné-Bosch, Sergi
Format:	artículo biblioteca
Published:	Elsevier BV 2020-04
Subjects:	Glycine max, Medicago sativa, Pisum sativum, Soybean, Alfalfa, Pea plants, Fabaceae, Legumes, Tocopherols, Vitamin E,
Online Access:	http://hdl.handle.net/10261/227987
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