Abstract
The aim of this study was to compare the accumulation of soluble carbohydrates in embryos of two lupin species: cultivated <em>Lupinus luteus</em> (cv. Juno) and wild <em>L. pilosus</em>, developing on plants grown under normal soil humidity and soil drought. All analysed seeds accumulated soluble carbohydrates, including: monosaccharides, sucrose, cyclitols, galactosyl cyclitols and raffinose family oligosaccharides. Soil drought caused a nearly two-fold increase of soluble carbohydrate contents in both species. <em>L. pilosus</em> embryos however, responded to water deficiency by increasing the accumulation of cyclitols and galactosyl cyclitols, whereas <em>L. luteus</em> embryos enhanced accumulation of cyclitols and raffinose family oligosaccharides.
Highlights
Water shortage in plants can be caused by salinity, high or low temperature, soil and atmospheric drought (Hanson and Hitz 1982)
At the earliest stage of embryo maturation drought stress accelerated this process (Fig. 1). This trend was reversed and at full physiological maturity the fresh mass of L. luteus embryos developing under optimum water conditions was higher by 35-36% compared to embryos of this species affected by drought
Seeds of this species reached full physiological maturity 60 days after flowering (DAF), whereas seeds subjected to drought stress matured at 55 DAF
Summary
Water shortage in plants can be caused by salinity, high or low temperature, soil and atmospheric drought (Hanson and Hitz 1982). The most evident consequences of moderate water deficiency in plant tissues include growth limitation and changes in gene expression patterns, leading to the synthesis and activation of new metabolites and proteins (Farrant et al 1996; Shinozaki and Yamaguchi-Shinozaki 1997; Cellier et al 1998; Rizhsky et al 2002). The biosynthesis of non-structural carbohydrates may be modified, and these compounds are involved in the most basic physiological processes i.e. photosynthesis, transport and respiration (Madore 1990). In addition to being the transport form of carbon, sucrose sustains the liquid crystal/gel balance of membrane phospholipids and prevents structural changes in proteins. The role of monosaccharides in drought resistance is ambiguous. They are respiratory substrates fuelling metabolic energy conversions. Accumulation of monosaccharides may be harmful for the cells as these compounds can take part in protein glycosylation, the so called Maillards reaction (Koster and Leopold 1988)
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