Abstract
Salicylic acid (SA) is synthesized via the phenylalanine lyase (PAL) and isochorismate synthase (ICS) pathways and can influence the stress response in plants by regulating certain secondary metabolites. However, the association between SA and particular secondary metabolites in the Chinese medicinal plant Scutellaria baicalensis Georgi is unclear. To elucidate the association between SA and the secondary metabolites baicalin and baicalein, which constitute the primary effective components of S. baicalensis, we subjected seedlings to drought and salt stress and exogenous SA treatment in a laboratory setting and tested the expression of PAL and ICS, as well as the content of free SA (FSA), total SA (TSA), baicalin, and baicalein. We also assessed the correlation of FSA and TSA with PAL and ICS, and with baicalin and baicalein accumulation, respectively. The results indicated that both FSA and TSA were positively correlated with PAL, ICS, and baicalin, but negatively correlated with baicalein. The findings of this study improve our understanding of the manner in which SA regulates secondary metabolites in S. baicalensis.
Highlights
Plants are frequently challenged by a variety of stresses associated with drought, salt, and temperature
Salicylic acid (SA) is synthesized via the phenylalanine lyase (PAL) and isochorismate synthase (ICS) pathways in plants and the levels are closely associated with the activity of these two enzymes under stress
PAL- and ICS-silenced S. baicalensis seedlings were constructed in a previous study, and the effect of gene silencing on SA synthesis and the influence of endogenous SA on baicalin and baicalein accumulation were assessed
Summary
Plants are frequently challenged by a variety of stresses associated with drought, salt, and temperature. Salicylic acid (SA) can regulate the physiological processes of plants under a variety of stresses, thereby altering their resistance to these challenges [1, 2]. During this regulatory process, SA induces the expression of many defense genes [3, 4], which results in alterations in the accumulation of some secondary metabolites. One of the major functions of these secondary metabolites is to improve the tolerance of plants to stress [5]. The accumulation of several of these metabolites has been well studied in plants treated with SA in response to pathogen infection, and some have been functionally identified as antimicrobial compounds. SA treatment induced the synthesis of phenol-2,4-bis (1,1-dimethylethyl) in avocado
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