Fatty acids, sterols and hydrocarbons in the leaves from eleven species of mangrove

Abstract

The fatty acid, sterol and hydrocarbon compositions of the fresh leaves from eleven species of mangroves, cultivated in a shadehouse, are reported. The fatty acid and sterol analyses, whilst generally typical of higher plants, showed several chemotaxonomically significant differences between the species. The epicuticular wax hydrocarbons and fatty acids were low in abundance compared to previous reports of mangrove leaf lipids, which may reflect the importance of environmental influences on this group of compounds. Cluster analysis of selected subsets of the data showed clear chemotaxonomic divisions amongst the mangroves. The results grouped the mangroves into genera, except for the Rhizophora and Ceriops tagal which were not separated, and grouped the family Rhizophoraceae distinct from all other species except Xylocarpus granatum. Avicennia marina var. resinifera was able to be distinguished from Avicennia marina by cluster analysis, supporting its assignment as a distinct variety. The results show that the lipids of mangroves are chemotaxonomically significant.