Abstract
The study has proved the stimulating effects of different strategies of treatments with elicitors on the production of glucosinolates (GSLs), flavonoids, polyphenols, saccharides, and photosynthetic pigments in watercress (Nasturtium officinale) microshoot cultures. The study also assessed antioxidant and anti-melanin activities. The following elicitors were tested: ethephon (ETH), methyl jasmonate (MeJA), sodium salicylate (NaSA), and yeast extract (YeE) and were added on day 10 of the growth period. Cultures not treated with the elicitor were used as control. The total GSL content estimations and UHPLC-DAD-MS/MS analyses showed that elicitation influenced the qualitative and quantitative profiles of GSLs. MeJA stimulated the production of gluconasturtiin (68.34 mg/100 g dried weight (DW)) and glucobrassicin (65.95 mg/100 g DW). The elicitation also increased flavonoid accumulation (max. 1131.33 mg/100 g DW, for 100 μM NaSA, collection after 24 h). The elicitors did not boost the total polyphenol content. NaSA at 100 μM increased the production of total chlorophyll a and b (5.7 times after 24 h of treatment), and 50 μM NaSA caused a 6.5 times higher production of carotenoids after 8 days of treatment. The antioxidant potential (assessed with the CUPRAC FRAP and DPPH assays) increased most after 24 h of treatment with 100 μM MeJA. The assessment of anti-melanin activities showed that the microshoot extracts were able to cause inhibition of tyrosinase (max. 27.84% for 1250 µg/mL).Key points• Elicitation stimulated of the metabolite production in N. officinale microshoots.• High production of pro-health glucosinolates and polyphenols was obtained.• N. officinale microshoots have got tyrosinase inhibition potential.• The antioxidant potential of N. officinale microshoots was evaluated.Graphical abstract
Highlights
The N. officinale cultures grown on Murashige and Skoog (MS) medium with yeast extract (YeE) were characterized by the smallest increase in microshoot biomass at the elicitor concentration of 3 mg/mL
The highest growth index (Gi) had been obtained for elicitor nontreated N. officinale agitated cultures (Gi = 10.48) collected after 20 days of growth
That value was 3.0 times lower than the highest result obtained after the current treatments with elicitors
Summary
N. officinale is a widely commercially cultivated species, recently mainly as source of “super food” or “fit food,” due to its low calorific value (11 cal in 100 g of FW (fresh weight)), and a rich source of valuable compounds such as glucosinolates (GSLs), polyphenols, vitamins (B1, B2, B3, B6, E, C), and bioelements (Afsharypuor and Salehi 2008; Martínez-Sánchez et al 2008; Boligon et al 2013; Jeon et al 2017) It is a leafy vegetable, often grown in hydroponic cultures and in gravel beds with a constant flow of water passing through them. The conducted studies have shown that, apart from anticancer activity, extracts of N. officinale have antioxidant, antibacterial, and antiinflammatory properties (Holst and Williamson 2004; Bahramikia and Yazdanparast 2010; Sadeghi et al 2014; Li et al 2016)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
