seasonal variation of cistus ladanifer l. diterpenes季节性变化的岩蔷薇ladanifer l .二萜.pdfVIP

Plants 2012, 1, 6-15; doi:10.3390/plants1010006 OPEN ACCESS plants ISSN 2223-7747 /journal/plants Article Seasonal Variation of Cistus ladanifer L. Diterpenes Juan Carlos Alías *, Teresa Sosa, Cristina Valares, José Carlos Escudero and Natividad Chaves Department of Plant Biology, Ecology and Earth Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Extremadura, 06080 Badajoz, Spain; E-Mails: tesosa@unex.es (T.S.); cvalmas@unex.es (C.V.); escudero@unex.es (J.C.E.); natchalo@unex.es (N.C.) * Author to whom correspondence should be addressed; E-Mail: jalias@unex.es; Tel.: +34-924-289-300. Received: 7 June 2012; in revised form: 3 July 2012 / Accepted: 11 July 2012 / Published: 26 July 2012 Abstract: The exudate of Cistus ladanifer L. consists mainly of two families of secondary metabolites: flavonoids and diterpenes. The amount of flavonoids present in the leaves has a marked seasonal variation, being maximum in summer and minimum in winter. In the present study, we demonstrate that the amount of diterpenes varies seasonally, but with a different pattern: maximum concentration in winter and minimum in spring-summer. The experiments under controlled conditions have shown that temperature influences diterpene production, and in particular, low temperatures. Given this pattern, the functions that these compounds perform in C. ladanifer are probably different. Keywords: Cistus ladanifer L.; secondary metabolism; diterpenes; temperature; water stress 1. Introduction Cistus ladanifer L. (rock-rose or jara) is a typical M