Emissions of Oxygenated Volatile Organic Compounds from Plants Part I: Emissions from Lipoxygenase Activity

Emissions of oxygenated volatile organic compounds (OVOC) from several plant species were measured in continuously stirred tank reactors (CSTR). High emission pulses of OVOCs were observed when plants were exposed to stress. Absolute emission rates were highly variable ranging up to 10^–13 mol · cm^–2 · s^–1. The temporal shape of these emissions was described by a formalism similar to that of a consecutive reaction of pseudo first order kinetics. The main emitted OVOC was (Z)-3-hexenol together with other C₆-aldehydes and alcohols, suggesting that lipoxygenase activity on linolenic acid was mainly responsible for OVOC production. Various stress factors induced lipoxygenase activity and subsequent emissions of OVOCs. These factors were exposure to high ozone concentrations, pathogen attack, and wounding. The pattern of OVOC emissions from tobacco was similar for different stress applications and the same products of lipoxygenase activity were emitted from all investigated plant species. Our results imply that these emissions occur as general response of the plants to stress. Since plants experience various abiotic or biotic stress factors in the environment, OVOC emissions as a response to stress are likely to be of significant importance for atmospheric chemistry.Now at     

Purification and characterization of lipoxygenase from Entermorpha clathrata

The purification and characterization of lipoxygenase （LOX, EC 1.13.11.12） from the green algae Enteromorpha clathrata were studied. Two components marked LOX - 1 and LOX - 2 were purified and their molecular masses were estimated to be 102 and 79 ku by SDS - PAGE. Both LOX - 1 and LOX - 2 were stable over the pH wide range 6.0 - 10.0 and had the optimum pH of 10.0 and 8.6, at optimum temperature of 30 and 25℃, respectively. Substrate specificities of LOX - 1 and LOX - 2 were the greatest towards linoleic acid, followed by arachidonic acid and linolenic acid. The Michaelis constant values of LOX - 1 and LOX - 2 were 0.23 and O. 20 mmol/dm^3 with the substrate of linoleic acid. The LOX activities were stimulated greatly by Ca^2＋ but inhibited by Hg2 ~ and the antioxidants such as BHA, BHT and TBHQ. The hydroperoxide products of LOX were analysed by HPLC with the substrate of methyl linoleate, and the results showed that LOX - 1 formed mainly 9-hydroperoxides while LOX - 2 formed both 9- and 13-hydroperoxides at a ratio of 24： 76.