Plant height is among the most important agronomic traits influencing crop yield. Wheat lines carrying Rht genes are important in plant breeding due to their both higher yield capacity and better tolerance to certain environmental stresses. However, the effects of dwarf-inducing genes on stress acclimation mechanisms are still poorly understood. Under the present conditions, cadmium stress induced different stress responses and defence mechanisms in the wild-type and dwarf mutant, and the mutant with the Rht-B1c allele exhibited higher tolerance. In the wild type after cadmium treatment, the abscisic acid synthesis increased in the leaves, which in turn might have induced the polyamine and proline metabolisms in the roots. However, in the mutant line, the slight increment in the leaf abscisic acid content accompanied by relatively high salicylic acid accumulation was not sufficient to induce such a great accumulation of proline and putrescine. Although changes in proline and polyamines, especially putrescine, showed similar patterns, the accumulation of these compounds was antagonistically related to the phytochelatin synthesis in the roots of the wild type after cadmium stress. In the dwarf genotype, a favourable metabolic shift from the synthesis of polyamine and proline to that of phytochelatin was responsible for the higher cadmium tolerance observed.

• Keywords
• ABA, PA, PCs, Proline, Rht, SA,
• MeSH
• Phytochelatins MeSH
• Cadmium * MeSH
• Polyamines MeSH
• Proline MeSH
• Triticum * MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Names of Substances
• Phytochelatins MeSH
• Cadmium * MeSH
• Polyamines MeSH
• Proline MeSH

Glutathione (γ-glutamyl-cysteinyl-glycine; also known as GSH) is an endogenous antioxidant that plays a crucial role in cell defense mechanisms against oxidative stress. It is thus not surprising that this molecule can serve as a biomarker for oxidative stress monitoring. As capillary blood is a highly accessible target for biomarking, it is a valuable bodily fluid for diagnosing human GSH levels. This study focused on the optimization of GSH measurements from micro volumes of capillary blood prior to using electrochemical detection. The optimization of experimental parameters, including the sample volume and its stability, was performed and evaluated. Moreover, we tested the optimized method as part of a short-term study. The study consisted of examining 10 subjects within 96 h of their consumption of high amounts of antioxidants, attained from a daily dose of 2 g/150 mL of green tea. The subjects' capillary blood (5 μL) was taken at 0 h, 48 h, and 96 h for subsequent analysis. The short-term supplementation of diet with green tea showed an increase of GSH pool by approximately 38% (between 0 and 48 h) within all subjects.

• Keywords
• antioxidant molecules, blood drop analysis, electrochemical analysis, nutritional study, sample pretreatment,
• MeSH
• Tea chemistry   MeSH
• Diet MeSH
• Adult MeSH
• Electrochemical Techniques MeSH
• Glutathione blood   MeSH
• Glutathione Disulfide blood   MeSH
• Capillaries MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Check Tag
• Adult MeSH
• Humans MeSH
• Male MeSH
• Female MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Names of Substances
• Tea MeSH
• Glutathione MeSH
• Glutathione Disulfide MeSH

In this study, in vitro formed Cd-phytochelatin (PC2) complexes were characterized using ion exchange chromatography (IEC) and matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight (MALDI-TOF) mass spectrometry. The ratio of both studied compounds as well as experimental conditions were optimized. The highest yield of the complex was observed under an applied concentration of 100 µg·mL(-1) PC2 and 100 µg·mL(-1) of CdCl2. The data obtained show that IEC in combination with MALDI-TOF is a reliable and fast method for the determination of these complexes.

• MeSH
• Chromatography, Ion Exchange methods   MeSH
• Phytochelatins chemistry   MeSH
• Cadmium chemistry   MeSH
• Environmental Pollutants chemistry   MeSH
• Environmental Monitoring methods   MeSH
• Spectrometry, Mass, Matrix-Assisted Laser Desorption-Ionization methods   MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
• Names of Substances
• Phytochelatins MeSH
• Cadmium MeSH
• Environmental Pollutants MeSH

The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of molds on levels of low molecular mass thiols in grasses. For this purpose, the three grass species Lolium perenne, Festulolium pabulare and Festulolium braunii were cultivated and sampled during four months, from June to September. The same species were also grown under controlled conditions. High-performance liquid chromatography with electrochemical detection was used for quantification of cysteine, reduced (GSH) and oxidized (GSSG) glutathione, and phytochelatins (PC2, PC3, PC4 and PC5). Data were statistically processed and analyzed. Thiols were present in all examined grass species. The effect of fungicide treatments applied under field conditions on the content of the evaluated thiols was shown to be insignificant. Species influenced (p < 0.05) PC3 and GSSG content. F. pabulare, an intergeneric hybrid of drought- and fungi-resistant Festuca arundinacea, was comparable in PC3 content with L. perenne and F. braunii under field conditions. Under controlled conditions, however, F. pabulare had higher (p < 0.05) PC3 content than did L. perenne and F. braunii. Under field conditions, differences between the evaluated species were recorded only in GSSG content, but only sampling in June was significant. F. pabulare had higher (p < 0.05) GSSG content in June than did L. perenne and F. braunii.

• MeSH
• Fungi * MeSH
• Poaceae chemistry   microbiology   MeSH
• Molecular Weight MeSH
• Sulfhydryl Compounds analysis   MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't MeSH
• Names of Substances
• Sulfhydryl Compounds MeSH