1998 Fiscal Year Final Research Report Summary
Studies on The Stress Tolerance Abilities of Tree Plants as Affected by The Contents of Fatty Acids and Antioxidants in Leaves.
| Project/Area Number |
09660165
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| Research Category |
Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
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| Allocation Type | Single-year Grants |
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| Section | 一般 |
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| Research Field |
林学
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| Research Institution | Kyushu University |
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Principal Investigator |
KOBAYASHI Yoshichika Kyushu Univ., Dept.of Forestry, Prof., 農学部, 教授 (90087594)
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| Project Period (FY) |
1997 – 1998
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| Keywords | Fatty acids / Antioxidants / Stress / Photosynthesis / Tree / Intact leaves |
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| Research Abstract |
The purpose of this research was to compare the leaf contents of fatty acids and antioxidants (ascorbic acid, alpha-tocopherol and carotenoids), which are thought to be important in the tolerance ability of tree plants to various environmental stresses such as low temperature, high temperature and intense light. We determined the relative leaf contents of fatty acids and antioxidants using 55 species of tree plants. In evergreen tree leaves, the relative contents of unsaturated fatty acids increased in winter and decreased in summer. The extent of the seasonal change in the ratio of unsaturated to saturated fatty acids was largely different among the examined tree species. The seasonal change was larger in leaves of warm temperature forest trees than in leaves of northern forest trees. On the other hand, the leaf contents of antioxidants were low in summer and increased with decreasing of temperature between august and December. The seasonal changes of antioxidants were larger in leaves of northern forest trees than in leaves of warm temperature forest trees. From these observations, it was suggested that the increase in the contents of antioxidants is responsible for the tolerance ability of tree leaves to low temperatures, and that the large seasonal changes of fatty acids in warm temperature forest tree plants are important in the tolerance ability of leaves to high temperatures.
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