Diurnal shifts in the reactive oxygen species regulation in the bromeliad Guzmania monostachia as a response to drought
Maria Elizabeth Abreu, Victoria Carvalho and Helenice Mercier
Instituto de Biociências da Universidade de São Paulo, Brazil
Instituto de Botânica, Brazil
: J Plant Physiol Pathol
Abstract
The production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) varies according to the nature and severity of the stress, as the antioxidant system response depends partly on the type of plant photosynthesis. Here, we aimed to study the oxidative stress markers and the antioxidant response in the epiphytic tank bromeliad, Guzmania monostachia, in response to drought. G. monostachia plants showed significant differences of ROS between light and dark periods in drought and control conditions. They also demonstrated diurnal oscillations of H2O2 levels and activity of anti-oxidative enzymes in leaves exposed to water limitation. In addition, increases of the ROS generation levels and H2O2 content can be correlated with an enhanced lipid peroxidation in the apex leaf portion. All this seems to prove the influence of diurnal shifts on the redox replies in G. monostachia plants in response to drought, which may be seen as one of its strategies to avoid oxidative damage.
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