The effect of cholic acid treatment on the oxidative status of soybean plants

Abstract

The objective of this work was to study the effect of treatment of young soybean plants with cholic acid of different concentrations on their oxidative status. Young soybean plants, grown hydroponically for two weeks, were treated by adding cholic acid to the nutrient solution at the concentrations 20, 40, 60 and 80 mg/L, the control being without cholic acid. After one week, several parameters of the oxidative status were determined in the leaves and roots of the plants: contents of superoxide (O•-2), hydroxyl radicals (•OH) and glutathione (GSH), lipid peroxidation (LP), the superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity and the soluble protein accumulation, as well as the contents of chlorophylls and carotenoids. Treatments with cholic acid increased O•-2, LP, •OH and GSH in the leaves of the treated plants, while only the OH content increased in the roots at higher cholic acid concentrations. The obtained results support the idea that cholic acid, as an elicitor of defence responses in plants, might act through the generation of an oxidative burst. 2009 Copyright (CC) SCS.