Accumulation of tocopherols and tocotrienols during seed development of grape (Vitis vinifera L. cv. Albert Lavallée)

Abstract

Tocopherols and tocotrienols are present in mature seeds. Yet, little is known about the physiological role and the metabolism of these compounds during seed development. Here we present data on tocopherol and tocotrienol accumulation during seed development in Vitis vinifera L. cv. Albert Lavallée (Royal). This species was chosen for its ability to synthesize both tocopherols and tocotrienols. It is shown here for the first time that during seed development there are significant differences in localization and accumulation kinetics of tocopherols and tocotrienols. Tocopherols are found homogeneously dispersed throughout all tissues of the seed, in concentrations ranging from 20 to 100 μg tocopherol per g dry weight. Tocopherol levels decrease gradually during seed development. In contrast, tocotrienols are only found in the endosperm of the seeds, accumulating in a sigmoid fashion during the maturation period of seed development. Tocotrienol levels were found to be (54 ± 7.4) μg/g dry seed in 90-day-old seeds of V. vinifera L. Furthermore, tocotrienol biosynthesis is demonstrated in these seeds during tocotrienol accumulation and in an endosperm fraction isolated at 75 days after flowering.

Evidence for participation of the methionine sulfoxide reductase repair system in plant seed longevity

“…Thus, the involvement of MSRs in ROS scavenging could occur in seeds to limit the extent of damage resulting from the oxidative conditions reigning during maturation and imbibition. This idea is consistent with the finding that antioxidant enzymes, such as catalase and superoxide dismutase (13), and antioxidant components, such as tocopherol (14,57), confer protection against seed deterioration and aging.…”

“…Classical antioxidant systems also have an important part in seed quality (13). Thus, mutant plants deficient in tocopherol synthesis produce seeds with reduced viability when stored at high humidity and high temperature (14).…”

Generation of transgenic tobacco plants with enhanced tocotrienol levels through the ectopic expression of rice homogentisate geranylgeranyl transferase

“…Tocopherols occur widely in plants and its α-form is especially abundant in the leaves of all plants (Szymanska and Kruk 2008). On the other hand, the accumulation of tocotrienols is limited to the seeds of monocots such as cereal grains and some dicots (Falk and Munné-Bosch 2010;Horvath et al 2006;Yang et al 2011). Therefore, it is desirable to accumulate high levels of tocotrienols in leafy vegetables using gene transfer technology with biosynthesis-related genes.…”

The Preventive Approach of Biocompounactives (3): A Review in Recent Advances in Cereals and Some Animal-Based Foods

“…), tocopherols are ubiquitous in all plants and in almost all the green parts of the plant, while tocotrienols are present only in a range of independent groups of plants, and are found almost exclusively in seeds and fruits [164][165][166][167][168] and especially in the fraction of the bran and germ of cereals [169][170][171], which suggests different functions for tocopherols and tocotrienols in plants, and consequently, different probable bioactivities. Another example is that of lignans, which are present in a long range of plants of different families (more than 55 families) [172,173], and in which the total content of lignans varies between cereal species, as well as in same species based on genetic differences and environmental conditions [174].…”