Effect of Elevated CO2 on Seed Yield, Essential Oil Metabolism, Nutritive Value, and Biological Activity of Pimpinella anisum L. Accessions at Different Seed Maturity Stages

Abstract

Besides the lack of studies regarding applying elevated CO2 (eCO2) as a strategy to improve the chemical composition of anise (Pimpinella anisum L.) seeds, studies on its interaction with seed developmental stages and origin are very limited. The seed yield, chemical composition, and biological activity of 6 aniseed accessions (Egypt, Tunisia, Syria, Turkey, Yemen, and Morocco) were investigated during three developmental stages (immature, premature, and mature) under control and elevated CO2 conditions. Mature seeds from all aniseed accessions had significantly higher (p < 0.05) dry weight (DW) percentages than premature and immature seeds. The highest DW percentages were recorded in Egypt and Morocco accessions. Seed maturation increased nutrients and antioxidant metabolites in most eCO2-treated accessions. In contrast, essential oils were decreased by seed maturation, while eCO2 reversed this effect. Essential oil-related precursors (e.g., phenylalanine) and enzyme activities (3-Deoxy-d-arabino-heptulosonate-7-phosphate synthase (DAHPS) and O–methyltransferase) decreased with seed maturity. However, high CO2 reduced this impact and further induced the other essential oil-related precursors (shikimic and cinnamic acids). Consequently, eCO2 provoked changes in the antioxidant and hypocholesterolemic activities of aniseeds, particularly at mature stages. Overall, eCO2 application, as an efficient way to improve aniseed growth, essential oil metabolism, and chemical composition, was affected by seed maturation and origin. Future studies of eCO2-treated aniseeds as a nutraceutical and pharmaceutical product are suggested.

Developmental Stages-Specific Response of Anise Plants to Laser-Induced Growth, Nutrients Accumulation, and Essential Oil Metabolism

“…The fruits were observed to contain almost similar amounts of essential oils to the control plants. Similar to our results, eCO2 has been previously reported to exert positive effects on different stages of anise plants [42]. The obtained results could indicate the enhancement in essential oil metabolism in different stages of anise plants, exposed to laser irradiation treatment.…”

A Multidimensional Review of Pimpinella anisum and Recommendation for Future Research to Face Adverse Climatic Conditions

“…The 15 April planting date produced the best essential oil content values, and row spacing of 20 and 25 cm produced the maximum yield components and essential oil content [ 28 ]. Elevated CO 2 (eCO 2 ) in seeds has an effect on anise seeds’ nutritional and biological value, but the effectiveness depends on the seed’s maturity and provenance [ 29 ]. While essential oil metabolism declines, the decrease can be mitigated by the application of eCO 2 , seed maturation increased the antioxidant metabolites and nutrients in eCO 2 -treated accessions [ 29 ].…”

Agricultural Parameters and Essential Oil Content Composition Prediction of Aniseed, Based on Growing Year, Locality and Fertilization Type—An Artificial Neural Network Approach

“…Throughout the construction of the ANN model, input data were frequently inserted in the network [31][32][33]. The training process of the network was replicated 100,000 times, testing the various structures of the ANN model, including a diverse number of neurons in the hidden and the output layers (5)(6)(7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(15)(16)(17)(18)(19)(20), alternative activation functions (in particular, logarithmic, tangent hyperbolic, logistic or identity), and with random starting values of weight coefficients and biases. The ANN structure optimization was accomplished by achieving the minimal validation error.…”

“…In addition, aniseeds are widely engaged as an aromatic plant to provide flavor to various foods including soups [5], poultry [6], pickles [7], salad [8], drinks [9] and confectionery items, giving them a licorice flavor (chewing gum, jelly beans and candy) [10,11]. It can also be applied as a carminative and sedative agent (due to its antioxidant and antimicrobial properties) [12]. Aniseed can be found in seafood dishes to enhance sweet breath and provide digestive support [12,13].…”

“…It can also be applied as a carminative and sedative agent (due to its antioxidant and antimicrobial properties) [12]. Aniseed can be found in seafood dishes to enhance sweet breath and provide digestive support [12,13]. The essential oils of anise seeds are multicomponent blends of volatile oils, typically terpenes and their derivatives, containing nearly 4% of essential oil (E-Anethole conveys 90% of these essential oils, including stragol, anisaldehyde, γ-himachalene, isoeugenol, anisol, p-anisic acid and acetoanisol) [14].…”