The First Information on the Low Molecular Metabolom Lobelia dortmanna (Campanulaceae, Magnoliophyta) Growing in the Northwest of the Russian Federation

Abstract

The low molecular weight metabolome (LMWM) of Lobelia dortmanna L. (Campanulaceae, Magnoliophyta), a relic aquatic macrophyte listed in the Red Data Books of the Russian Federation and Republic of Belarus, was studied for the first time using the GC/MS technique. It is a macrophyte that grows in oligotrophic lakes in the northwest of the Vologda Region, Russia. Thirteen major chemicals were among the 127 volatile low molecular weight organic compounds (VOCs) discovered, which accounted for 77.23% of the overall VOC content (198.75 µg/g dry plant weight). The main components of LMWM were carboxylic acids and hydrocarbons. The presence of a large number of biologically active metabolites with a high concentration in L. dortmanna LMWM may indicate a significant effect of this plant on the hydrobiocenoses of the littoral zone of oligotrophic lakes. Further research into the LMWM of aquatic macrophytes in oligotrophic lakes, a valuable renewable resource, is needed to assess the background characteristics of the natural environment for more effective monitoring of the ecological state of water bodies in the Russian Federation's North-West and the rational use of their biological resources.