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Abiotic Stress Response in Plants: The Relevance of Tocopherols

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Antioxidants and Antioxidant Enzymes in Higher Plants

Abstract

In the natural environment, plants are continuously exposed to a variety of abiotic stresses yielding higher concentrations of reactive oxygen species (ROS), which may cause strong oxidation of cellular structures. To cope with oxidative stress plants have evolved very efficient antioxidant machinery, among which, lipophilic tocopherols represent an important nonenzymatic component. Tocopherol exists in four isomeric forms (α-, β-, γ-, δ-) and its composition depends on plant genotypic features and tissue type. It plays a crucial role together with other antioxidants (e.g., ascorbic acid, carotenoids, glutathione) in detoxifying ROS that emerge during stress conditions. As a component of thylakoid membranes, tocopherol acts as an important scavenger of singlet oxygen and other ROS thereby preventing lipid peroxidation and maintaining stable redox status in plant cells. In addition, tocopherols may protect the embryo from ROS during germination, under both aging and stress conditions. In this chapter, the role of tocopherols in the regulation of abiotic stress responses in plants will be emphasized.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, Josip Juraj Strossmayer University of Osijek, Cara Hadrijana 8/A, HR-31000, Osijek, Croatia

    Ivna Štolfa Čamagajevac, Tanja Žuna Pfeiffer & Dubravka Špoljarić Maronić

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  1. Ivna Štolfa Čamagajevac
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  2. Tanja Žuna Pfeiffer
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  3. Dubravka Špoljarić Maronić
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Correspondence to Ivna Štolfa Čamagajevac .

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  1. Institut für Radioökologie und Strahlenschutz (IRS), Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz Universität Hannover, Hannover, Germany

    Dharmendra K. Gupta

  2. Group of Antioxidants, Free Radicals and Nitric Oxide in Biotechnology, Food and Agriculture, Estación Experimental del Zaidín, CSIC, Granada, Spain

    José M. Palma

  3. Group of Antioxidants, Free Radicals and Nitric Oxide in Biotechnology, Food and Agriculture, Estación Experimental del Zaidín, CSIC, Granada, Spain

    Francisco J. Corpas

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Štolfa Čamagajevac, I., Žuna Pfeiffer, T., Špoljarić Maronić, D. (2018). Abiotic Stress Response in Plants: The Relevance of Tocopherols. In: Gupta, D., Palma, J., Corpas, F. (eds) Antioxidants and Antioxidant Enzymes in Higher Plants. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-75088-0_11

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