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Oleoresin glands in copaíba (Copaifera trapezifolia Hayne: Leguminosae), a Brazilian rainforest tree

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Abstract

Although studies have addressed the chemical analysis and the biological activity of oleoresin in species of Copaifera, the cellular mechanisms of oleoresin production, storage, and release have rarely been investigated. This study detailed the distribution, ontogeny, and ultrastructure of secretory cavities and canals distributed in leaf and stem, respectively, of Copaifera trapezifolia, a Brazilian species included in a plant group of great economic interest. Axillary vegetative buds, leaflets, and portions of stem in primary and secondary growth were collected and processed in order to study the anatomy, histolocalization of substances, and ultrastructure. Secretory cavities are observed in the foliar blade and secretory canals in the petiolule and stem. They are made up of a uniseriate epithelium delimiting an isodiametric or elongated lumen. Biseriate epithelium is rarely observed and is a novelty for Leguminosae. Cavities and canals originate from ground meristem cells and the lumen is formed by schizogenesis. The content of the cavities and canals of both stem and leaf is oily and resinous, which suggests that the oleoresin could be extracted from the leaf instead of the stem. Phenolic compounds are also detected in the epithelial cell cytoplasm. Cavities and canals in the beginning of developmental stages have polarized epithelial cells. The cytoplasm is rich in smooth and rough endoplasmic reticula connected to vesicles or plastids. Smooth and rough endoplasmic reticulum and plastids were found to be predominant in the epithelial cells of the secretory cavities and canals of C. trapezifolia. Such features testify the quantities of oleoresin found in the lumen and phenolic compounds in the epithelial cell cytoplasm of these glands. Other studies employing techniques such as correlative light electron microscopy could show the vesicle traffic and the compartmentalization of the produced substances in such glands.

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Acknowledgments

We thank José Augusto Maulin, Maria Dolores S. Ferreira (Departamento de Biologia Celular e Molecular e Bioagentes Patogênicos, FMRP/USP), and Edimárcio da Silva Campos (FCFRP/USP) for the technical assistance, Karen Lúcia Gama De Toni and Massimo Giuseppe Bovini (JBRJ) for the field support in the Botanical Garden of Rio de Janeiro, Dewey Litwiller (University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada) for the English language revision, and Thaís Cury de Barros for the drawings. The electron microscopy work was carried out at Laboratório de Microscopia Eletrônica of Faculdade de Medicina de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo. This study was supported by FAPESP (process number 2008/55434-7), CAPES, and CNPq (process number 301960/2009-7).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Ciências Farmacêuticas, Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de São Paulo, Av. do Café s/no, Ribeirão Preto, SP, 14040-903, Brazil

    Juliana Foresti Milani & Simone de Pádua Teixeira

  2. Departamento de Botânica, Instituto de Biologia, Universidade Federal Rural do Rio de Janeiro, C.P. 74582, Seropédica, RJ, 23890-000, Brazil

    Joecildo Francisco Rocha

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  1. Juliana Foresti Milani
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  2. Joecildo Francisco Rocha
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  3. Simone de Pádua Teixeira
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Correspondence to Simone de Pádua Teixeira.

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Communicated by M. Shane.

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Milani, J.F., Rocha, J.F. & de Pádua Teixeira, S. Oleoresin glands in copaíba (Copaifera trapezifolia Hayne: Leguminosae), a Brazilian rainforest tree. Trees 26, 769–775 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00468-011-0642-y

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