Isoflavone levels in five soybean (Glycine max) genotypes are altered by phytochrome-mediated light treatments.

The objective of the present study was to determine whether concentrations of different isoflavones (puerarin, genistein, genistin, daidzein, and daidzin) in shoots and roots of five selected soybean genotypes would respond the same or differently to red (650 nm peak transmittance) and far-red (750 nm peak transmittance) light treatments given under controlled environments. Levels of isoflavones (mg g(-1) dry weight biomass) present in seeds, control roots, and shoots and 10 day light-treated seedlings (light, dark, red, and far-red wavelengths) of soybean (Glycine max) were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography analysis in comparison with known isoflavone standards. Seeds of the five soybean genotypes studied consistently stored most of their isoflavones as glucosyl conjugates (e.g., daidzin, genistin, and puerarin). For the five soybean genotypes, isoflavone levels were lower in the seeds as compared with roots plus shoots of control, time zero (first true leaf stage) seedlings. Following 10 days of the respective light treatments, we found that (i) isoflavone levels were enhanced in dark-grown plants over light-grown plants for three of the five genotypes (a new finding) and the reverse occurred for a single genotype (a typical response of legumes) and (ii) generally, far-red end of day (EOD) light treatment enhanced total isoflavone levels in roots plus shoots over red EOD light treatment. Results from the present study show that phytochrome does appear to play a role in regulating isoflavone levels in developing soybean seedlings and that this influence by red/far-red-mediated phytochrome reactions is strongly dependent on the genotypes selected for study.

Aroma content of fresh basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) leaves is affected by light reflected from colored mulches.

Sweet basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) is an herb that is used to add a distinct aroma and flavor to food. Volatile compounds emitted from fully expanded fresh leaves grown in drip-irrigated plots that were covered with six colors of mulch were compared. The colors reflected a range of photosynthetic photon flux, far-red, red, and blue light from the soil surface to developing leaves. Our objective was to determine whether reflection from the different colors could influence concentrations of volatile compounds emitted from the fresh leaves. Volatile compounds were isolated by headspace sampling and quantified by gas chromatography. Twenty-six compounds were identified, of which the terpenoids linalool and 1,8-cineole comprised more than 50% of the total yield. Concentrations of volatile compounds from leaves that developed over green, blue, yellow, white, and red mulches followed the same patterns as they did for air-dried leaves of the same cultivar. However, the concentration of volatile compounds from fresh leaves was about 50-fold higher than those found in the previous study of air-dried leaves.

Aroma of fresh strawberries is enhanced by ripening over red versus black mulch.

Strawberry (Fragaria ananassa Duch) is a high-value food crop, the aroma of which is important in consumer satisfaction. We hypothesized that the concentration of fresh strawberry aroma compounds could be enhanced by growing the berries over a red plastic mulch that was formulated to reflect more far-red (FR) and red light (R) and a higher FR/R photon ratio than is reflected by standard black plastic mulch. Strawberries of the cultivars "Chandler" and "Sweet Charlie" were grown in trickle-irrigated field plots over the two colors of mulch. The berries were harvested when ripe, and aroma compounds were isolated by dynamic headspace sampling. Entrained compounds were quantified by gas chromatography and identified by gas chromatography/mass spectroscopy. Twenty-three compounds were identified, and most of them were aliphatic esters. Strawberries that ripened over the red mulch during periods of sunny weather had significantly higher concentrations of aroma compounds than berries grown over the black plastic mulch. Total levels of aroma compounds from berries grown over red plastic mulch were higher for both Chandler and Sweet Charlie. We postulate that FR and R in light reflected from the red mulch acted through the natural phytochrome system to modify gene expression enough to result in greater concentration of aroma compounds in fresh strawberries.