Tropane Alkaloid Distribution in Atropa baetica Plants

Author： Zárate Rafael Hermosin Bernardo Cantos Manuel Troncoso Antonio

ISSN： 0098-0331

Source： Journal of Chemical Ecology, Vol.23, Iss.8, 1997-08, pp. : 2059-2066

Disclaimer: Any content in publications that violate the sovereignty, the constitution or regulations of the PRC is not accepted or approved by CNPIEC.

Previous Menu Next

Abstract

Fifteen different tropane alkaloids and derivatives were identified by GC-MS in various plant organs of Atropa baetica. The main root and leaves displayed the largest number of tropane alkaloids, most of which were also present in lateral roots. In contrast, only five of these alkaloids appeared in stem tissue. Quantitative analysis by HPLC showed the presence of the two major tropane alkaloids, atropine and scopolamine, in all the samples studied. Atropine was more abundant, with the highest concentration in the main root (ca. 10.0 mg/g dry wt) followed by leaves (ca. 3.0 mg/g dry wt); scopolamine was present in highest concentration in the main root (0.6 mg/g dry wt) followed by leaves (0.4 mg/g dry wt). The lowest concentrations of these compounds were detected in stem tissue, followed by the lateral roots. The main root constitutes the major tropane alkaloid storage site; moreover, the distribution of these compounds does not appear to be organ dependent. These latter two characteristics are in contrast to closely related Atropa genera.