Low‐molecular‐weight carbohydrates in some salt‐stressed plants

Abstract

A study was made of the effects of salinity on the concentrations of free sugars, glycinebetaine, proline and other chemical components of Aster tripolium L., Daucus carota L., Honkenya peploides (L.) Ehr. and Plantago coronopus L. (Dicotyledones); and Carex extensa Good., Eleocharis uniglumis (Link) Schutt., Juncus maritima Lam. and Schoenoplectus tabernaemontani (C. C. Gmel.) Palla (Monocotyledones) grown in the laboratory. In Plantago coronopus the level of the polyol sorbitol increased when the plants were subjected to NaCl stress, while in Honkenya peploides the cyclitol pinitol accumulated. No consistent pattern emerged with respect to the changes in free sugar contents in either the monocotyledonous or dicotyledonous plants, though the monocotyledonous plants generally had higher sugar contents.