[Analysis of the components of floral scent in Glochidion puberum using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry with dynamic headspace adsorption].[Pubmed: 26182476]

The floral scent plays the important key role in maintaining the obligate pollination mutualism between Glochidion plants and Epicephala moths. In the study, the dynamic headspace adsorption technique was employed to collect the floral scent emitted by Glochidion puberum, gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-MS) was used for the detection and identification of volatile chemical components in headspace samples of flowers from G. puberum. The peak area normalization was used to determine the relative contents of each odour component. The results showed that 45 compounds mainly consisting of monoterpenes and sesquiterpenes were isolated from the floral scent produced by G. puberum. Especially, both linalool (38.06%) and β-elemene (23.84%) were considered as the major scent components of G. puberum. It was speculated that linalool and β-elemene may be the two potential compounds attracting female Epicephala moths. The study provided the basic data for further electroantennographic detection and bioassays to identify the compounds having the actual physiological activity to female Epicephala moths.

Puberosides C-E, triterpenoid saponins from Glochidion puberum.[Pubmed: 21830889]

Three new triterpenoid glycosides, named puberosides C-E (1-3), were isolated from the water-soluble fraction of Glochidion puberum (Linn.) Hutch. Their structures were determined as 3α-[(O-β-d-glucopyranosyl-(1 → 3)-O-α-l-arabinopyranosyl)oxy]-22α-trans-cinnamoyl-olean-12-ene-16α,28-diol, 3α-[(O-β-d-glucopyranosyl-(1 → 3)-O-α-l-arabinopyranosyl)oxy]-22α-cis-cinnamoyl-olean-12-ene-16α,28-diol, and 3α-[(O-β-d-glucopyranosyl-(1 → 3)-O-β-d-glucopyranosyl)oxy]-22α-benzoyloxy-olean-12-ene-16α,28-diol by the combination of 1D, 2D NMR, and MS spectral analyses.

Seedling growth and metal accumulation of selected woody species in copper and lead/zinc mine tailings.[Pubmed: 21517000]

A greenhouse pot experiment was conducted to evaluate the potential of selected woody plants for revegetation in copper (Cu) and lead/zinc (Pb/Zn) mine tailing areas. Five woody species (Amorpha fruticosa Linn, Vitex trifolia Linn. var. simplicifolia Cham, Glochidion puberum (Linn.) Hutch, Broussonetia papyrifera, and Styrax tonkinensis) and one herbaceous species (Sesbania cannabina Pers) were planted in Cu and Pb/Zn tailings to assess their growth, root morphology, nutrition uptake, metal accumulation, and translocation in plants. Amorpha fruticosa maintained normal growth, while the other species demonstrated stress related growth and root development. Sesbania cannabina showed the highest biomass among the plants, although it decreased by 30% in Cu tailings and 40% in Pb/Zn tailings. Calculated tolerance index (TI) values suggested that A. fruticosa, an N-fixing shrub, was the most tolerant species to both tailings (TI values 0.92-1.01), while S. cannabina had a moderate TI of 0.65-0.81 and B. papyrifera was the most sensitive species, especially to Pb/Zn tailings (TI values 0.15-0.19). Despite the high concentrations of heavy metals in the mine tailings and plants roots, only a small transfer of these elements to the aboveground parts of the woody plants was evident from the low translocation factor (TF) values. Among the woody plants, V. trifolia var. simplicifolia had the highest TF values for Zn (1.32), Cu (0.78), and Pb/Zn (0.78). The results suggested that A. fruticosa and S. cannabina, which have the highest tolerance and biomass production, respectively, demonstrated the potential for tailings revegetation in southern China.

Two new triterpenoid saponins from Glochidion puberum.[Pubmed: 19031242]

Two new triterpenoid saponins, puberosides A and B, were isolated from the aerial parts of Glochidion puberum. Their structures were elucidated as 3alpha-[(O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-->3)-O-alpha-L-arabinopyranosyl)oxy]-22alpha-benzoyloxy-olean-12-ene-16alpha,28-diol (1) and 3alpha-[(O-beta-D-glucopyranosyl-(1-->3)-O-alpha-L-arabinopyranosyl)oxy]-28-benzoyloxy-olean-12-ene-16alpha,22alpha-diol (2) by analysis of their spectroscopic data.