Open AccessAnalysis of amino acids in nectar from Silene colorata Poiret (Caryophyllaceae)
Author(s) -
TERRAB ANASS,
GARCÍACASTAÑO JUAN L.,
ROMERO JOSE M.,
BERJANO REGINA,
VEGA CLARA DE,
TALAVERA SALVADOR
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
botanical journal of the linnean society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.872
H-Index - 68
eISSN - 1095-8339
pISSN - 0024-4074
DOI - 10.1111/j.1095-8339.2007.00673.x
Subject(s) - biology , amino acid , nectar , proline , methionine , population , botany , biochemistry , pollen , demography , sociology
Nectar samples were collected from Silene colorata Poiret (Caryophyllaceae), in three different populations from south‐western Spain: Zahara de la Sierra (Cádiz), Bornos (Cádiz) and Bormujos (Seville). Samples were analysed for amino acids by reverse‐phase high‐performance liquid chromatography with precolumn phenylisotiocyanate (PITC) derivatization. The method has the advantage of being highly sensitive, capable of detecting nanogram (ng) quantities of amino acids. Eighteen amino acids were identified and quantified. The mean number of amino acids in a nectar sample was 14 (SD = 2.8). Six amino acids (threonine, alanine, arginine, proline, tyrosine and methionine) were detected in all samples, accounting for 83% of the total amino acids content; proline and arginine were the most abundant amino acids, accounting for 40% and 20% of the total amino acids, respectively. The mean amounts of amino acids in nectar samples per population were 824, 782 and 356 µ m in Zahara de la Sierra, Bornos and Bormujos, respectively. Environmental variations such as temperature and sunlight are factors influencing the metabolic processes of nectar production. Our results may contradict the theory that the chemical constituents of floral nectar vary according to the kinds of pollinators. © 2007 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society , 2007, 155 , 49–56.