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【drug-news】植物会因环境压力释放阿司匹林样物
Fri Sep 19, 2008 2:42am EDT
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Plants stressed by drought or unseasonable temperatures squirt out an aspirin-like chemical, researchers reported on Thursday in a finding that may some day help farmers watch for trouble.
The chemical, methyl salicylate, may help plants resist the damage and may help them signal danger to one another, the team at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Colorado said.
"Unlike humans, who are advised to take aspirin as a fever suppressant, plants have the ability to produce their own mix of aspirin-like chemicals, triggering the formation of proteins that boost their biochemical defenses and reduce injury," Thomas Karl, who led the study, said in a statement.
"Our measurements show that significant amounts of the chemical can be detected in the atmosphere as plants respond to drought, unseasonable temperatures, or other stresses."
Acetylsalicylic acid, or aspirin, was originally derived from tree bark, so scientists knew it was a compound made by plants. But it was never seen to be emitted as a gas.
Writing in the journal Biogeosciences, the researchers said they accidentally found the chemical when they set up instruments last year in a California walnut grove to monitor plant emissions of volatile organic compounds.
Such compounds can combine with industrial emissions to affect pollution and they can influence local climate.
The trees were already stressed by drought, and levels of methyl salicylate rose with unseasonably cool night-time temperatures -- especially when it quickly warmed up the next day.
Plants are known to emit chemicals to signal one another when they are close together, for instance, when being chomped on by insects.
"These findings show tangible proof that plant-to-plant communication occurs on the ecosystem level," scientist Alex Guenther said. "It appears that plants have the ability to communicate through the atmosphere."
Farmers and forest managers may be able to monitor for methyl salicylate to watch for early signs of disease, insect infestation, or other types of stress long before leaves begin to wither and drop off.
"If you have a sensitive warning signal that you can measure in the air, you can take action much sooner, such as applying pesticides. The earlier you detect that something's going on, the more you can benefit in terms of using fewer pesticides and managing crops better," Karl said.
(Reporting by Maggie Fox, editing by Will Dunham)
http://www.reuters.com/article/scienceNews/idUSN1850662520080919?sp=true 本人已认领该文编译，48小时后若未提交译文，请其他战友自由认领。 Stressed plants release aspirin-like chemical
植物会因环境压力释放阿司匹林样物质
Fri Sep 19, 2008 2:42am EDT
美国东部时间2008年9月19日星期五上午02时42分
WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Plants stressed by drought or unseasonable temperatures squirt
out an aspirin-like chemical, researchers reported on Thursday in a finding that may
some day help farmers watch for trouble.
（华盛顿讯）-研究员周三发表：植物受到干旱或不和时节的天气情况等环境压力时，会喷射阿司
匹林样物质。这项研究在将有助于农民发现农作物灾害。
The chemical, methyl salicylate, may help plants resist the damage and may help them
signal danger to one another, the team at the National Center for Atmospheric
Research in Colorado said.
该研究小组在科罗拉多州的国家大气研究中心称：水杨酸甲酯这种化学物质有助于植物抵御灾害
，并能将这种信号传递给其它植株。
"Unlike humans, who are advised to take aspirin as a fever suppressant, plants have
the ability to produce their own mix of aspirin-like chemicals, triggering the
formation of proteins that boost their biochemical defenses and reduce injury,"
Thomas Karl, who led the study, said in a statement.
“与为治疗发烧而被建议服用阿司匹林的人类不同，植物有自我合成阿司匹林样混合物的能力，
触发蛋白质形成，以提高自身的生化防御，减少伤害。”本研究项目的领导托马斯卡尔在一份声
明中这样说。
"Our measurements show that significant amounts of the chemical can be detected in
the atmosphere as plants respond to drought, unseasonable temperatures, or other
stresses."
“我们的测量表明，植物在受到干旱，不和时节的温度等其它压力时分泌到大气中的大量化学物
质，能够被检测”。
Acetylsalicylic acid, or aspirin, was originally derived from tree bark, so
scientists knew it was a compound made by plants. But it was never seen to be emitted
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作者:admin@医学,生命科学 2011-05-08 17:11
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