title: Seasonal Variation of Cistus ladanifer L. Diterpenes.
abstract: The exudate of Cistus ladanifer L. consists mainly of two families of secondary metabolites: flavonoids and diterpenes. The amount of flavonoids present in the leaves has a marked seasonal variation, being maximum in summer and minimum in winter. In the present study, we demonstrate that the amount of diterpenes varies seasonally, but with a different pattern: maximum concentration in winter and minimum in spring-summer. The experiments under controlled conditions have shown that temperature influences diterpene production, and in particular, low temperatures. Given this pattern, the functions that these compounds perform in C. ladanifer are probably different.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant Biology, Ecology and Earth Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Extremadura, 06080 Badajoz, Spain. jalias@unex.es.
authors.forename: Juan Carlos
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Alías
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant Biology, Ecology and Earth Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Extremadura, 06080 Badajoz, Spain. tesosa@unex.es.
authors.forename: Teresa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Sosa
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant Biology, Ecology and Earth Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Extremadura, 06080 Badajoz, Spain. cvalmas@unex.es.
authors.forename: Cristina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Valares
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant Biology, Ecology and Earth Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Extremadura, 06080 Badajoz, Spain. escudero@unex.es.
authors.forename: José Carlos
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Escudero
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant Biology, Ecology and Earth Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Extremadura, 06080 Badajoz, Spain. natchalo@unex.es.
authors.forename: Natividad
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Chaves
keywords: Cistus ladanifer L.; diterpenes; secondary metabolism; temperature; water stress