Accumulation of alkaloids in plants of the family Boraginaceae depending on environmental conditions places of growth

Abstract

Due to the lack of information on the influence of environmental factors on the accumulation of pyrrolizidine alkaloids and their content in certain species of this family Boraginaceae, the aim of the study was to assess the level of alkaloids accumulation in the aboveground and under-ground parts of Symphytum asperum Lepech., S. caucasicum M. Bieb., Echium vulgare L., and Pulmonaria mollis Wulfen ex Hornem. depending on climatic, orographic and edaphic conditions. The localization of alka-loids in rhizomes with roots, glandular trichomes of leaves and stems, epidermal cells was revealed. The content of alkaloids in the aboveground phytomass decreases in the series S. asperum ˃ S. caucasicum ˃ Е. vulgare, and in the underground S. caucasicum ˃ S. asperum ˃ Е. vulgare ˃ P. mollis. At the end of the growing season, an increase in the accumulation of alkaloids in the underground phytomass and a decrease in the aboveground one were noted. An increase in air temperature and a decrease in precipitation contribute to an increase in the accumulation of alkaloids in roots and shoots. The level of correlation between the accumulation of alkaloids and the content of trace elements varies from high (Cu, Zn, Mo) to medium (Mn, Pb). The results obtained indicate the need to take into account environmental factors in the implementation of medicinal collections and the preparation of feed from plants.