Study reveals natural aroma compound enhances vegetable resilience and productivity amid drought

11 Mar 2024 --- Scientists have unveiled a natural compound that could change agricultural practices by offering a sustainable strategy to combat both biotic and abiotic stresses in crops, enhancing resilience to environmental stresses, such as drought and pathogen attacks.

The research, conducted by a team from the Research Institute for Plant Molecular and Cellular Biology (IBMCP), affiliated with the Universitat Politècnica de Valencia (UPV) and the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), focuses on the compound (Z)-3-hexenyl butyrate (HB), a green leaf volatile known for inducing stomatal closure in plants.

“Given the importance of stomatal control in water stress, HB treatments alleviate the symptoms caused by drought and improve the productivity of crops such as tomatoes,” says Purificación Lisón, IBMCP researcher and professor in the Department of Biotechnology at the School of Agricultural Engineering and Environment (ETSIAMN) of the UPV.

“Therefore, in the context of the severe drought we are currently experiencing in Spain, the development of this type of compound is a breakthrough to address this situation.”

Insights into the mechanism
The study, published in Horticulture Research, provides detailed insights into the mechanism of action of HB.

Stomata, the pores on the surface of leaves, play a key role in plant physiology by regulating gas exchange and water loss. In response to drought conditions, plants close these pores to conserve water, but this also makes them vulnerable to pathogens that exploit stomata as entry points. 

The IBMCP team’s research highlights the dual benefit of HB: promoting stomatal closure to minimize water loss while enhancing the plants’ immune defense against pathogens.

According to the study, unlike traditional methods that rely on the hormone abscisic acid for inducing stomatal closure, HB operates through a novel pathway and can be a new phytoprotectant for the sustainable control of biotic and abiotic stresses in agriculture

Science for sustainable agriculture
The efficacy of HB was tested on crops like tomato and potato plants. Results showed that treatments with HB can alleviate water stress and improved fruit productivity and enhanced resistance to pathogens such as Phytophthora spp. and Pseudomonas syringae, notorious for causing crop losses. 

“Our results support the use of HB as a bioactive natural compound for more sustainable agriculture,” says María Pilar López-Gresa, researcher at the IBMCP (CSIC-UPV) and professor at the Biotechnology Department of the ETSIAMN-UPV. 

She suggests that right now there are no alternative products on the market that can induce stomatal closure.

The team’s research also explores the potential applications of HB beyond stomatal control. Investigating its effects on different plant processes, such as flowering synchronization and fruit ripening, opens up new possibilities for using HB to enhance crop yield and quality.

Edited by Sichong Wang