غلامرضا عبدی

Prolong Water deficit Stress and Salicylic Acid Mediated Changes in Antioxidant Capacity, Metabolite Profile and Flavonoid Concentration in Peppermint (Mentha ×piperita L.) Gholamreza Abdia1,* , Majid Shokrpour 2, Seyed Alireza Salami 2 1Department of Biotechnology, Persian Gulf Institute, Persian Gulf University, Bushehr, Iran 2Department of Horticultural Sciences, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Tehran, Karaj 31587, Iran Email: astoags@gmail.com Peppermint (Mentha × piperita) is one of the most important and commonly used medicinal and aromatic plants worldwide [1,2]. Peppermint infusion is a valuable source of antioxidants. By using elicitors and inducing abiotic stress this antioxidant property can be enhanced. This experiment was conducted to evaluate the foliar application of salicylic acid (2 mM) and water deficit stress (no stress, mild stress and severe stress as 100, 75 and 50% of field capacity, respectively) and their interactions on cultivated peppermint on plant growth, secondary metabolite profile and antioxidant capacity of peppermint infusions. Water deficit stress alone or with SA treatments increased antioxidant capacity, total phenolic and flavonoid contents significantly. Some phenolic compound such as quercetin, coumaric acid and luteolin were detected only in in water-deficit or in SA treated plants. Also, fewer amino acids and unsaturated fatty acids were identified. Also, foliar application of 2 mM SA treatment improved plant growth parameters and metabolite profile such as carbohydrates and amino acids in non-stress and stress conditions. Therefore, inducing water stress and applying SA is recommended to enhance the biologic properties of peppermint and improve bioactive compounds and the antioxidant capacity of peppermint infusions.