Journal of Chemical Ecology, Vol. 30, No.

10, October 2004 (

C 2004)

ENVIRONMENTAL AND ONTOGENETIC CONTROL OF

ACCUMULATION OF BRACHYCERINE, A BIOACTIVE
INDOLE ALKALOID FROM Psychotria brachyceras

TATIANA SCHÄFFER GREGIANINI,1,2 DIOGO DENARDI PORTO,3

NAÍLA CANNES DO NASCIMENTO,3 JANETTE PALMA FETT,1,3
AMÉLIA TERESINHA HENRIQUES,4
and ARTHUR GERMANO FETT-NETO1,3∗
1 Centrode Biotecnologia, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS)
Av. Bento Gonçalves 9500, CP 15005,
Porto Alegre, RS, 91501-970, Brazil
2 Centro de Desenvolvimento Cientı́fico e Tecnológico
Fundação Estadual de Produção e Pesquisa em Saúde - CDT/FEPPS-RS
Avenida Ipiranga 5400
Porto Alegre, RS, 90610-000, Brazil
3 Departamento de Botânica, UFRGS, Laboratório de Fisiologia Vegetal
Av. Bento Gonçalves 9500, prédio 43423, bloco 4, Porto Alegre, RS, 91509-900, Brazil
4 Faculdade de Farmácia, UFRGS Av. Ipiranga 2752
Porto Alegre RS, 90610-000, Brazil

(Received November 25, 2003; accepted June 9, 2004)

Abstract—Brachycerine is a monoterpenoid indole alkaloid accumulated in

Psychotria brachyceras plants (Rubiaceae). To better understand the accumula-
tion patterns of this alkaloid, we investigated its content in different plant organs
from field-grown trees, throughout the seasons, during seedling development,
and in response to potential biotic factors regulating its biosynthesis. Quantifi-
cation by RP-HPLC showed that aerial vegetative organs (green stems, young
and old leaves) yielded similar amounts of brachycerine [0.1–0.2% dry weight
(DW)]. Brachycerine was not detected in roots. In reproductive structures, the
highest brachycerine amounts (0.3% DW) were found in inflorescences. Alka-
loid concentration decreased in mature fruits (0.045% DW). The lowest concen-
tration in reproductive organs was observed in quiescent seeds (0.004% DW).
Apparently, brachycerine content dropped during radicle emission in germi-
nating seeds. During seedling development, an increase in leaf content from
0.02 to 0.1% DW was observed between the stages of 2 and 14 leaves, re-
spectively. Salicylic acid did not affect brachycerine content. A doubling of

∗ To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: fettneto@cbiot.ufrgs.br

2023
0098-0331/04/1000-2023/0 
C 2004 Springer Science+Business Media, Inc.
2024 GREGIANINI ET AL.

alkaloid content was observed in wounded plants, and a threefold induction oc-
curred with jasmonic acid treatment, suggesting that brachycerine biosynthesis
is regulated by jasmonate production.

Key Words—Monoterpenoid indole alkaloid, herbivory, wounding, jasmonic

acid, salicylic acid, developmental control, seasonal pattern.

INTRODUCTION

Plants synthesize a broad range of secondary metabolites that are often under strict
developmental regulation. Some of these compounds are produced in response to
environmental stresses, such as pathogen attack, wounding, and UV radiation,
and can act as a defense mechanism (Facchini, 2001; Ramachandra Rao and
Ravishankar, 2002; Gregianini et al., 2003). Alkaloids play several roles in plants
due to antimicrobial, feeding deterrent, or allelopathic properties. Environmental
factors play a fundamental role in the control of development and secondary
metabolism (St-Pierre et al., 1999). Studies using Catharanthus roseus as a model
system have shown that the biosynthesis of terpenoid indole alkaloids could be
regulated by biotic and abiotic stimuli, and may be activated at particular stages
of plant development (reviewed in Facchini, 2001).
Psychotria brachyceras Muell. Arg. (Rubiaceae) grows as a shrub (1–3 m
in height) and is widely distributed in tropical and subtropical forests of Brazil
(Smith and Downs, 1956), ranging from the state of Rio de Janeiro to Rio Grande
do Sul (Dillenburg and Porto, 1985). Brachycerine (Figure 1) is the main alkaloid
produced by this species and is probably derived from tryptophan, representing
a new class of indole alkaloids. Its structure suggests a direct condensation of
tryptamine with 10-oxo-1-epi-loganin (Kerber et al., 2001) instead of secolo-
ganin, and the subsequent formation of strictosidine, the general precursor of all
known terpenoid indole alkaloids. Brachycerine has antinflammatory activity in a
chemotaxis assay (A. Henriques, unpublished data), and an ethanolic extract of P.
brachyceras leaves had non-specific analgesic activity (Elisabetsky et al., 1997).
Brachycerine is produced in shoots and is absent in roots and undifferentiated tis-
sue; moreover, it is strongly induced by UV exposure in leaves of P. brachyceras
cuttings and, in vitro, the alkaloid was able to quench singlet oxygen (Gregianini
et al., 2003). Brachycerine accumulation was not induced by various concentra-
tions of hydrogen peroxide or the herbicide paraquat, a generator of superoxide
anion (Gregianini and Fett-Neto, unpublished results).
The content of secondary metabolites may be enhanced following herbivory
and mechanical damage in several plants (Kessler and Baldwin, 2002). Jasmonic
acid (JA) and Salicylic acid (SA) are two endogenous signals implicated in eliciting
plant resistance responses (Schmelz et al., 1998). SA seems to be synthesized
from phenylalanine by benzoic acid hydroxylation (León et al., 1993) or from
chorismate via isochorismic acid in plastids (Métraux, 2002). JA is a terminal
ENVIRONMENTAL AND ONTOGENETIC CONTROL 2025

FIG. 1. Putative brachycerine biosynthetic pathway. The indole unit is probably derived
from the amino acid tryptophan, which is converted to tryptamine by the cytosolic en-
zyme tryptophan decarboxylase (TDC). The terpenoid moiety is provided by isopentenyl
diphosphate (IPP) or dimethylallyl diphosphate (DMAPP) via the plastid triose phos-
phate/pyruvate pathway (Contin et al., 1998). MEP, 2-C-methyl-D-erythritol-4-phosphate.

product of the octadecanoid pathway derived from membrane lipid catabolism; it

is involved in wounding responses, pathogen attack, and in signal transduction of
elicited secondary metabolite production (Farmer and Ryan, 1992; Rhodes, 1994;
Schmelz et al., 1998; Devoto and Turner, 2003). The induced accumulation of
JA and SA activate a variety of insect and microbial defense responses in plants,
which may culminate in alkaloid production.
A detailed analysis of the dynamics of accumulation of brachycerine in
P. brachyceras is an important step for developing sustained supply systems aiming
2026 GREGIANINI ET AL.

at pharmaceutical applications. Moreover, the identification of potential in planta

functions for brachycerine may reveal other important properties of this molecule.
This report describes the distribution and accumulation of brachycerine in
different vegetative and reproductive organs of field-grown P. brachyceras trees,
seasonal patterns of alkaloid accumulation in leaves, and changes throughout early
stages of development. Moreover, alkaloid content in leaves was examined upon
challenging with wounding and signaling factors (i.e., JA and SA) potentially
involved in the regulation of secondary metabolism.

METHODS AND MATERIALS

Plant Material. Psychotria brachyceras Müll Arg. (Rubiaceae) adult trees

grown at Morro Santana – UFRGS, Porto Alegre, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, were
used in the experiments.
Organ-Specific Distribution. The brachycerine content of different adult
plant organs from field-grown trees was determined. For brachycerine distribution
and concentration analysis, roots, young leaves (14.75 ± 2.25 and 47.4 ± 6 mm
in width and length, respectively), and old leaves (31.6 ± 5.5 and 87.5 ± 12 mm
in width and length, respectively) were collected on April 2003. Inflorescences
were harvested on July 2002, stems and fruits on May 2001, and seeds on April
2002. Three replicates each with three different plants were harvested for every
treatment.
Seasonal Analysis. Ten field-grown individuals from a natural stand were
labeled and leaf samples (old leaves) were taken at every season for two consecu-
tive years (2001 and 2002) at the same circadian phase of the day (mid-morning).
Each plant represented one block and three replications per block were collected.
Climatic data was obtained from the Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas Espaciais
(INPE) and Instituto Nacional de Meteorologia (INMET) at Porto Alegre – RS,
Brazil.
Seedling Development. Mature fruits were collected on April 2002. Seeds
were surface sterilized with 70% (v/v) ethanol for 1 min, followed by immersion in
2% (v/v) sodium hypochloride with a few drops of detergent for 15 min. Seeds were
cultured in 0.1 × MS medium (Murashige and Skoog, 1962) containing 6 g·l−1 agar
(E. Merck, Darmstadt, Germany) under white fluorescent light with a photoperiod
of 16 hr (approximately 35 µmol.m−2 .sec−1 ) at 25 ± 3◦ C. Samples were collected
in five stages of development: quiescent seeds, imbibed seeds, germinated seeds
(visible radicle), 2-leafed seedling, and 14-leafed seedling. Harvested samples
were immediately placed into liquid nitrogen and frozen until analysis of alkaloid
content.
Clonal Propagation for Elicitation Assays. Tip cuttings obtained from field-
grown trees were cultured for 60 days in a solution of 0.1 × MS salts after an
initial 7-day-exposure to 10 mg.l−1 auxin, 4-(-3-indolyl) butyric acid (IBA, Sigma
ENVIRONMENTAL AND ONTOGENETIC CONTROL 2027

Chemical Co, St. Louis, MO), in order to induce rooting (Kerber et al., 2001).
Alternatively, rootless cuttings were directly incubated for 10 days in a solution of
0.1 × MS salts for adaptation prior to the experiments. In all elicitation treatments,
incubation was done in a growth room with a photoperiod of 16 hr of white light
(P.A.R. of approximately 73 µmol.m−2 .sec−1 ) at 25 ± 3◦ . Leaves were harvested
for alkaloid quantification at the beginning of the experiments and 2, 4, and 6 days
after treatment application. Three replicates were used per treatment, and each
replicate consisted of three plants.
Elicitation Assays. Wounding – Mechanical damage was applied with tweez-
ers and scissors to approximately three-fourth of the total leaf area of cuttings and
compared with intact cuttings. Both damaged and intact leaves were harvested in
treated cuttings. Stems were also harvested to investigate the possibility of alka-
loid translocation. In a separate experiment, using the same wounding method,
damage was applied to specific leaf pairs or individual leaves in different sections
of the cuttings. Some cuttings were damaged in apical leaves; others, in basal
ones. Undamaged leaves were extracted separately from wounded ones in order to
investigate a possible systemic response. A third treatment involved damaging a
leaf and analyzing the nearest leaf in the opposite side of the stem. For leaf wound-
ing assays, a more detailed time course experiment was carried out to measure
brachycerine content 2, 8, 12, 24, 36, and 48 hr after treatment.
Jasmonic Acid – Leaves of hydroponically grown cuttings were mildly scar-
ified with sandpaper and inoculated with 5-µl drops (five drops per leaf) of 40
and 400 µM of JA (Sigma) dissolved in 50% (v/v) ethanol. Control plants were
identically treated and inoculated with 5-µl drops of 50% ethanol only.
Salicylic Acid – MS salts-grown cuttings were transferred to solution con-
taining 0.72 mM or 1 mM of SA (Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany); 0.5 g.l−1
2-(N-morpholino) ethanesulfonic acid (MES) buffer (Merck KGaA, Darmstadt,
Germany), pH 5.7, was used as an adjuvant (Vestena et al., 2001). Shoots were
also sprayed once with 1 mM or 2 mM SA, followed by covering with transparent
plastic film for 24 hr. Control plants were kept in MS salts with 0.5 g.l− MES
pH 5.7 and sprayed once with distilled water.
Brachycerine Extraction and HPLC Analysis. Alkaloid extraction and anal-
ysis were performed as previously described (Kerber et al., 2001; Gregianini et al.,
2003). In short, approx. 1 g of plant tissue was extracted in methanol (HPLC grade),
mixed, and ultrasonicated for 30 min, centrifuged at 5000× g for 10 min, and the
supernatant was recovered. Chemical analysis was performed using a Waters Al-
liance 2690 HPLC system with photodiode array detector (PDA). Chromatography
was performed on an Hibar RP-8 column (E. Merck, Darmstadt, Germany), using a
linear gradient with methanol–water–trifluoroacetic acid. Eluted compounds were
monitored at wavelengths between 200–400 nm with a Waters Millenium (version
2.15.01) diode array detector. Quantification was obtained using an external stan-
dard curve; identity and purity were based on retention time, UV-spectrum, and
2028 GREGIANINI ET AL.

co-chromatography with authentic brachycerine isolated from leaves. Brachycer-

ine content is expressed on an extracted dry weight basis (DW).
Statistical Analysis. Statistical analysis of brachycerine content (in tripli-
cates) was performed by simple or factorial (Treatment × Time) ANOVA followed
by Duncan test at P ≤ 0.05. Percent data were square root transformed (Sokal
and Rohlf, 1981). All elicitation treatments had three replicates per treatment,
and each replicate consisted of three plants. All experiments were independently
repeated 2 to 3 times.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Organ-Specific Alkaloid Distribution. Brachycerine distribution varied with

organ type (Figure 2). Stems and leaves (both young and old) had similar amounts
of brachycerine (0.1 to 0.2% DW) and were comparable to the concentration of
catharanthine (0.2% DW), another terpene–indole alkaloid in Catharanthus pusil-
lus leaves (Zárate et al. 2001). Brachycerine was not detected in roots, in agree-
ment with Kerber et al. (2001). Inflorescences contained the highest brachycerine
content (0.3% DW); in mature fruit pulp much lower amounts (0.045% DW) were

FIG. 2. Brachycerine distribution in different plant organs from P. brachyceras adult trees.
Vegetative organs: root, stem, young, and old leaves. Reproductive organs: inflorescence,
mature fruit pulp, and seed. Treatments sharing a letter are not significantly different at
P ≤ 0.05 by a Duncan test. Values represent the mean of at least three replicates.
ENVIRONMENTAL AND ONTOGENETIC CONTROL 2029

observed (Figure 2). The higher accumulation in flowers may reflect a herbivory-
deterrent role for the alkaloid and contribute to the success of fertilization and
seed set. The lowest concentration of brachycerine (0.004% DW) was detected in
quiescent seeds (Figure 2); the dilution of alkaloid content during the transition
from inflorescence to mature fruit may be the result of biomass gain during seed
and fruit filling and/or retranslocation to vegetative parts. At the fruit stage, lower
concentrations of brachycerine may facilitate biotic seed dispersal. Interestingly,
P. brachyceras young leaves, which are known to be more active in tryptophan
decarboxylase (TDC) activity and alkaloid accumulation (Fernandez et al., 1989;
Zárate et al., 2001) in other species, did not differ from old leaves in brachycer-
ine content. In fact, a trend toward preferential accumulation in old leaves was
observed (Figure 2). Accumulation of camptothecin in Camptotheca acuminata
is higher in younger leaves and trees, which has been attributed to chemical de-
fense of these nutrient-rich and tender parts (Liu et al., 1998). However, potential
defense metabolites other than brachycerine may be present in young leaves of
P. brachyceras.
Seasonal Analysis. Leaves were sampled from 10 different trees over two
consecutive years (spring/2000–winter/2002). There was a seasonal effect on
brachycerine content in the Morro Santana population. Concentrations were higher
during the spring, fall, and winter from the first year and lower during the sum-
mer, independent of the analyzed individual. However, brachycerine remained
constant and at lower levels throughout the second year, independent of the sea-
son evaluated (Figure 3). Leaves harvested during the second year (corresponding
to stable and lower values of brachycerine) were exposed to slightly higher and
more stable precipitation values (141.6 ± 41 mm vs. 133.6 ± 78.4 mm from
the first year). In spite of the nonvolatile character of alkaloids, similar seasonal
responses have been observed for monoterpenes in Juniperus from two areas in

FIG. 3. Seasonal concentrations (% DW) of brachycerine in P. brachyceras leaves at Morro

Santana. Treatments indicated by ∗ are significantly different at P ≤ 0.05 by a Duncan test.
Values are means (±standard deviations) from three independent determinations.
2030 GREGIANINI ET AL.

Texas exposed to different precipitation rates (Owens et al., 1998). Some of the
examined P. brachyceras individuals were consistently higher (e.g., 0.74 ± 0.25%
DW) or lower (e.g., 0.25 ± 0.02% DW) accumulators of brachycerine indepen-
dent of the time of year, which indicates a genetically based control of alkaloid
accumulation.
Seasonal variations in other alkaloids have been reported and are complex.
Uncaria tomentosa has been shown to accumulate higher amounts of alkaloids
in the spring and summer and decrease in the fall, although these observations
were restricted to young leaves (Laus et al., 1997). Moreover, some of the alka-
loids evaluated (e.g., pteropodine 1, speciophylline 3, and uncarine F4) showed
considerable differences in leaf content in the same plant at the same month over
successive years.
Alkaloid composition and concentration of a species is at least partly under
genetic control. Environmental conditions, which vary seasonally, such as light,
drought stress, soil moisture, and fertility, may significantly modify the expression
of alkaloid metabolism (Levin, 1976).
Seedling Development. The brachycerine content in germinating seeds tended
to decrease during radicle emergence, suggesting metabolic modifications of the
alkaloid or leakage into the medium. During seedling development, an increase
in shoot alkaloid content was observed. Very young seedlings with a pair of
cotyledons and two leaves yielded 0.02% DW brachycerine, reaching the amount
found in field-growth plants (0.1% DW) at the 14-leaf stage (Figure 4). This
higher content in mature seedlings may reflect biosynthesis resulting from pho-
tosynthetic metabolism (monoterpene moieties arise from the plastidic terpene
pathway); the alkaloid could be involved in seedling protection against predators.
Studies with germinating seedlings in other species have suggested that alkaloid

FIG. 4. Brachycerine content (% DW) during seedling development. Treatments sharing

a letter are not significantly different at P ≤ 0.05 by a Duncan test. Values represent the
mean of at least three replicates.
ENVIRONMENTAL AND ONTOGENETIC CONTROL 2031

FIG. 5. Effects of wounding on brachycerine leaf content (% DW). White bars represent
intact cuttings and dark bars wounded cuttings. Leaf samples were collected 2, 4, and 6 days
after treatment. Treatments sharing a letter are not significantly different at P ≤ 0.05 by a
Duncan test. Each value represents the mean of three replicates.

biosynthesis and accumulation are associated with seedling development and with
dry matter increase (reviewed in Williams and Harrison, 1983; St-Pierre et al.,
1999).
Wounding, JA, and SA. Mechanical damage to P. brachyceras leaves induced
a twofold increase (0.43% DW) in brachycerine content within 2 days (Figure 5).
A detailed time course analysis indicated that an increase in brachycerine was
not evident 2 hr after damage but started 8 hr after wounding (data not shown).
After this induction peak, the amount of brachycerine decreased to basal levels.
Mechanical damage may induce responses that are restricted to the wound site
or responses that are rapidly propagated throughout the plant. To investigate the
possibility of a systemic alkaloid accumulation response induced by wounding,
different cutting sectors were elicited using the same experimental procedure.
Alkaloid induction was restricted to the wound site, not constituting a systemic
wounding response. The pattern of induction differed with leaf age, confirming a
trend toward preferential accumulation in older leaves in P. brachyceras. Damage
to young, apical leaves, resulted in a nonsignificant 17% induction on the second
day after treatment, compared to a significant 3.4-fold increase when damage was
applied to older basal leaves. Leaf alkaloid increases were not due to alkaloid
transport from the stem. Total content of damaged cuttings (stem + leaves) was
consistently higher than that of control cuttings (approx. 2.5-fold). Alkaloid con-
tent in individual stems was relatively stable and did not decrease in relation to
leaves, whereas alkaloid amount in leaves increased significantly.
2032 GREGIANINI ET AL.

In contrast to P. brachyceras, the mechanical damage elicitation of P. um-

bellata cuttings, a closely related species, did not change umbellatine content in
leaves (Paranhos and Fett-Neto, 2004, unpublished results) suggesting that this
alkaloid is constitutive. In spite of the structural and chemotaxonomical relation
among alkaloids from Psychotria species, these alkaloids show a distinct regula-
tion in relation to wounding, probably representing examples of constitutive and
inducible (at least partly) secondary metabolite accumulation. Indeed, basal leaf
content of umbellatine in P. umbellata are approximately 10 times higher than
those of brachycerine in P. brachyceras.
Indole alkaloid accumulation has been observed as a result of wounding stress
in Catharanthus roseus (Frischknecht et al., 1987), although in this case alkaloid
translocation was not excluded. In Nicotiana sylvestris, nicotine is synthesized
de novo from (15 N)-nitrate in response to lesions in leaves; the alkaloid content
reached is sufficient to reduce larval growth of the herbivore Manduca sexta. Sim-
ulated herbivory in leaves induced an alkaloid systemic response in N. attenuata
(reviewed in Kutchan, 1995). In this species, wounding and mammalian herbivory
increased nicotine production, which is in turn activated by proportional changes
in endogenous JA production, as well as by exogenous JA applications (reviewed
by Kessler and Baldwin, 2002).
In the present study, exogenous application of 40 µM jasmonate caused a
2.7-fold induction in brachycerine content 6 days after treatment, while 400 µM
jasmonate increased the alkaloid content by 3.3-fold, 4 days after treatment
(Figure 6). The continuous increase in alkaloid accumulation over time may be due
to jasmonate mobility or activation of endogenous jasmonate production. These re-
sults suggest that the JA-signaling pathway operates in brachycerine metabolism.
Brachycerine biosynthesis could be regulated by JA produced following cell dam-
age and/or by exogenous jasmonate application. In Eschscholtzia californica cell
cultures MeJA treatment resulted in a 5-fold increase in enzyme activity and a
12-fold increase in mRNA levels encoding for the berberine bridge enzyme, a key
enzyme in isoquinoline alkaloid biosynthesis (Rhodes, 1994). In similar fashion,
paclitaxel and its precursor baccatin III in Taxus sp. cell cultures were signifi-
cantly increased by MeJA (Yukimune et al., 1996). Mechanical wounding and
herbivory cause a coordinated transcriptional reorganization of the plant (Kessler
and Baldwin, 2002) that is mediated by wound-specific trans-acting factors, such
as ORCA3, a jasmonate responsive transcription factor from Catharanthus roseus
that regulates in coordinated fashion the expression of various genes involved in
the production of terpenoid indole alkaloids (Van der Fits and Memelink, 2000).
The octadecanoid pathway also mediates responses to UV radiation (Hollósy,
2002), a stress factor that affects brachycerine biosynthesis, resulting in 10-fold
increase in leaf concentration (Gregianini et al., 2003). Conconi et al. (1996) pro-
posed a model to explain similarities between wounding and the UV response in
activating wound-response genes. According to their model, UV radiation results
ENVIRONMENTAL AND ONTOGENETIC CONTROL 2033

FIG. 6. Effects of jasmonic acid (JA) on brachycerine leaf content (% DW). Application
of JA was done in 50% (v/v) ethanol on sand paper scarified leaves. Control cuttings were
treated with 50% (v/v) ethanol applied on scarified leaves. Leaf samples were collected 2,
4, and 6 days after treatment with 40 µM, and 2 and 4 days after treatment with 400 µM JA.
Treatments sharing a letter are not significantly different at P ≤ 0.05 by a Duncan test.
Each value represents the mean of three replicates.

in the perturbation of plant membranes and/or the activation of lipases that cause
the release of linolenic acid, which engages the intracellular octadecanoid pathway
to activate wound-inducible genes.
Contrary to the results of brachycerine induction by leaf wounding and JA
application, SA did not affect brachycerine content at the concentrations used (data
not shown). Similar results were found in C. roseus cell cultures where SA had
weak induction effects on Tdc and Str steady-state mRNA levels (Pasquali et al.,
1992), although SA has been shown to stimulate secondary metabolism in C. roseus
cell suspension cultures (Godoy and Loyola, 1997). Similarly, exogenous methyl
salicylate did not affect the accumulation of phytoecdysteroids in spinach (Spina-
cia oleracea) plants (Schmelz et al., 1998). These results suggest that brachycerine
may be involved in plant defense, perhaps as a deterrent agent. Herbivore attack
is frequently associated with wounding, and recognition of herbivory frequently
involves modifications of a plant’s wound response (Baldwin et al., 2001). JA and
ethylene, which are involved in activation of wounding-responsive genes, mediate
the signaling pathway of the wounding response and pathogenesis-related genes.
SA is mainly associated with the establishment of systemic acquired resistance
(SAR) and its levels increase after pathogen infection (Menke et al., 1999). Thus,
some wounding pathway components may be involved in resistance to certain
2034 GREGIANINI ET AL.

pathogens and insects, since herbivory signal transduction cascade primarily uses
JA and, secondarily, SA. Recent evidence indicates that signal pathways are not
linear, but are integrated through a network of cross-talking connections to coordi-
nate responses. Although there is substantial communication between the JA and
SA pathways, JA and SA signal cascades activate different sets of plant defense
genes (Thomma et al., 1998) or even act antagonistically (Felton et al., 1999).
Depending on induction type, there may exist different control pathways or partial
response superposition (Baron and Zambryski, 1995; McConn et al, 1997; Maleck
and Dietrich, 1999).
The results indicate that brachycerine content is spatially and temporally
regulated. Preferential accumulation in aerial parts and during the reproductive
phase, as well as a reduction during germination and initial seedling growth,
were observed. Seasonal variation in brachycerine content was observed with a
lower accumulation in the summer, although not consistently in consecutive years.
Individual variation in the capacity to accumulate the alkaloid was found with high
and low producers maintaining regular accumulation profiles. The lack of increase
in brachycerine content by exogenous SA suggests that this indole alkaloid has
an action mechanism not predominantly related to general pathogen responses. Its
role appears to be mainly associated with UV (Gregianini et al., 2003) and wound
responses, probably mediated by JA.
Acknowledgments—We thank Dr Vitor Kerber (Universidade Federal do Paraná) for the gift of
brachycerine standard used in HPLC analyses, Marcos Sobral (Faculdade de Farmácia-UFRGS) for
assistance in plant identification, the climatology institutes (INPE and INMET) for environmental data,
Dr Giancarlo Pasquali (UFRGS) and Dr Juçara T. Paranhos (UFSM- Brazil) for helpful discussions.
Financial support by CNPq, CAPES, and FAPERGS (Brazil) is gratefully acknowledged.

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