The defense substance allicin from garlic permeabilizes membranes of Beta vulgaris, Rhoeo discolor, Chara corallina and artificial lipid bilayers.

BACKGROUND: Allicin (diallylthiosulfinate) is the major volatile- and antimicrobial substance produced by garlic cells upon wounding. We tested the hypothesis that allicin affects membrane function and investigated 1) betanine pigment leakage from beetroot (Beta vulgaris) tissue, 2) the semipermeability of the vacuolar membrane of Rhoeo discolor cells, 3) the electrophysiology of plasmalemma and tonoplast of Chara corallina and 4) electrical conductivity of artificial lipid bilayers. METHODS: Garlic juice and chemically synthesized allicin were used and betanine loss into the medium was monitored spectrophotometrically. Rhoeo cells were studied microscopically and Chara- and artificial membranes were patch clamped. RESULTS: Beet cell membranes were approximately 200-fold more sensitive to allicin on a mol-for-mol basis than to dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) and approximately 400-fold more sensitive to allicin than to ethanol. Allicin-treated Rhoeo discolor cells lost the ability to plasmolyse in an osmoticum, confirming that their membranes had lost semipermeability after allicin treatment. Furthermore, allicin and garlic juice diluted in artificial pond water caused an immediate strong depolarization, and a decrease in membrane resistance at the plasmalemma of Chara, and caused pore formation in the tonoplast and artificial lipid bilayers. CONCLUSIONS: Allicin increases the permeability of membranes. GENERAL SIGNIFICANCE: Since garlic is a common foodstuff the physiological effects of its constituents are important. Allicin's ability to permeabilize cell membranes may contribute to its antimicrobial activity independently of its activity as a thiol reagent.

Caterpillar regurgitant induces pore formation in plant membranes.

Formation of channel-like pores in a plant membrane was induced within seconds after application of an aqueous solution containing regurgitant of the insect larvae Spodoptera littoralis. Gated pore currents recorded on the tonoplast of the Charophyte Chara corallina displayed conductances up to several hundred pS. A voltage-dependent gating reaction supports the assumption that pore-forming molecules have amphipathic properties. Regurgitant samples separated into masses smaller or larger than 3kDa were evaluated by patch-clamp and mass spectroscopy. Fractions containing peptides larger than 3kDa constituted pores of large conductances, peptides smaller than 3kDa constituted pores of small conductances. Peptide-free eluates did not constitute conducting pores, indicating that pore-forming components in regurgitant are membrane-spanning oligopeptides.