Chemometric approach based characterization and selection of mid-early cauliflower for bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity.

The present study was aimed to analyse bioactive compounds (total phenolics, ascorbic acid and sinigrin) and antioxidant activity in 14 mid-early cauliflower genotypes. Significant differences (pb 0.05) were observed among the genotypes for all bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity. Total phenolics content of curd were ranged from 20.36 to 48.93 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE) 100 g-1 fresh weight (FW) which showed 2.5 times variation. The ascorbic acid content was maximum in DC522 (88.53 mg 100 g-1 FW) followed by Pusa Sharad (65.64 mg 100 g-1 FW) while minimum in DC310 (39.62 65.64 mg 100 g-1 FW). Wide variation was observed for cupric reducing antioxidant capacity and ferric reducing antioxidant power ranging from 9.04 to 20.83 mg GAE 100 g-1 FW and 13.11 to 26.31 mg GAE 100 g-1 FW, respectively. Sinigrin was found to be highest in DC306 (39.50 µmol 100 g-1 FW) for leaf and in DC326 (36.93 µmol 100 g-1 FW) for curd sample. The cauliflower genotypes were classified based on chemometric approaches namely principal component analysis (PCA) and agglomerative hierarchical clustering (AHC). The first two principal components (PC1 and PC2) explained 50.62% and 23.28% of total variance, respectively. The AHC as revealed by heat map classified cauliflower genotypes into four main groups based on measured traits. The information is useful for developing varieties and/or hybrids rich in bioactive compounds and antioxidant activity.

Plant Pathogenic Microbial Communication Affected by Elevated Temperature in Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum.

Gram-negative plant pathogenic bacteria regulate specific gene expression in a population density-dependent manner by sensing level of Acyl-Homoserine Lactone (HSL) molecules which they produce and liberate to the environment, called Quorum Sensing (QS). The production of virulence factors (extracellular enzyme viz. cellulase, pectinase, etc.) in Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum (Pcc) is under strong regulation of QS. The QS signal molecule, N-(3-oxohexanoyl)-L-Homoserine Lactone (OHHL) was found as the central regulatory system for the virulence factor production in Pcc and is also under strict regulation of external environmental temperature. Under seven different incubation temperatures (24, 26, 28, 30, 33, 35, and 37 °C) in laboratory condition, highest amount of OHHL (804 violacein unit) and highest (79 %) Disease Severity Index (DSI) were measured at 33 °C. The OHHL production kinetics showed accumulation of highest concentration of OHHL at late log phase of the growth but diminution in the concentration occurred during stationary phase onwards to death phase. At higher temperature (35 and 37 °C) exposure, OHHL was not at detectable range. The effect of temperature on virulence factor production is the concomitant effect of HSL production and degradation which justifies less disease severity index in cross-inoculated tomato fruits incubated at 35 and 37 °C. The nondetection of the OHHL in the elevated temperature may because of degradation as these signal molecules are quite sensitive and prone to get degraded under different physical factors. This result provides the rationale behind the highest disease severity up to certain elevated temperature and leaves opportunities for investigation on mutation, co-evolution of superior plant pathogen with more stable HSL signals-mediated pathogenesis under global warming context.