Biology subjects

Pant, Y.

Publications and source records attributed to Pant, Y..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Wavelength induced cultivar specific enrichment of essential amino acids and phenolics in Amaranthus tricolor

Light wavelengths modulate plant growth, metabolism, and physiology. Amaranthus, a C4 underutilized climate resilient crop with promising nutritional properties remained unexplored in terms of metabolite enrichment under monochromatic light wavelengths of visible spectrum. In current study, two cultivars of Amaranthus tricolor (green and red) were exposed to seven light regimes of photosynthetically active radiation (PAR; 400-700 nm): deep blue, blue, green, amber, red, deep red, far red, and their metabolic responses were captured using Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry. The metabolic analysis revealed wavelength-specific reprogramming in the levels of organic acids, sugars, amino acids, fatty acids as well as phenolics. In both the green and red Amaranthus, branched-chain amino acids and phenylalanine, which are nutritionally essential, were significantly elevated under far-red light. While the phenolics such as caffeic acid and ferulic acid were elevated under green and deep blue light respectively in green Amaranthus, amber light wavelengths enhanced these phenolics in red Amaranthus. The study highlighted cultivar-specific metabolic rewiring triggered by specific wavelengths. Altogether, these findings provides insights into metabolic adaptation and demonstrate the ability of light wavelength to specifically enrich the targeted metabolite of nutritional relevance in Amaranthus. It offers strategies to improve the nutritional value of crops in controlled agriculture systems. Graphical Abstract O_FIG O_LINKSMALLFIG WIDTH=167 HEIGHT=200 SRC="FIGDIR/small/714947v1_ufig1.gif" ALT="Figure 1"> View larger version (40K): org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@8de67forg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@17a03corg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@118d18corg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@6568f3_HPS_FORMAT_FIGEXP M_FIG C_FIG

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2026

Drought induced metabolomics of potato leaves highlight metabolic reprogramming and promising biomarkers for smart irrigation advisories

Smart irrigation management is essential for improving crop resilience under increasing drought frequency driven by climate change. Although satellite-based remote sensing provides valuable tools for monitoring crop water status at large spatial scales, its accuracy is often limited in mountainous and heterogeneous agricultural landscapes. In this study, we investigated drought-induced metabolic responses in potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) to identify biochemical biomarkers that could complement satellite-based irrigation advisories in the mid-Himalayan region of India. A field experiment was conducted using a gradient of soil moisture regimes corresponding to moderate (50% field capacity), critical (25% field capacity), and extreme drought stress (5-8% field capacity). Satellite-derived evapotranspiration-based irrigation advisories were validated against in situ soil moisture measurements, revealing discrepancies attributed to the inability of satellite estimates to capture actual water loss under drought stress conditions, highlighting the need for additional ground-truth biomarkers across heterogeneous field conditions. To capture plant-level physiological responses, untargeted metabolite profiling of potato leaves was performed using gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Approximately fifty metabolites belonging to amino acids, organic acids, sugars, and sugar alcohols were detected. Multivariate statistical analyses revealed distinct metabolic signatures associated with progressive drought stress. Notably, accumulation of proline, serine, isoleucine, sucrose, fructose, glucose, and polyols such as mannitol and myo-inositol reflected key metabolic reprogramming associated with osmoprotection, redox homeostasis, and energy metabolism under drought conditions. Collectively, this ensemble of stress-responsive metabolites represents a robust panel of drought stress biomarkers. As a proof of concept, proline was validated as a qualitative biomarker of plant water status through a rapid and cost-effective colorimetric biochemical assay, demonstrating its practical applicability for field-level irrigation management. These findings demonstrate that metabolomics-derived biomarkers can provide sensitive plant-level indicators of drought stress that complement satellite-based monitoring systems. The integration of biochemical diagnostics with remote sensing platforms offers a promising approach for improving drought detection and developing low-cost, field-deployable tools for smart irrigation advisories in heterogeneous agricultural landscapes. Graphical abstract O_FIG O_LINKSMALLFIG WIDTH=200 HEIGHT=93 SRC="FIGDIR/small/712810v1_ufig1.gif" ALT="Figure 1"> View larger version (33K): org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@5b4c6dorg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@1f6af44org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@6cd9f7org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@5a0f5a_HPS_FORMAT_FIGEXP M_FIG C_FIG

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2025

Kinetic 13CO2 mapping revealed distinct light-dark metabolic transition phenotypes in Brassica napus seedlings under visible and UV-B light

Dynamic stable-isotope tracing using 13CO2 has gained significant attention in systems biology due to its potential to visualise carbon assimilation patterns. However, the plant metabolic phenotypes under visible and UV-B light, explaining the light-to-dark transition between photoperiods, remain unexplored. In this study, we investigated the dynamics of photosynthetic carbon assimilation and resource partitioning during the day-night transition under visible and UV-B light in Brassica napus seedlings. Kinetic 13CO2 tracing via the analysis of mass isotopomer distributions of metabolite fragments using GC-MS revealed reprogramming of the source-sink carbon dynamics. While visible light enabled the dynamic redistribution of newly fixed carbon during the light and dark photoperiod, de novo biosynthesis of shikimic acid, TCA cycle intermediates and metabolites of the glutamate-GABA metabolism was strongly favoured in dark metabolism. In contrast, a delayed and reduced photosynthetic carbon assimilation response was observed in the UV-B phenotype during the light period. Moreover, towards the late light period, de novo biosynthesis of sucrose, shikimic acid, phenylalanine, citric, succinic and malic acid was favoured, along with a greater reliance on pre-existing carbon pools for other metabolites. However, ketoglutarate, succinic acid, malic acid and GABA showed limited de novo synthesis in the dark period. Across both light regimes, amino acid pools largely remained in constant sync with the pre-existing pools during the light-dark transition. Overall, our findings demonstrate that light quality and photoperiod-driven metabolic transitions distinctly shape plant metabolic phenotypes.

plant biology↗

bioRxiv2023

Metabolic, Biochemical, Mineral and Fatty acid profiles of edible Brassicaceae microgreens establish them as promising functional food

Hidden hunger due to micronutrient deficiencies affecting one in three people is a global concern. Identifying functional foods which provide vital health beneficial components in addition to the nutrients is of immense health relevance. Microgreens are edible seedlings enriched with concentrated minerals and phytochemicals whose dietary potential as functional foods needs evaluation. In this study, comprehensive biochemical, mineral, metabolic, and fatty acid profiles of four Brassicaceae microgreens - mustard (Brassica juncea), pak choi (Brassica rapa subsp. chinensis), radish pink (Raphanus sativus), and radish white (Raphanus ruphanistrum) was investigated. The biochemical and mineral profiling confirmed their promising nutritional and antioxidant nature and as excellent sources of minerals. Mineral profiling using inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS) exhibited promising levels of Fe, Mn, Mg, K, and Ca in microgreens. Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) based metabolite profiling highlighted a range of phytochemicals-sugars, amino acids, organic acids, amines, fatty acids, phenol, and other molecules. Fatty acid profiling established promising levels of Oleic acid (C18:1; Monounsaturated fatty acids-MUFA) and linoleic acids (C18:2; omega-6 Poly unsaturated fatty acid-PUFA), which are health beneficial. It is estimated that fresh microgreens (100 g) can meet about 20 % to 50 % recommended dietary allowance (RDA) of macro- and micro-minerals along with providing useful fatty acids and antioxidants. Overall, the study highlighted Brassicaceae microgreens as an excellent nutrient source that can act as functional foods with promising potential to overcome "hidden hunger". Graphical Abstract O_FIG O_LINKSMALLFIG WIDTH=200 HEIGHT=133 SRC="FIGDIR/small/541100v1_ufig1.gif" ALT="Figure 1"> View larger version (62K): org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@d3b9c9org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@4a7604org.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@8a164corg.highwire.dtl.DTLVardef@1be187b_HPS_FORMAT_FIGEXP M_FIG C_FIG HighlightsO_LIBrassicaceae microgreens are rich in molecules with relevance to nutrition and health C_LIO_LIThe biochemical analysis supported the antioxidant nature of microgreens C_LIO_LIComprehensive metabolite profiles of edible microgreens of Brassica juncea (Mustard), Brassica rapa subsp. chinensis (Pak Choi), Raphanus sativus (Radish Pink), and Raphanus ruphanistrum (Radish white) using GC-MS are reported C_LIO_LIIonomics analysis using the Brassicaceae microgreens exhibited promising levels of microminerals Fe, Mn, Mg, K, and Ca C_LIO_LIFatty acid profiles show promising levels of Linoleic acid and Oleic acid, which have health relevance C_LI

plant biology↗