Effect of Extreme Temperature Changes on Phenolic, Flavonoid Contents and Antioxidant Activity of Tomato Seedlings

Background: Climatic changes are the most important abiotic factor affecting plant
growth, crop quality and nutritional value. Plants exposed to thermal stress respond
by accumulation of secondary metabolites/molecules (SMs). Tomato (Solanum
lycopersicum) is a cosmopolitan crop, eaten by most of the world’s people because it
is highly nutritious plant. It is cultivated in more than 16 thousand hectares in Saudi
Arabia and thus is influenced by extreme climatic changes.
Objective: In the current study, the phytochemical effect of thermal stress was
investigated in seedlings of S. lycopersicum. Such information will be very helpful in
developing more tolerant tomato cultivars in a climate change scenario.
Methods: Seedlings of S. lycopersicum were subjected to heat shock; HS1 and HS2
(45 and 50
C) and cold shock; CS (4
C) in comparison to control; Con (25
C).
Phenolic compounds, flavonoids, total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid
content (TFC) and antioxidant activity were estimated under the four temperature
treatments.