Determination and Fingerprint Analysis of Steroidal Saponins in roots of Liriope muscari (Decne.) L. H. Bailey by ultra high performance liquid chromatography coupled with ion trap time-of-flight mass spectrometry

Photosynthetic performance and growth responses of Liriope muscari (Decne.) L.H. Bailey (Asparagaceae) planted within poplar forests having different canopy densities

Background

Liriope muscari (Decne.) L.H. Bailey is a valuable horticultural and medicinal plant that grows under a range of light intensities, from high to low, in the understories of shrubs. To understand how this species adapts to these various environments, we selected two groups of lilyturf growing under poplar trees at two different spacings. Each group was divided into three types, open field, forest edge and shaded forest with high, medium and low irradiance levels, respectively, and then we examined their photosynthetic characteristics, physiology and biomasses.

Results

Light saturation point, light compensation point and in situ net photosynthetic rate (P_N) were highest in lilyturf growing under high light. In contrast, lilyturf growing under low light had a higher apparent quantum yield and Chl a and b contents, indicating that they adapted to low light. Although the leaves of lilyturf growing under low light were small, their root tubers were heavier.

Conclusions

The research demonstrates the eco-physiological basis of lilyturf’s shade adaptation mechanism as indicated by photosynthetic activity, chlorophyll fluorescence, Chl a, Chl b and Car contents when grown under different irradiances. We believe that lilyturf is a shade-tolerant plant suitable for planting in undergrowth, but attention should be paid to the canopy density of the forest when interplanting. The findings presented here advance our understanding of the photosynthetic characteristics of understory plants and may assist in the optimization of irradiances in the future.

The genus Liriope: Phytochemistry and pharmacology

Liriope (Liliaceae) species have been used as folk medicines in Asian countries since ancient times. From Liriope plants (8 species), a total of 132 compounds (except polysaccharides) have been isolated and identified, including steroidal saponins, flavonoids, phenols, and eudesmane sesquiterpenoids. The crude extracts or monomeric compounds from this genus have been shown to exhibit anti-tumor, anti-diabetic, anti-inflammatory, and neuroprotective activities. The present review summarizes the results on phytochemical and biological studies on Liriope plants. The chemotaxonomy of this genus is also discussed.