Putrescine Dihydrochloride (Syn: Putrescine DiHCl) is named for its foul smell. It is an organic compound produced by the breakdown of amino acids after the death of an organism. Putrescine is a polyamine plant growth regulator affecting the synthesis of macromolecules and the development of root systems in plants. It is a volatile diamine made via the decarboxylation of ornithine in the presence of the enzyme ornithine decarboxylase. Putrescine was first described in 1885 by Ludwig Brieger (Berlin).
Putrescine DiHCl is soluble in water.
| Molecular Formula | NH2(CH2)4NH2 · 2HCl |
| Mechanism of Action | Molecular docking studies reveal Putrescine binds to human receptors called the trace amine-associated receptors (TAAR6 and TAAR8), present in the olfactory epithelium. |
| Eukaryotic Cell Culture Applications | Putrescine DiHCl has been used as medium component in F-12 + GlutaMax medium for mice ganglia culture, retinal ganglion cell culture. |
| Plant Biology Applications |
Putrescine is regarded as a marker of plant stress. External supplementation helps wheat plants oercome drought. It modulates abscisic acid (ABA) levels during cold stress in Arabidopsis plants. Putrescine (Put) is the starting point of the polyamines (PAs) pathway and the most common PA in higher plants. It is synthesized by two main pathways (from ornithine and arginine), but recently a third pathway from citrulline was reported in sesame plants. Polyamines (PAs) are small, low molecular weight, and ubiquitous polycations found in eukaryotic and prokaryotic cells. In fact, PAs are considered to be a class of plant growth regulators. Global climate change could compromise food security in the future, and different approaches to develop stress-tolerant crops will be needed. The role of PAs in regulating plant promotion and protection will be important for agriculture. Metabolic engineering and high-throughput techniques can be used as tools to understand the interactions of PAs with different metabolic pathways (González-Hernández, 2022). |
| References |
Wu Q, Zou Y, He X and Luo P (2011). Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi can alter some root characters and physiological status in trifoliate orange (Poncirus trifoliata L. Raf.) seedlings. Plant Growth Reg 65(2): 273-278 González-Hernández AI et al (2022) Putrescine: A key metabolite involved in plant development, tolerance and resistance responses to stress. Int J Mol Sci. 23(6):2971 PMID 35328394 |
