Skip to main content

Lund University Publications

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Diversity and Distribution of Floral Scent

Knudsen, Jette LU ; Eriksson, R ; Gershenzon, J and Ståhl, B (2006) In Botanical Review 72(1). p.1-120
Abstract
A list of 1719 chemical compounds identified from headspace samples of floral scent is presented. The list has been compiled from some 270 published papers, including analyses of 991 species of flowering plants and a few gymnosperms, a sample including seed plants from 90 families and 38 orders. The compounds belong to seven major compound classes, of which the aliphatics, the benzenoids and phenylpropanoids, and, among the terpenes, the mono- and sesquiterpenes, occur in most orders of seeds plants. C5-branched compounds, irregular terpenes, nitrogen-containing compounds, and a class of miscellaneous Cyclic Compounds have been recorded in about two-thirds of the orders. Sulfur-containing compounds occur in a third of the orders, whereas... (More)
A list of 1719 chemical compounds identified from headspace samples of floral scent is presented. The list has been compiled from some 270 published papers, including analyses of 991 species of flowering plants and a few gymnosperms, a sample including seed plants from 90 families and 38 orders. The compounds belong to seven major compound classes, of which the aliphatics, the benzenoids and phenylpropanoids, and, among the terpenes, the mono- and sesquiterpenes, occur in most orders of seeds plants. C5-branched compounds, irregular terpenes, nitrogen-containing compounds, and a class of miscellaneous Cyclic Compounds have been recorded in about two-thirds of the orders. Sulfur-containing compounds occur in a third of the orders, whereas diterpenes have been reported from three orders only. The most common single Compounds in floral scent are the monoterpenes limonene, (E)-beta-ocimene, myrcene, linalool, alpha-and beta-pinene, and the benzenoids benzaldehyde, methyl 2-hydroxybenzoate (methyl salicylate), benzyl alcohol, and 2-phenyl ethanol, which occur in 54-71% of the families investigated so far. The sesquiterpene caryophyllene and the irregular terpene 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one are also common and occur in more than 50% of the families. Orchidaceae are by far the best investigated family, followed by several families known to have many species with strongly scented flowers, such as Araceae, Arecaceae, Magnoliaceac, and Rosaceae. However, the majority of angiosperm families are still poorly investigated. Relationships between floral scent and pollination, chemistry, evolution, and phylogeny are briefly discussed. It is concluded that floral scent chemistry is of little use for phylogenetic estimates above the genus level, whereas the distribution and combinations of floral scent compounds at species and subspecific levels is a promising field of investigation for the understanding of adaptations and evolutionary processes in angiosperms. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Botanical Review
volume
72
issue
1
pages
1 - 120
publisher
New York Botanical Garden
external identifiers
  • wos:000236928600001
  • scopus:33645802601
ISSN
0006-8101
DOI
10.1663/0006-8101(2006)72[1:DADOFS]2.0.CO;2
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
f89a9ca1-0508-4933-ba45-07aa26522315 (old id 159524)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 16:54:19
date last changed
2024-05-11 09:15:29
@article{f89a9ca1-0508-4933-ba45-07aa26522315,
  abstract     = {{A list of 1719 chemical compounds identified from headspace samples of floral scent is presented. The list has been compiled from some 270 published papers, including analyses of 991 species of flowering plants and a few gymnosperms, a sample including seed plants from 90 families and 38 orders. The compounds belong to seven major compound classes, of which the aliphatics, the benzenoids and phenylpropanoids, and, among the terpenes, the mono- and sesquiterpenes, occur in most orders of seeds plants. C5-branched compounds, irregular terpenes, nitrogen-containing compounds, and a class of miscellaneous Cyclic Compounds have been recorded in about two-thirds of the orders. Sulfur-containing compounds occur in a third of the orders, whereas diterpenes have been reported from three orders only. The most common single Compounds in floral scent are the monoterpenes limonene, (E)-beta-ocimene, myrcene, linalool, alpha-and beta-pinene, and the benzenoids benzaldehyde, methyl 2-hydroxybenzoate (methyl salicylate), benzyl alcohol, and 2-phenyl ethanol, which occur in 54-71% of the families investigated so far. The sesquiterpene caryophyllene and the irregular terpene 6-methyl-5-hepten-2-one are also common and occur in more than 50% of the families. Orchidaceae are by far the best investigated family, followed by several families known to have many species with strongly scented flowers, such as Araceae, Arecaceae, Magnoliaceac, and Rosaceae. However, the majority of angiosperm families are still poorly investigated. Relationships between floral scent and pollination, chemistry, evolution, and phylogeny are briefly discussed. It is concluded that floral scent chemistry is of little use for phylogenetic estimates above the genus level, whereas the distribution and combinations of floral scent compounds at species and subspecific levels is a promising field of investigation for the understanding of adaptations and evolutionary processes in angiosperms.}},
  author       = {{Knudsen, Jette and Eriksson, R and Gershenzon, J and Ståhl, B}},
  issn         = {{0006-8101}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  pages        = {{1--120}},
  publisher    = {{New York Botanical Garden}},
  series       = {{Botanical Review}},
  title        = {{Diversity and Distribution of Floral Scent}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1663/0006-8101(2006)72[1:DADOFS]2.0.CO;2}},
  doi          = {{10.1663/0006-8101(2006)72[1:DADOFS]2.0.CO;2}},
  volume       = {{72}},
  year         = {{2006}},
}