Respiratory enzyme activities during germination of Pinus laricio seeds treated with phenols extracted from different forest soils

Low molecular weight phenolic compounds were identified in two soils with different vegetative cover, Fagus sylvatica, L. and Pinus laricio, Poiret, spp. calabrica, and were tested at different concentrations on seed germination of Pinus laricio, and on respiratory and oxidative pentose phosphate pathway enzymes involved in the first steps of seed germination. The data obtained show that there are marked differences in the phenolic acid composition of the two investigated soils. All the phenolic compounds bioassayed inhibited seed germination and those extracted from Pinus laricio soil were particularly inhibitory. We also found that the non-germination of seeds is strongly correlated to the inhibition of the activities of enzymes of glycolysis and the oxidative pentose phosphate pathway