A compound containing substituted indole ligand from a hyperaccumulator Sedum alfredii Hance under Zn exposure.

Sedum alfredii Hance is a fast-growing and high-biomass zinc (Zn) hyperaccumulator native to China. A compound containing substituted indole ligand was isolated from this Zn hyperaccumulator plants by sonication/ethanol extraction, macroporous resin column as well as preparative HPLC (P-HPLC). Hydroponic experiment showed that the concentrations of both Zn and the compound containing substituted indole ligand were remarkably increased in stems and leaves of both hyperaccumulator and non-hyperaccumulator as Zn rising from 0.5 to 50 micromol L(-1), with much more in the stems of hyperaccumulator than non-hyperaccumulator. At 50 micromol L(-1) Zn, hyperaccumulator grew normally but its non-hyperaccumulator suffered from strongly Zn-induced toxicity. This suggested that there was a positive correlation between the compound containing substituted indole ligand and Zn concentration in shoots of hyperaccumulator S. alfredii.