Names | |
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Preferred IUPAC name (1H-Indol-3-yl)acetic acid | |
Other names Indole-3-acetic acid, indolylacetic acid, 1H-Indole-3-acetic acid, indoleacetic acid, heteroauxin, IAA | |
Identifiers | |
3D model (JSmol) | |
ChEBI | |
ChEMBL | |
ChemSpider | |
DrugBank | |
ECHA InfoCard | 100.001.590 |
KEGG | |
PubChem CID | |
UNII | |
CompTox Dashboard (EPA) | |
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Properties | |
C10H9NO2 | |
Molar mass | 175.187 g·mol−1 |
Appearance | White solid |
Melting point | 168 to 170 °C (334 to 338 °F; 441 to 443 K) |
insoluble in water. Soluble in ethanol to 50mg/mL | |
Except where otherwise noted, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C [77 °F], 100 kPa). |
Indole-3-acetic acid (IAA, 3-IAA) is the most common naturally occurring plant hormone of the auxin class. It is the best known of the auxins, and has been the subject of extensive studies by plant physiologists. [1] IAA is a derivative of indole, containing a carboxymethyl substituent. It is a colorless solid that is soluble in polar organic solvents.
IAA is predominantly produced in cells of the apex (bud) and very young leaves of a plant. Plants can synthesize IAA by several independent biosynthetic pathways. Four of them start from tryptophan, but there is also a biosynthetic pathway independent of tryptophan. [2] Plants mainly produce IAA from tryptophan through indole-3-pyruvic acid. [3] [4] IAA is also produced from tryptophan through indole-3-acetaldoxime in Arabidopsis thaliana . [5]
In rats, IAA is a product of both endogenous and colonic microbial metabolism from dietary tryptophan along with tryptophol. This was first observed in rats infected by Trypanosoma brucei gambiense . [6] A 2015 experiment showed that a high-tryptophan diet can decrease serum levels of IAA in mice, but that in humans, protein consumption has no reliably predictable effect on plasma IAA levels. [7] Human cells have been known to produce IAA in vitro since the 1950s, [8] and the critical biosynthesis gene IL4I1 has been identified. [9] [10]
As all auxins, IAA has many different effects, such as inducing cell elongation and cell division with all subsequent results for plant growth and development. On a larger scale, IAA serves as signaling molecule necessary for development of plant organs and coordination of growth.
IAA enters the plant cell nucleus and binds to a protein complex composed of a ubiquitin-activating enzyme (E1), a ubiquitin-conjugating enzyme (E2), and a ubiquitin ligase (E3), resulting in ubiquitination of Aux/IAA proteins with increased speed. [11] Aux/IAA proteins bind to auxin response factor (ARF) proteins, forming a heterodimer, suppressing ARF activity. [12] In 1997 it was described how ARFs bind to auxin-response gene elements in promoters of auxin regulated genes, generally activating transcription of that gene when an Aux/IAA protein is not bound. [13]
IAA inhibits the photorespiratory-dependent cell death in photorespiratory catalase mutants. This suggests a role for auxin signalling in stress tolerance. [14]
IAA production is widespread among environmental bacteria that inhabit soils, waters, but also plant and animal hosts. Distribution and substrate specificity of the involved enzymes suggests these pathways play a role beyond plant-microbe interactions. [15] Enterobacter cloacae can produce IAA, from aromatic and branched-chain amino acids. [16]
Fungi can form a fungal mantle around roots of perennial plants called ectomycorrhiza. A fungus specific to spruce called Tricholoma vaccinum was shown to produce IAA from tryptophan and excrete it from its hyphae. This induced branching in cultures, and enhanced Hartig net formation. The fungus uses a multidrug and toxic extrusion (MATE) transporter Mte1. [17] Research into IAA-producing fungi to promote plant growth and protection in sustainable agriculture is underway. [18]
Skatole, the odorant in feces, is produced from tryptophan via indoleacetic acid. Decarboxylation gives the methylindole. [19] [20]
Chemically, it can be synthesized by the reaction of indole with glycolic acid in the presence of base at 250 °C: [21]
Alternatively the compound has been synthesized by Fischer indole synthesis using glutamic acid and phenylhydrazine. [22] Glutamic acid was converted to the necessary aldehyde via Strecker degradation.
Many methods for its synthesis have been developed since its original synthesis from indole-3-acetonitrile. [23]
William Gladstone Tempelman studied substances for growth promotion at Imperial Chemical Industries Ltd. After 7 years of research he changed the direction of his study to try the same substances at high concentrations in order to stop plant growth. In 1940 he published his finding that IAA killed broadleaf plants within a cereal field. [24]
The search for an acid with a longer half life, i.e. a metabolically and environmentally more stable compound led to 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) and 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4,5-T), both phenoxy herbicides and analogs of IAA. Robert Pokorny an industrial chemist for the C.B. Dolge Company in Westport, Connecticut published their synthesis in 1941. [25] When sprayed on broad-leaf dicot plants, they induce rapid, uncontrolled growth, eventually killing them. First introduced in 1946, these herbicides were in widespread use in agriculture by the middle of the 1950s.[ citation needed ]
Other less expensive synthetic auxin analogs on the market for use in horticulture are indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) and 1-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA). [26]
Little research has been conducted on the effects of IAA on humans and toxicity data are limited. No data on human carcinogenic, teratogenic, or developmental effects have been created.
IAA is listed in its MSDS as mutagenic to mammalian somatic cells, and possibly carcinogenic based on animal data. It may cause adverse reproductive effects (fetotoxicity) and birth defects based on animal data. No human data as of 2008. [27] It is listed as a potential skin, eye, and respiratory irritant, and users are warned not to ingest it. Protocols for ingestion, inhalation, and skin/eye exposure are standard for moderately poisonous compounds and include thorough rinsing in the case of skin and eyes, fresh air in the case of inhalation, and immediately contacting a physician in all cases to determine the best course of action and not to induce vomiting when of ingested. The NFPA 704 health hazard rating for IAA is 2, which denotes a risk of temporary incapacitation with intense or prolonged, but not chronic exposure, and a possibility of residual injury. [28] IAA is a direct ligand of the aryl hydrocarbon receptor, [29] and IAA treatment of mice indicate liver-protective effects in a model of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. [30] Humans typically have relatively high levels of IAA in their serum (~1 μM), but this can be increased further in certain disease conditions and can be a poor prognostic marker for cardiovascular health. [31] Whether this IAA originates from endogenous biosynthesis via IL4I1 or gut microbiota is unknown. A 2021 study found that normal mice had an average of 3.7 times as much IAA in their feces compared to germ-free mice, suggesting that the mammalian microbiome contributes significantly to the overall circulating amount. [32]
IAA produces microcephaly in rats during the early stage of cerebral cortex development. IAA treatment of pregnant rats, at a dose of 1 gram per kg of body weight per day, decreased the locomotor activities of rat embryos/fetuses; treatment with IAA and analog 1(methyl)-IAA resulted in apoptosis of neuroepithelial cell and significantly decreased brain sizes relative to body weight in embryonic rats. [33]
IAA is an apoptosis-inducing ligand in mammals. As of 2010, the signal transduction pathways are as follows: IAA/HRP activates p38 mitogen-activated protein kinases and c-Jun N-terminal kinases. It induces caspase-8 and caspase-9, which results in caspase-3 activation and poly(adp-ribose) polymerases cleavage. [34]
In 2002 it had been hypothesized that IAA coupled with horseradish peroxidase (HRP) could be used in targeted cancer therapy. Radical-IAA molecules would attach to cells marked by HRP and HRP reactive cells would be selectively killed. [35] In 2010 in vitro experiments proved this concept of IAA as an immunotoxin when used in preclinical studies of targeted cancer therapy, as it induced apoptosis in bladder [34] and in hematological malignancies. [36]
Tryptophan synthase or tryptophan synthetase is an enzyme that catalyses the final two steps in the biosynthesis of tryptophan. It is commonly found in Eubacteria, Archaebacteria, Protista, Fungi, and Plantae. However, it is absent from Animalia. It is typically found as an α2β2 tetramer. The α subunits catalyze the reversible formation of indole and glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate (G3P) from indole-3-glycerol phosphate (IGP). The β subunits catalyze the irreversible condensation of indole and serine to form tryptophan in a pyridoxal phosphate (PLP) dependent reaction. Each α active site is connected to a β active site by a 25 angstrom long hydrophobic channel contained within the enzyme. This facilitates the diffusion of indole formed at α active sites directly to β active sites in a process known as substrate channeling. The active sites of tryptophan synthase are allosterically coupled.
Auxins are a class of plant hormones with some morphogen-like characteristics. Auxins play a cardinal role in coordination of many growth and behavioral processes in plant life cycles and are essential for plant body development. The Dutch biologist Frits Warmolt Went first described auxins and their role in plant growth in the 1920s. Kenneth V. Thimann became the first to isolate one of these phytohormones and to determine its chemical structure as indole-3-acetic acid (IAA). Went and Thimann co-authored a book on plant hormones, Phytohormones, in 1937.
Cytokinins (CK) are a class of plant hormones that promote cell division, or cytokinesis, in plant roots and shoots. They are involved primarily in cell growth and differentiation, but also affect apical dominance, axillary bud growth, and leaf senescence.
Gibberellins (GAs) are plant hormones that regulate various developmental processes, including stem elongation, germination, dormancy, flowering, flower development, and leaf and fruit senescence. GAs are one of the longest-known classes of plant hormone. It is thought that the selective breeding of crop strains that were deficient in GA synthesis was one of the key drivers of the "green revolution" in the 1960s, a revolution that is credited to have saved over a billion lives worldwide.
Jasmonate (JA) and its derivatives are lipid-based plant hormones that regulate a wide range of processes in plants, ranging from growth and photosynthesis to reproductive development. In particular, JAs are critical for plant defense against herbivory and plant responses to poor environmental conditions and other kinds of abiotic and biotic challenges. Some JAs can also be released as volatile organic compounds (VOCs) to permit communication between plants in anticipation of mutual dangers.
Gingerol ([6]-gingerol) is a phenolic phytochemical compound found in fresh ginger that activates heat receptors on the tongue. It is normally found as a pungent yellow oil in the ginger rhizome, but can also form a low-melting crystalline solid. This chemical compound is found in all members of the Zingiberaceae family and is high in concentrations in the grains of paradise as well as an African Ginger species.
Glucobrassicin is a type of glucosinolate that can be found in almost all cruciferous plants, such as cabbages, broccoli, mustards, and woad. As for other glucosinolates, degradation by the enzyme myrosinase is expected to produce an isothiocyanate, indol-3-ylmethylisothiocyanate. However, this specific isothiocyanate is expected to be highly unstable, and has indeed never been detected. The observed hydrolysis products when isolated glucobrassicin is degraded by myrosinase are indole-3-carbinol and thiocyanate ion, which are envisioned to result from a rapid reaction of the unstable isothiocyanate with water. However, a large number of other reaction products are known, and indole-3-carbinol is not the dominant degradation product when glucosinolate degradation takes place in crushed plant tissue or in intact plants.
Polar auxin transport is the regulated transport of the plant hormone auxin in plants. It is an active process, the hormone is transported in cell-to-cell manner and one of the main features of the transport is its asymmetry and directionality (polarity). The polar auxin transport functions to coordinate plant development; the following spatial auxin distribution underpins most of plant growth responses to its environment and plant growth and developmental changes in general. In other words, the flow and relative concentrations of auxin informs each plant cell where it is located and therefore what it should do or become.
Brassinolide is a plant hormone. The first isolated brassinosteroid, it was discovered when it was shown that pollen from rapeseed could promote stem elongation and cell division. The biologically active component was isolated and named brassinolide.
An aromatic amino acid is an amino acid that includes an aromatic ring.
Staurosporine is a natural product originally isolated in 1977 from the bacterium Streptomyces staurosporeus. It was the first of over 50 alkaloids that were discovered to share this type of bis-indole chemical structure. The chemical structure of staurosporine was elucidated by X-ray crystalography in 1994.
4-Chloroindole-3-acetic acid (4-Cl-IAA) is an organic compound that functions as a plant hormone.
Tryptophol is an aromatic alcohol that induces sleep in humans. It is found in wine as a secondary product of ethanol fermentation. It was first described by Felix Ehrlich in 1912. It is also produced by the trypanosomal parasite in sleeping sickness.
Tryptophan N-monooxygenase (EC 1.14.13.125, tryptophan N-hydroxylase, CYP79B1, CYP79B2, CYP79B3) is an enzyme with systematic name L-tryptophan,NADPH:oxygen oxidoreductase (N-hydroxylating). This enzyme catalyses the following chemical reaction
Indole-3-pyruvate monooxygenase (EC 1.14.13.168, YUC2 (gene), spi1 (gene)) is an enzyme with systematic name indole-3-pyruvate,NADPH:oxygen oxidoreductase (1-hydroxylating, decarboxylating). This enzyme catalyses the following chemical reaction
L-tryptophan—pyruvate aminotransferase is an enzyme with systematic name L-tryptophan:pyruvate aminotransferase. This enzyme catalyses the following chemical reaction
Camalexin (3-thiazol-2-yl-indole) is a simple indole alkaloid found in the plant Arabidopsis thaliana and other crucifers. The secondary metabolite functions as a phytoalexin to deter bacterial and fungal pathogens.
Gaseous signaling molecules are gaseous molecules that are either synthesized internally (endogenously) in the organism, tissue or cell or are received by the organism, tissue or cell from outside and that are used to transmit chemical signals which induce certain physiological or biochemical changes in the organism, tissue or cell. The term is applied to, for example, oxygen, carbon dioxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrous oxide, hydrogen cyanide, ammonia, methane, hydrogen, ethylene, etc.
The acid-growth hypothesis is a theory that explains the expansion dynamics of cells and organs in plants. It was originally proposed by Achim Hager and Robert Cleland in 1971. They hypothesized that the naturally occurring plant hormone, auxin (indole-3-acetic acid, IAA), induces H+ proton extrusion into the apoplast. Such derived apoplastic acidification then activates a range of enzymatic reactions which modifies the extensibility of plant cell walls. Since its formulation in 1971, the hypothesis has stimulated much research and debate. Most debates have concerned the signalling role of auxin and the molecular nature of cell wall modification. The current version holds that auxin activates small auxin-up RNA (SAUR) proteins, which in turn regulate protein phosphatases that modulate proton-pump activity. Acid growth is responsible for short-term (seconds to minutes) variation in growth rate, but many other mechanisms influence longer-term growth.
Ethylene (CH
2=CH
2) is an unsaturated hydrocarbon gas (alkene) acting as a naturally occurring plant hormone. It is the simplest alkene gas and is the first gas known to act as hormone. It acts at trace levels throughout the life of the plant by stimulating or regulating the ripening of fruit, the opening of flowers, the abscission (or shedding) of leaves and, in aquatic and semi-aquatic species, promoting the 'escape' from submergence by means of rapid elongation of stems or leaves. This escape response is particularly important in rice farming. Commercial fruit-ripening rooms use "catalytic generators" to make ethylene gas from a liquid supply of ethanol. Typically, a gassing level of 500 to 2,000 ppm is used, for 24 to 48 hours. Care must be taken to control carbon dioxide levels in ripening rooms when gassing, as high temperature ripening (20 °C; 68 °F) has been seen to produce CO2 levels of 10% in 24 hours.