Normally woody plants present high lignin content, even overcoming 35% from dry weight. Such values are almost found in arboreal plants. However, young plants or plants with lower growth form than tree show low lignin content. In this term, current levels of lignification could be increased by exogenous factor of stimulation. There are complex enzymatic systems responsible for the lignin intermediary precursors formation, however, the peroxidases enzymes have been pointed out as responsible for the lignin polymerization in the cellular wall, whose activity was modified supposedly by calcium and boron application, seeking to increase the plant resistance to the biotic and non biotic factors. The Solanum gilo (Solanaceae family), (Portuguese cultivars) was used as experimental plant according to the several treatments, installed twice (15 days) and once (7 days) for month, in the simple and multiple form to CaSO4, H3BO3, CaCl2 and H3BO3/CaSO4, CaSO4/CaCl2, CaCl2/H3BO3 and CaSO4 /H3BO3/CaCl2 treatments, respectively. The treatment (CaSO4/CaCl2) appraised statistically showed plants with 19% of lignin, overcoming the standard plants that presented 14%. Anatomical modifications were also observed in the vessels and fibers according to the length, diameter and thickness of the cellular wall. The lignin was quantified by Klason method and the compositional analysis was carried out by infrared spectroscopy, (free extractives samples), revealing the existence of compositional modification from guaiacyl lignin in the standard plants (G:S) 1.2:1 to syringyl lignin (G:S) 0.8:1 in the plants that received (CaSO4/CaCl2) twice for month and weekly, respectively.
Lignin; Solanum gilo; peroxidase
