Infrared spectroscopy as a tool to study plant cuticles

Infrared spectroscopy is a very useful tool for the characterization of plant cuticles. It has provided valuable knowledge about the identification of functional groups, chemical structure and arrangement and interactions of plant cuticle components. Furthermore, it has been useful in revealing the chemical modifications occurring during plant development and in the analysis of preserved cuticles in organic fossils. Moreover, recently a new technology has been developed for remote sensing. The main applications of IR spectroscopy in the study of plant cuticles are associated with different disciplines: from plant physiology to palaeobotany and biophysics. Another interesting and useful application of IR spectroscopy in the study of plant cuticles is the analysis of the chemical modifications that occur during plant development. In such an examination, cuticles of tomato fruits at different stages of development were characterised by ATR/FT-IR spectroscopy. Infrared spectroscopic characterization is employed in palaeobotany since the cuticle is commonly preserved in organic fossils, and is the main component of certain organic deposits. Typically, the characterisation is confined to the calculation of several semi-quantitative ratios of peak intensities in order to determine the chemical nature of fossilised plant cuticles. Additionally, ATR/FT-IR spectroscopy could be used for the determination of coefficients of diffusion of water or exogenous molecules through the cuticle. Another possibility to consider would be the use of IR spectroscopic analysis to carry out initial screenings of genetically modified plant cuticles.José A. Heredia-Guerrero is supported by a Marie Curie Intra-European Fellowship, financed by the EU’s Seventh Framework Programme for Research (FP7). Additional funding was provided by the Consejería de Innovación, Ciencia y Empresa (Andalusian Government) grant TEP-7418