Soybean and maize differentially metabolize deuterated ferulic and sinapic acids before polymerizing them into the root cell wall

Hydroxycinnamates induce lignification in young plants, leading to the overproduction of lignin as a defense mechanism. Phenylpropanoids-containing oligosaccharides are thought to be a signal of pathogen attack on the cell wall polysaccharides. However, it is unclear if hydroxycinnamates induce lignification by acting solely as stress elicitors or feeding the phenylpropanoid pathway as lignin precursors. To examine this hypothesis, we added 1 mM deuterated ferulic acid (FA) or sinapic acid (SA) to the nutrient solution in which we cultivated soybean or maize plantlets. After 24 h, we assessed the biometric parameters and the contents of ester-linked FA and SA, total lignin, monolignol ratio, and heavy monolignols. FA treatment increased the content of ester-linked FA, syringyl, and guaiacyl monomers measured by nitrobenzene oxidation, lignin content, and reduced root growth in both soybean and maize plants. p-Coumaric acid content ester-linked to the cell wall increased in soybean but decreased in maize after treatment with FA. Treatment with SA also induced lignification in soybean but not in maize. SA increased S-lignin and sinapoyl esters content in the cell wall polymers in both soybean and maize. Residues of deuterated hydroxycinnamates were detected in the lignin of both plants in both treatments. The assay demonstrated that exogenously applied SA and FA were metabolized through the phenylpropanoid pathway. Furthermore, they were, at least partially, exported to the apoplast, where they were ester-linked to cell wall polymers. This suggests hydroxycinnamic acids are metabolized differently by plants with different types of cell walls.