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Ambros E.V., Kotsupiy O.V., Karpova E.A. Phenolic profile of strawberry under the treatment with silicon chelates. Sel'skokhozyaistvennaya Biologiya [Agricultural Biology], 2026, Vol. 61, № 3, p. 544-560.
(how to cite this article)

doi: 10.15389/agrobiology.2026.3.544eng

UDC: 634.75:581.192

Acknowledgements:
The authors express their appreciation to the research team of the Institute of Solid State Chemistry and Mechanochemistry, SB RAS, for the development of the mechanocomposite from rice husks and green tea waste, which was provided for the present study.
The research used materials from the bioresource scientific collection "Living Plant Collection in Open and Closed Ground" of the Central Siberian Botanical Garden, SB RAS, USU 440534. The obtaining of cultivated strawberry plant samples for the study using in vitro technology, as well as the determination of the phenolic compound composition in plants, was carried out within the framework of state assignment No. 126021617423-1 of the Central Siberian Botanical Garden, SB RAS. The study of the effect of silicon chelates on the phenolic profile of garden strawberry plants was supported by a grant from the Russian Science Foundation and the Government of the Novosibirsk Region No. 22-26-20061 (https://rscf.ru/project/22-26-20061/).

 

PHENOLIC PROFILE OF STRAWBERRY UNDER THE TREATMENT WITH SILICON CHELATES

E.V. Ambros✉, O.V. Kotsupiy, E.A. Karpova

Central Siberian Botanical Garden, SB RAS, 101, ul. Zolotodolinskaya, Novosibirsk, 630090 Russia, e-mail ambros_ev@mail.ru (✉ corresponding author), olnevaster@gmail.com, karyevg@mail.ru

ORCID:
Ambros E.V. orcid.org/0000-0002-2119-6503
Karpova E.A. orcid.org/0000-0002-4023-3090
Kotsupiy O.V. orcid.org/0000-0002-5326-4371

Final revision received December 30, 2025
Accepted February 02, 2026

Adaptation to conditions of constant stress in the modern environment increases the relevance of effective strategies for protecting the human body from the destructive effects of reactive oxygen species, which elevate the risk of developing cardiovascular, neurodegenerative, and autoimmune diseases. The use of natural antioxidants derived from plant raw materials, on the one hand, can contribute to disease prevention, and on the other hand, serves as an important factor in environmental preservation by reducing the amount of mineral fertilizers applied to soil in intensive fruit growing. One of the promising areas of environmentally friendly agriculture is the development of technologies for growing berries using organic adaptogenic preparations produced from plant and food industry waste. A significant adaptogenic potential has been identified in Si-containing preparations containing biogenic Si in a chelated form. In the presented study, the positive effect of a mechanocomposite (MC) from rice husks and green tea waste on the content and composition of phenolic compounds in strawberry fruits, leaves, and roots has been revealed for the first time, and the foundations of an environmentally friendly technology for growing strawberry plants enriched with a complex of biologically active polyphenols have been established. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of the mechanocomposite enriched with silicon chelates on the composition and content of phenolic compounds in the organs of cultivated strawberry plants (leaves, roots, and fruits) at different developmental stages under in vivo conditions (open ground). For the experiments, a fresh aqueous solution of MC without filtration was used, prepared by mixing MC at a concentration of 0.3 g/L with room temperature water and subsequently steeping for 1 hour at room temperature. In the control variant, plants were watered with water (–MC); in the experimental variant, they were watered with an aqueous solution of MC at a concentration of 0.3 g/L (+MC). The object of the study was F. × ananassa cv. ‘Solnechnaya Polyanka’ from the collection of in vitro cultures of higher plants USU_440534 of the Central Siberian Botanical Garden, SB RAS (CSBG SB RAS). The seedlings were planted in open ground in the third decade of May 2022 at the experimental site of CSBG SB RAS (54°49'9.87"N, 83°6'6.95"E). In 2022, root treatments were carried out 2 weeks after planting (June 14), and subsequent treatments at 30-day intervals (July 15 and August 14). In 2023, treatments were carried out on April 25 (beginning of leaf growth), May 25 (bud formation — beginning of flowering), and July 25 (end of fruiting – beginning of active stolon formation). The composition and contents of phenolic compounds (PCs) in plant organs were determined in the second year of vegetation (2023). Samples of leaves, roots, and fruits were collected separately for control and experimental variants no earlier than 1 week after treatment. Leaves were collected at four developmental stages: leaf growth, flowering, fruiting, and stolon formation; roots were collected at the stolon formation stage. Fruits were collected at two ripening stages: green and fully ripe. Green fruits corresponded to cultivar characteristics, were characterized by a dense consistency, and did not have the color typical of the cultivar. The analysis of the composition and content of PCs was performed using an Agilent 1200 liquid chromatograph ("Agilent Technologies", USA) with a diode array detector and ChemStation software (Version Rev. B.04.01. SP1 [647]) for chromatographic data processing. The concentration of substances was determined by the external standard method. It was found that the leaves were characterized by a maximum PCs content (up to 3.5%). MC contributed to a decrease in their content throughout all developmental stages, except for stolon formation, when it induced an increase in PCs content by 10 %. At the same time, syringic acid and an ellagic acid derivative 6 showed the maximum increase in content of 1.6 and 1.5 times (p ≤ 0.05). The roots were inferior to the leaves in total PCs content (up to 2.3 %), but contained a higher amount of catechins (up to 226.0 mg/100 g absolutely dry mass) compared to the leaves (up to 105.8 mg/100 g). At the stolon formation stage, under the influence of MC, the PCs content in the roots increased by 16%. The greatest positive effect was exerted on the content of ferulic acid, an ellagic acid derivative 6, and epigallocatechin gallate (an increase of 2.4, 1.6, and 1.5 times, p ≤ 0.05). In the fruits, hydroxybenzoic acids (15.4 mg/100 g fresh mass), hydroxycinnamic acids (18.5 mg/100 g), flavonoid glycosides (9.4 mg/100 g), and ellagic compounds (17.3 mg/100 g) were significantly represented. Mature fruits exceeded green fruits in PCs content by 1.6 times. The effect of MC on the PCs content in green fruits of F. × ananassa was positive and more pronounced (39 %) compared to the effect on mature fruits (15%) and other plant organs. In green fruits, the content of most groups of compounds increased significantly, whereas in mature fruits, only the content of catechins and hydroxybenzoic acids increased most substantially (by 2 and 1.5 times, p ≤ 0.05). The obtained data substantiate the use of MC in agrobiotechnology as a means of influencing the composition of biologically active compounds in plants under the conditions of the West Siberian region.

Keywords: Fragaria × ananassa, in vivo, silicon chelates, mechanocomposite, plant organs, vegetation phases, phenolic profile.

 

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