Phytochemical Confinement in Sections of Pleurotus Tuber-regium

(King Tuber Mushroom) Basidocarp

Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of science, University of Port Harcourt.P. M. B.5323, East-West Road, Choba, Rivers State, Nigeria.

^*Corresponding Author

Reginald C. Ohiri

Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of science,

University of Port Harcourt, P. M. B. 5323, East-West Road,

Choba, Rivers State,

Nigeria.

Email: raycohiri@yahoo.com, reginald.ohiri@uniport.edu.ng

Tel:+234 803880807

Abstract

Cellular compartmentation is responsible for the restriction of most products of metabolic processes to specified regions of the organism. In this study, a quantity of 10.0 kg of fresh sclerotia of Pleurotus tuber-regium purchased from Zarama market in Bayelsa State, Nigeria were washed, peeled and sliced. Eight kilograms of the sliced sclerotia were packed in a transparent cellophane bag and a temperature range of 33-35 °C was achieved at the 3rd day. Stipes of P. tuber-regium basidiocarps were observed at the 8th day and at the 10th day, the stipes sprouted out from the perforated openings. At the 14th day, fresh basidiocarps of P. tuber-regium were harvested and the stipe, cap-base and pileus were immediately separated and allowed to dry at room temperature for fourteen days. The dried samples were ground and the oils were extracted by standing a mixture of 10 g of sample in 20 ml of dichloromethane for 3 days. The process was repeated twice and the combined aliquot obtained were concentrated to 5 ml and purified. Two milliliters of the extracted oil were used for gas chromatographic and mass spectroscopy analysis. The highest peaks on the chromatogram of volatile components of the oils from the pileus, cap-base and stipe were observed at 15.663 min., 15.693 min. and 15.819 min. respectively. Propanoic acid was the predominant compound observed in the pilus with a percentage value of 29.763 %, while Hexadecanoic acid methyl ester was predominant in both the cap-base and stipe with values of 23.638 % and 26.677 % respectively.

Keywords:Phytochemical, Compartmentation, Confinement, Sclerotia, Stipe, Pilus and cap-base

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