Lyso-phosphatidylethanolamine (LPE) is a minor membrane glycerolipid and egg-derived 18:0-LPE is used commercially as a plant bio-regulator to improve plant product quality. Physiological responses initiated by LPE treatment included delayed senescence in leaves and fruits, improved shelf-life of products post harvest, and mitigation of ethylene-induced process. However, the biochemical and molecular mechanisms underlying LPE-induced responses in plants and harvested plant parts remain unclear. In this paper, commentary is presented on the effects of LPE at the biochemical level in an effort to develop a mode of action. Implications, although tentative, are that LPE exerts its effect via lipid-protein interaction to attenuate ethylene (ETH)-mediated responses and impact pathogenesis-related proteins which together delay senescence progression.
Keywords: invertase; lyso-phosphatidylethanolamine; phosphatidic acid; phospholipids; senescence.