General description

Salicylic acid is mainly used as the precursor to synthesize aspirin, a commonly used analgesic and antipyretic. Due to its keratolytic action, it is also used in topical ointments.

Application

Salicylic acid has been used:

to study its antimicrobial effect in vitro and in situ against Penicillium expansum
as one of the chemical compound in exposure-based validation of in vitro gastrulation model employed in developmental toxicity screening assays
as a reference standard in salicylate quantification by reverse-phase high-performance liquid chromatography (RP-HPLC)

Biochem/physiol Actions

Salicylic acid (SA) delivers local and systemic acquired resistance (LAR and SAR) against various diseases in plants. It acts as a secondary metabolite and regulate various physiological processes such as, seed germination, seedling establishment, cell growth, respiration, stomatal closure and senescence-associated gene expression. In addition, SA also controls abiotic stress, basal thermotolerance, nodulation in legumes and fruit yield. It plays a vital role in modulation of flowering and thermogenesis (heat production) in plants. SA together with reactive oxygen species (ROS) and nitric oxide (NO) triggers cell death in plants.