Cumulative oxidative damage from the unavoidable formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) contributes to seed ageing. Low-molecular-weight (LMW) antioxidants, such as water-soluble glutathione (GSH) and lipid-soluble tocochromanols, can prevent ROS from causing damage, especially when antioxidant enzymes are inactive due to desiccation. However, loss of tocochromanols does not always accompany seed ageing, such as during accelerated ageing or controlled deterioration, despite the presence of oxygen and prevalent loss of GSH. To assess relationships between total germination (TG) and antioxidant changes under storage conditions with practical relevance, commercial seeds of Cucumis sativus, Daucus carota, Helianthus cucumerifolius, Latuca sativa, Lepidium sativum, Phaseolus vulgaris and Raphinus sativus of the same cultivar were obtained over multiple years and stored under ambient conditions (21.9 ± 2.1°C; 36.8 ± 6.6% relative humidity). Sigmoidal fitting of TG revealed time to when 50% of seeds had lost viability, which ranged from <5 years (D. carota) to >15 years (C. sativus). Cellular redox states were quantified via the half-cell reduction potential of LMW thiol/disulphide couples. These negatively correlated with TG (i.e. cell redox states were more oxidized in lots with lower TG), with an average R2 value of 0.62 for the most abundant thiol (GSH, or γ-glutamyl-cysteine in P. vulgaris). Concentrations of tocochromanols positively correlated with TG, with an average R2 value of 0.50 for the most abundant tocochromanol (γ or α in L. sativa and H. cucumerifolius). Therefore, during viability loss under ambient ageing conditions leading to the cytoplasm having a glassy state, the lipid domain in all species experienced oxidative damage.

不可避免地形成活性氧 (ROS) 造成的累积氧化损伤会导致种子老化。低分子量 (LMW) 抗氧化剂，如水溶性谷胱甘肽 (GSH) 和脂溶性生育色满醇，可以防止 ROS 造成损害，尤其是当抗氧化酶因干燥而失活时。然而，生育色满醇的损失并不总是伴随着种子老化，例如在加速老化或受控变质期间，尽管存在氧气和 GSH 普遍损失。为了评估具有实际意义的储存条件下总发芽率 (TG) 与抗氧化剂变化之间的关系，黄瓜、胡萝卜、向日葵、紫花苜蓿的商业种子, Lepidium sativum , Phaseolus vulgaris和Raphinus sativus是经过多年获得的，并在环境条件（21.9 ± 2.1°C；36.8 ± 6.6% 相对湿度）下储存。TG 的 S 形拟合揭示了 50% 的种子失去活力的时间，范围从 <5 年 ( D. carota ) 到 >15 年 ( C. sativus )。通过 LMW 硫醇/二硫化物对的半电池还原电位量化细胞氧化还原状态。这些与 TG 呈负相关（即细胞氧化还原状态在 TG 较低的批次中氧化程度更高），最丰富的硫醇（谷胱甘肽，或P. vulgaris中的 γ-谷氨酰半胱氨酸）的平均R 2值为 0.62). 生育苯并酚的浓度与 TG 正相关，最丰富的生育苯并酚的平均R 2值为 0.50（L. sativa和H. cucumerifolius 中的 γ 或 α ）。因此，在导致细胞质呈玻璃态的环境老化条件下的生存能力丧失期间，所有物种的脂质结构域都经历了氧化损伤。