Oxidative stress as an indicator of lower quality eucalyptus for pulp and paper industry.

Background Wood is the most important natural and renewable source of infinite energy, but this is not their only function, it also has great significance to the buildings and other products [1]. Eucalyptus, the genus that includes more than 500 species, is among the key forest species planted around the world to solid wood, and mainly for the pulp and paper industries. Aiming at the sustainable use of timber, supplying the demand and meeting the requirements of the paper industry, genetic breeding programs looking for, among other agronomic traits of interest, improve the quality of wood, that is, lower lignin and extractive, and increase the density wood and pulp yield. Therefore, it is interesting to identify genetic markers that characterize the major events of xylem differentiation, as well as stress response, because it is key factors to determine some properties of wood, affecting their performance and industrial value. Thus, this study aimed to identify genes specifically involved in oxidative stress response and characterization of genes in determining the quality of the wood.