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Thidiazuron stimulates germination and ethylene production in Striga hermonthica – comparison with the effects of GR-24, ethylene and 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  19 September 2008

David C. Logan  and
George R. Stewart
David C. Logan*
Affiliation:
Striga Research Group, Department of Biology, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK
George R. Stewart
Affiliation:
Striga Research Group, Department of Biology, University College London, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK
*
*correspondence
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Abstract

Seed germination of the hemiparasitic angiosperm Striga hermonthica is elicited by compounds present in the root exudates of the host plant. A variety of chemicals can substitute for the host-derived signal although the exact mechanism through which these act is unknown. In the present study, thidiazuron (TDZ), a cytokinin-active urea derivative was found to stimulate germination. This thidiazuron-induced germination was shown to be mediated by endogenous ethylene, by a similar mechanism to germination induced by host-root exudate and the synthetic stimulant GR-24. Comparing the effects of TDZ, host-root exudate, GR-24 and the ethylene precursor 1-aminocyclopropane-1-car-boxylic (ACC) suggests that ethylene production increases as a result of increased ACC synthesis and is consistent with a model for Striga seed germination in which host-derived signals and other stimulants act by eliciting the synthesis of ethylene via a stimulation of ACC synthase activity. All germination stimulants tested trigger a rapid increase in O2 uptake by conditioned seeds. The patterns of O2 uptake following TDZ or GR-24 treatments show similarities and three distinct phases of respiration are apparent. In contrast, stimulation of O2 uptake by ethylene results in a different pattern, with no distinct phases obvious following the initial burst of activity.

Keywords

Strigathidiazuronethylenegerminationrespiration
Type
Research Papers
Information
Seed Science Research , Volume 5 , Issue 2 , June 1995 , pp. 99 - 108
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995

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Footnotes

1

Present address Laboratoire de Biochimie et Physiologie Végétales, INRA/ENSA-M/CNRS, URA-573, F-34060, Monpellier, France

2

Present address Department of Botany, The University of Queensland, St. Lucia, Brisbane, Queensland 4067, Australia

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