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Biomedical subjects

A E Richmond

Publications and source records attributed to A E Richmond.

9 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1977

Hormonal activity in detached lettuce leaves as affected by leaf water content.

The interrelationship between water deficiency and hormonal makeup in plants was investigated in detached leaves of romaine lettuce (Lactuca sativa L. cv. ;Hazera Yellow'). Water stress was imposed by desiccating the leaves for several hours in light or darkness at different air temperatures and relative humidity. In the course of desiccation, a rise in abscisic acid content and a decline in gibberellin and cytokinin activity were observed by gas-liquid chromatography, by both the barley endosperm bioassay and radioimmunoassay and by the soybean callus bioassay. Gibberellin activity began to decline in the stressed leaves before the rise in abscisic acid, the rate of this decline being positively correlated with the rate of increase in leaf water saturation deficit. Recovery from water stress was effected by immersing the leaf petioles in water while exposing the blades to high relative humidity. This resulted in a decrease in leaf water saturation deficit, a reduction in abscisic acid content, and an increase in gibberellin and cytokinin activity.Application of abscisic acid to the leaves caused partial stomatal closure in turgid lettuce leaves, whereas treatment with gibberellic acid and kinetin of such leaves had no effect on the stomatal aperture. In desiccating leaves, however, gibberellic acid and kinetin treatment considerably retarded stomatal closure, thus enhancing the increase in leaf water saturation deficit. These results suggest that the effect of desiccation in changing leaf hormonal make-up, i.e. a rapid increase in abscisic acid and a decrease in both cytokinin and gibberellin activity, is related to a mechanism designed to curtail water loss under conditions inducing water deficiency.

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PubMed1976

Leaf cell water and enzyme activity.

This work supports further the thesis that under conditions of water stress, cell water content may supersede hormonal regulation in effecting enzyme activity, thus becoming a regulatory factor in cellular metabolism. Addition of NaCl to the root medium of barley plants (Hordeum vulgare L.) markedly increased leaf RNase activity parallel to an increase of leaf water saturation deficit (WSD). Kinetin and abscisic acid, applied to the salinated plants, also modified RNase activity, as well as leaf-WSD. The familiar pattern of effects of these hormones on leaf RNase as well as leaf chlorophyll content was inverted, kinetin effected a relative increase in RNase activity and a decrease in leaf chlorophyll, whereas abscisic acid effected a relative decrease in RNase activity and maintained chlorophyll content. A close relationship between enzyme activity and leaf WSD became evident when leaf RNase and protease activities in the salinated plants were plotted against leaf WSD. This close relationship was maintained irrespective of the hormonal treatments, which in themselves markedly modified leaf WSD. As predicted, high relative humidity which relived the leaves from salt-induced water stress prevented the salt-induced rise in RNase activity.

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PubMed1975

Initial stages in the onset of senescence in tobacco leaves.

A marked loss of leucine (14)C incorporation occurred in chloroplasts isolated from Nicotiana rustica L. leaves exposed to 24 hours of darkness. This loss is not due to an initial decline in RNA-synthesis potential of the chloroplasts, as was inferred from the extent of UTP incorporation by the isolated chloroplasts. Upon reillumination of the leaves, leucine incorporation by the isolated chloroplasts reverted to its original level within 3 to 4 hours, hence it is doubtful whether the period of 24 hours after detachment should be regarded as the initial phase of leaf senescence.After 48 and 72 hours of darkness, however, complete recovery of the incorporation activity was not achieved by re-illumination of the leaves, representing the apparent onset of an irreversible process. Treatment with kinetin, which markedly delayed the symptoms of senescence in these tobacco leaves, did not prevent the dark-induced decline in chloroplast protein synthesis activity. Nor, up to 24 hours of darkness, did it have any effect on the light-induced complete recovery of this synthesis. Nevertheless, after reilluminating kinetin-treated leaves that had been exposed to darkness for 48 and 72 hours, leucine incorporation in the isolated chloroplasts was resumed at a faster rate and reached a higher level than did the untreated controls.

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PubMed1975

The role of abscisic Acid in cross-adaptation of tobacco plants.

Tobacco plants (Nicotiana rustica L.) pre-exposed to leaf dehydration, mineral deprivation, salination, or BO(3) (3-) toxicity exhibited increased resistance to subzero temperature and to reduced oxygen in the root medium. The stressed plants all showed an elevated content of leaf abscisic acid. Upon transfer of mineral deprived and salinated plants to prestress conditions, a decline in leaf abscisic acid content to prestress levels took place together with a loss of the increased resistance to subzero temperature and to deprivation of root oxygen. Treatment with abscisic acid by direct application to the leaves or by addition to the root medium improved leaf resistance to subzero temperature and to deprivation of root oxygen. A common hormone-regulation mechanism involving abscisic acid is suggested for this phenomenon of "cross-adaptation" by which a given stress confers increased resistance to other, apparently unrelated stresses.

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PubMed1973

Leaf water content and hormone effects on ribonuclease activity.

In barley (Hordeum vulgare) leaves in which the water balance was not hampered, kinetin and abscisic acid effected the well documented decrease and increase, respectively, in RNase activity. When the plants were exposed to water shortage, leaf-water saturation deficit increased steadily, with kinetin enhancing and abscisic acid retarding the rise. Under drought, the pattern of hormonal effects was inverted, with kinetin enhancing RNase activity over and above the activity assayed in abscisic acid-treated leaves. A very close relationship between RNase activity and water saturation deficit was found and significantly, it was maintained irrespective of the hormonal treatment, which in itself markedly modified leaf-water saturation deficit. The inverted effects of kinetin and of abscisic acid on RNase activity under conditions of water shortage were interpreted as resulting primarily from the effects of these hormones on leaf-water. It is suggested that under conditions of increased water deficiency in the plant, cell-water supersedes hormonal regulation in effecting RNase activity.

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PubMed1972

Abscisic Acid in relation to mineral deprivation.

Tobacco (Nicotiana rustica) plants growing in half-strength Hoagland solution were deprived of nutrients by being transferred to distilled water. The abscisic acid content of leaves in the mineral-deprived plants rose continuously throughout the 7 days of the experimental period. However, although the content of ABA rose within 24 hours, a decline in growth and leaf-chlorophyll were discernible only after the 4th day of mineral deprivation. As anticipated, mineral-deprived (stressed) plants exhibit "resistance" to lack of aeration in the root medium, similar to that shown in salt-stressed plants or plants that were pretreated with absiscic acid. When the mineral-deprived plants were returned to half-strength Hoagland, the content of leaf abscisic acid declined to the prestressed level and the "resistance" to lack of root aeration disappeared.These results indicate that an increase in abscisic acid may be induced by conditions unfavorable to growth and not exclusively by conditions affecting the plant's water balance. In addition, the work also indicates that mineral deficiency is associated with significant modification in the hormonal balance of the plant.

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PubMed1971

Abscisic Acid and cytokinin contents of leaves in relation to salinity and relative humidity.

The question is raised whether the hormonal modifications in a plant exposed to osmotic root stress result directly from the decrease in water potential of the root environment or from disturbances of the plant's water balance.Tobacco plants were held for 24 hours under either high or low relative humidities, with or without salt. The amount of abscisic acid in the leaves of salinized plants rose markedly in low, but not in high, relative humidity. No change in the amount of extractable cytokinins was detected in any treatment. It is tentatively suggested that variations in the water content of leaves constitute a primary signal for modification of plant hormonal balance.

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