Abstract: | This work aimed to study the impacts of acquisition and assimilationof various nitrogen sources, i.e. NO3, NH4+ or NH4NO3,in combination with gaseous NH3 on plant growth and acid-basebalance in higher plants. Plants of C3 Triticum aestivum L.and C4 Zea mays L. grown with shoots in ambient air in hydroponicculture solutions with 2 mol m3 of nitrogen source asNO3, NH4+ or NH4NO3 for 21 d and 18 d, respectively,had their shoots exposed either to 320 µg m3 NH3or to ambient air for 7 d. Variations in plant growth (leaves,stubble and roots), and OH and H+ extrusions as wellas the relative increases in nitrogen, carbon and carboxylatewere determined. These data were computed as H+/N, H+/C, (C-A)/N,and (C-A)/C to analyse influences of different nitrogen sourceson acid-base balance in C3 Triticum aestivum and C4 Zea maysplants. Root growth in dry weight gain was significantly reduced bytreatment with 320 µg m3 NH3 in Triticum aestivumand Zea mays growing with different N-forms, whereas leaf growthwas not significantly affected by NH3. In comparison with C3Triticum aestivum, non-fumigated C4 Zea mays had low ratiosof OH/N in NO33-grown plants and of H+/N in NH4+- and NH 4NO3-grown plants. Utilization of NH3 from the atmospherereduced both the OHN ratios in NO3 -grown plantsand the H+/N ratio in NH4+ - and NH4NO3 -grown plants of bothspecies. Furthermore, Zea mays had higher ratios of (C-A)/Nin NH4+ - and NH4NO3-grown plants than Triticum aestivum. Thismeans that C4 Zea mays had synthesized more organic anion perunit increase in organic N than C3 Triticum aestivum plants.Within both species, different nitrogen sources altered theratios of (C-A)/N in the order: NH4NO3>NH4+>NO3.Fumigation with NH3 increased organic acid synthesis in NO3- and NH4+ - grown plants of Triticum aestivum, whereas it decreasedorganic acid synthesis in Zea mays plants under the same conditions.Furthermore, these differences in acid-base regulation betweenC3 Triticum aestivum and C4 Zea mays plants growing with differentnitrogen sources are discussed. Key words: Acid-base balance, ammonia, ammonium, nitrate, ammonium nitrate, C3 Triticum aestivum L., C4 Zea mays L. |