Water-Stress-Induced Ethylene Production in Wheat : A Fact or Artifact?

Effects of water stress on ethylene evolution from excised leaf segments and intact plants of wheat (Triticum aestivum L. cv Katepwa) were studied. Excised leaf segments of 8 day or 6 week old plants were dried until they lost 8% of their fresh weight (water potential about −2.3 megapascals). These and nondried control leaf segments (water potential about −1.0 megapascal) were sealed in glass tubes, and their ethylene production rates were compared by head space analysis via gas-chromatography. The dried leaves of both ages produced significantly more ethylene than the corresponding controls. However, when 6 week old intact plants were water-stressed by withholding water supply, and their ethylene production measured using a continuousflow system, no increase in ethylene was deteceted despite a drop in water potential to −2.9 megapascals over 6 days. Even the leaf segments excised from plants that had been subjected to water stress for 2, 4, or 6 days produced no more ethylene (in sealed tubes) than the leaves from well-watered plants. In fact, the ethylene production by these segments decreased with the increase in the severity of stress experienced by the plants. The results show that the commonly reported overproduction of ethylene by excised leaves subjected to rapid drying represents an artifact, which has little relevance to the water stress responses of intact wheat plants.     

Ethylene-enhanced Ion and Sucrose Efflux in Morning Glory Flower Tissue

Rib tissue segments excised from open flowers or buds of Ipomoea tricolor Cav. and floated on aqueous media responded to ethylene treatment by rolling up after 2 to 3 hours; a simple method for quantitating the rolling up is presented. The rolling up response was temperature- and oxygen-dependent and was critically affected by the pH of the medium. The ethylene concentration giving a half-maximal response was 0.1 μl/l; continuous ethylene treatment was not required for the response as a 1-hour ethylene exposure enhanced rolling up.     

Biosynthesis of wound ethylene in morning-glory flower tissue

Production of wound ethylene was investigated in rib segments excised from flower buds of morning-glory (Ipomoea tricolor). Segments of the ribs were cut from buds 2 days before flower opening, floated overnight on 5 mm KCl solution, and transferred to agar the following morning. These immature segments evolved only a small quantity of ethylene during incubation on agar, with most of the production occurring in the morning. When such segments were wounded mechanically early in the afternoon, the rate of ethylene production rose more than 10-fold within 1 hour and returned to a low rate after about 3 hours.Production of ethylene by both untreated and wounded rib segments was inhibited more than 95% by overnight pretreatment with the ethoxy analog of rhizobitoxine (3 x 10(-5) and 10(-4)m). After overnight exposure of segments to 9 muml-methionine-U-(14)C, the specific radioactivity of the ethylene evolved by untreated and wounded tissue was determined and compared to the specific radioactivities of carbon atoms 3 plus 4 of methionine and S-methylmethionine (SMM) extracted from the segments. The specific radioactivity of methionine was about one-half that of SMM; neither value was significantly affected by wounding. The specific radioactivity of ethylene evolved by untreated tissue was close to that of SMM. In wounded tissue the specific radioactivity of the ethylene evolved was lower, but still above that of methionine. These results are consistent with the interpretations that wound ethylene is synthesized from carbon atoms 3 plus 4 of either SMM or methionine. On the basis of earlier experiments with senescing rib segments, it is suggested that methionine serves as the precursor of the wound ethylene.     

Does Water Deficit Stress Promote Ethylene Synthesis by Intact Plants?

The effect of plant water deficit on ethylene production by intact plants was tested in three species, beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.), cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.) and miniature rose (Rosa hybrida L., cv Bluesette). Compressed air was passed through glass, plant-containing cuvettes, ethylene collected on chilled columns, and subsequently assayed by gas chromatography. The usual result was that low water potential did not promote ethylene production. When plants were subjected to cessation of irrigation, ethylene production decreased on a per plant or dry weight basis of calculation. No significant promotion of ethylene production above control levels was detected when water deficit-treated bean or cotton plants were rewatered. The one exception to this was for cotton subjected to a range of water deficits, plants subjected to deficits of −1.4 to −1.6 MPa exhibited a transient increase of ethylene production of 40 to 50% above control levels at 24 or 48 hours. Ethylene was collected from intact leaves while plants developed a water deficit stress of −2.9 megapascals after rewatering, and no significant promotion of ethylene production was detected. The shoots of fruited, flowering cotton plants produced less ethylene when subjected to cessation of irrigation. In contrast, the ability of bench drying of detached leaves to increase ethylene production several-fold was verified for both beans and cotton. The data indicate that detached leaves react differently to rapid drying than intact plants react to drying of the soil with regard to ethylene production. This result suggests the need for additional attention to ethylene as a complicating factor in experiments employing excised plant parts and the need to verify the relevance of shock stresses in model systems.     

Does Pollination Induce Corolla Abscission of Cyclamen Flowers by Promoting Ethylene Production?

Very low ethylene production rates were measured in nonpollinated Cyclamen persicum Mill flowers, and no change in production was observed during the whole life span of the flower until death. Normal senescence was accompanied by a gradual discoloration and loss of turgor followed by wilting. Pollination induced a dramatic increase in ethylene evolution, culminating in a peak 4 days after pollination, and abscission of the corolla on that day. Silver-thiosulfate, an inhibitor of ethylene action, had no effect on longevity of unpollinated flowers, but completely nullified the effect of pollination on corolla abscission. Exposing unpollinated flowers to very high ethylene concentrations (50 microliters per liter) for 48 hours did not promote corolla abscission or senescence. 1-Aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid, the immediate precursor of ethylene, increased ethylene production by unpollinated flowers more than 100-fold, but did not promote corolla abscission. 1-Aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid did enhance corolla abscission of pollinated flowers. It is concluded that the main effect of pollination in inducing corolla abscission of cyclamen is by rendering the tissue sensitive to ethylene, apart from the promotion of ethylene production.     

On ethylene and stem elongation in green pea seedlings

Maximum elongation of excised internodal stem sections of light-grown pea (Pisum sativum L.) seedlings occurred at 10⁻⁵ molar indoleacetic acid (IAA), with submaximal responses occurring at 10⁻⁴ and 10⁻³ molar. Accompanying elongation at concentrations of IAA of 10⁻⁶ to 10⁻³ molar was production of ethylene, with the amount increasing up to 10⁻⁴ molar IAA and then becoming nearly constant. Elongation of light-grown sections was not inhibited by exogenous ethylene up to 10,000 ppm in the presence of 10⁻⁵ molar IAA. Marked (up to 50%) inhibition of elongation of internodal segments in situ was observed after treating whole light-grown seedlings with exogenous ethylene for 20 hours. It is concluded that ethylene is not responsible for the submaximal elongation responses of green pea stem sections at high auxin concentrations, but that IAA per se is accountable.     

Membrane Lipids in Senescing Flower Tissue of Ipomoea tricolor

Rib segments excised from flower buds of Ipomoea tricolor Cav. pass through the same phases of senescence as the respective tissue on the intact plant. Such segments were used to correlate changes in lipid content with known symptoms of aging, such as rolling up of the ribs and ethylene formation. It was found that the level of phospholipid had already started to decline before visible signs of senescence were evident. As the segments began to roll up and to produce ethylene, the rate of phospholipid loss accelerated sharply. During the same period, the level of fatty acids esterified to phospholipids also fell by 40%. No qualitative changes in any lipid component could be detected during senescence. Labeling experiments using ³³P as marker showed that the rate at which radioactivity was lost from phospholipids during aging was parallel to the rate at which the level of total phospholipids declined. Exogenously applied ethylene accelerated the loss of phospholipid and the senescence of rib segments while benzyladenine retarded both of these processes.     

Changes in responsiveness to ethylene and gibberellin during corolla expansion ofIpomoea nil

Corolla expansion inIpomoea nil appears to be triggered by changes in gibberellin concentration and ethylene production during development. We investigated the role of responsiveness to GA and ethylene in corolla expansion. The effects of growth regulators applied in vitro were measured as a change in area of corolla segments from younger (15–17 mm) and older (18–20 mm) whole corollas. Applied gibberellic acid (GA₃) significantly (p < 0.05) promoted growth in the younger segments but was less effective in the older segments. Moreover, applications of the GA biosynthesis inhibitors, PP333 (paclobutrazol) AMO₁₆₁₈ (2-isopropyl-4-dimethylamino-5-methylphenyl-1-piperidinecarboxylate methyl chloride), chlorocholine chloride, and tetcyclasis had little effect on younger segments but inhibited growth of older segments. The older corollas have apparently synthesized and accumulated enough GA-like substances to become less responsive to additional applied GA₃. The amount of growth induced by applied or endogenous GA depended on the amount of ethylene simultaneously produced in the tissue. The younger corollas rapidly produced ethylene from endogenous 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) and did not respond to applied ACC whereas the older corollas naturally produced much less ethylene and were significantly (p < 0.05) inhibited by applied ACC. When ethylene production was inhibited by applying aminoethoxyvinylglycine (AVG), growth was promoted in all segments. However, only the growth of the younger segments was further stimulated by simultaneously applied AVG and GA₃ over the GA₃ control. Thus the differential responses of segments from 15- to 20-mm long corollas to applied growth regulators reflect developmental changes in responsiveness of the developing corolla. The change in responsiveness is attributed in part to the changes in production of endogenous growth regulators and to the effect of one endogenous plant growth regulator (PGR) on the responsiveness of the corolla to another PGR.     

Does light inhibit ethylene production in leaves?

The effect of light on the rate of ethylene production was monitored using two different techniques—leaf segments incubated in closed flasks versus intact plants in a flow-through open system. Three different plants were used, viz sunflower (Helianthus annuus), tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum), and soybean (Glycine max). Experiments were conducted both in the presence and absence of 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC).

The results obtained indicate that, in all three species studied, light strongly inhibits ethylene production when cut leaf segments are incubated in the presence of ACC in closed flasks. When ethylene measurements are made with ACC-sprayed intact plants using a continuous flow system, the effect of light on ethylene production is only marginal. In leaf segments of sunflower and soybean incubated only in distilled H₂O in closed flasks, light promotes ethylene production. In tomato, there is no difference between the rate of ethylene production between light and darkness under such conditions. When measurements are made with intact plants in a continuous flow system, the rate of ethylene production is almost identical in light and darkness, in the three plants studied.

It is concluded that the effect of light on cut leaf segments incubated in the presence of ACC in closed flasks can be attributed to the techniques used for these measurements. Light has little effect on ethylene production by intact plants in an open system.

     

Developmental and genotypic differences in the response of pea stem segments to auxin

The objective of this investigation was to examine the response to exogenous auxin (indole-3-acetic acid; IAA)of stem segments at two developmental stages. The standard auxin response of excised stem segments and intact plants consists of an initial growth response and a prolonged growth response. We found that this biphasic response does not occur in internodes at very early stages. Stem segments of light grown pea of various genotypes were cut when the fourth internode was at 6–13% of full expansion (early-expansion) or at 18–25% of full expansion (mid-expansion). Length measurements of excised segments were made after 48 hours of incubation on buffer with or without auxin. An angular position transducer linked to a computerized data collection system provided high-resolution measurement of growth of stacks of segments incubated in buffer over 20 hours. Early-expansion segments of all genotypes deviated from the standard auxin response, while mid-expansion segments responded in a manner consistent with previous reports. Early-expansion segments of tall, light-grown plants were unique in showing an auxin-induced inhibition of growth. The auxin-induced inhibition correlated with high endogenous auxin content, as determined by HPLC and GC/MS, across genotypes and between early-expansion and mid-expansion segments of tall plants. Measurement of ethylene evolved from stem segments in response to auxin, and treatment of segments with the ethylene action inhibitor, norbornadiene, showed the inhibition to be mediated in part by heightened ethylene sensitivity. Growth of early-expansion segments of dwarf and severe dwarf plants was stimulated by exogenous auxin, but the growth rate increase was delayed compared to that in mid-expansion segments. This is the first time that such a growth response, termed the delayed growth response has been emonstrated. It is concluded that developmental stage and endogenous hormone content affect tissue response to exogenous auxin.     

Rapidly Induced Wound Ethylene from Excised Segments of Etiolated Pisum sativum L., cv. Alaska: II. Oxygen and Temperature Dependency

Wound-induced ethylene synthesis by subapical stem sections of etiolated Pisum sativum L., cv. Alaska seedlings, as described by Saltveit and Dilley (Plant Physiol 1978 61: 447-450), was half-saturated at 3.6% (v/v) O₂ and saturated at about 10% O₂. Corresponding values for CO₂ production during the same period were 1.1% and 10% O₂, respectively. Anaerobiosis stopped all ethylene evolution and delayed the characteristic pattern of wound ethylene synthesis. Exposing tissue to 3.5% CO₂ in air in a flow-through system reduced wound ethylene synthesis by 30%. Enhancing gas diffusivity by reducing the total pressure to 130 mm Hg almost doubled the rate of wound ethylene synthesis and this effect was negated by exposure to 250 μl liter⁻¹ propylene. Applied ethylene or propylene stopped wound ethylene synthesis during the period of application, but unlike N₂, no lag period was observed upon flushing with air. It is concluded that the characteristic pattern of wound-induced ethylene synthesis resulted from negative feedback control by endogenous ethylene.

No wound ethylene was produced for 2 hours after excision at 10 or 38 C. Low temperatures prolonged the lag period, but did not prevent induction of the wound response, since tissue held for 2 hours at 10 C produced wound ethylene immediately when warmed to 30 C. In contrast, temperatures above 36 C prevented induction of wound ethylene synthesis, since tissue cooled to 30 C after 1 hour at 40 C required 2 hours before ethylene production returned to normal levels. The activation energy between 15 and 36 C was 12.1 mole kilocalories degree⁻¹.

     

Characterization of an Ethylene Overproducing Mutant of Tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. Cultivar VFN8)

Ethylene production rates and tissue ethylene concentrations were determined for the single-gene, Epinastic (Epi) tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill.) mutant, and its parent, cv VFN8. The Epi phenotype was characterized by severe leaf epinasty, thickened stems and petioles, and a compact growth habit. In 4-day-old seedlings, ethylene production was significantly higher in Epi than in VFN8. Ethylene production rates also were higher for excised root, hypocotyl, cotyledon, and shoot tissue of 14-day-old Epi seedlings as compared with VFN8. The greatest difference in the ethylene production rate was observed in excised Epi shoot tissue, which was more than 2.5 times higher than in VFN8. Tissue ethylene concentrations of 19−, 25−, and 31-day-old Epi plants were 8, 172, and 307% higher than for VFN8, corresponding to increasing expression of the Epi phenotypic characteristics with age. The highest ethylene concentrations occurred in the shoot apex of both genotypes. Higher ethylene concentrations in Epi resulted from greater 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid content rather than increased ethylene-forming enzyme activity. The elevated ethylene levels in Epi did not result from increased auxin sensitivity. The sensitivity of root growth to inhibition by ethylene did not differ between VFN8 and Epi. Although elevated levels of ethylene in Epi plants apparently exacerbate its epinastic growth characteristics, other evidence indicates that this may not be the fundamental lesion. This mutant may provide a unique system for investigating the regulation of ethylene biosynthesis and the role of target cell types in plant development.     

Abscission: the role of ethylene modification of auxin transport

The role of ethylene-mediated reduction of auxin transport in natural and ethylene-induced leaf abscission was studied in the cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L., cv. Stoneville 213) cotyledonary leaf system. The threshold level of ethylene required to cause abscission of intact leaves was between 0.08 and 1 μl/l with abscission generally occurring 12 to 24 hours following ethylene fumigation. The threshold level of ethylene required to reduce the auxin transport capacity in the cotyle-donary petiole paralleled that required for stimulation of abscission. In plants where cotyledons are allowed to senesce naturally there is a decline in auxin transport capacity of petioles and increase in ethylene synthesis of cotyledons. The visible senescence process which precedes abscission requires up to 11 days, and increases in ethylene production rates and internal levels were detected well before abscission. Ethylene production rates for entire cotyledons rose to 2.5 mμ1 g⁻¹ hr⁻¹ and internal levels of 0.7 μl/l were observed. These levels appear to be high enough to cause the observed decline in auxin transport capacity. These findings, along with those of others, indicate that ethylene has several roles in abscission control (e.g., transport modification, enzyme induction, enzyme secretion). The data indicate that ethylene modification of auxin transport participates in both natural abscission and abscission hastened by exogenous ethylene.     

THE ROLES OF PLANT HORMONES IN THE GROWTH OF THE COROLLA OF GAILLARDIA GRANDIFLORA (ASTERACEAE) RAY FLOWERS

Corolla elongation and the roles of plant hormones in this process in Gaillardia grandiflora Van Houtte ray flowers were examined. The sterile ray flowers elongated during a 2-day period, and corolla growth was accompanied by fresh and dry weight increases and epidermal cell elongation (greatest near the base of the corolla) but not by cell division. Corollas excised from young ray flowers were measured during treatment in vitro with solutions of plant growth regulators. They elongated in response to gibberellins and fusicoccin but did not respond to auxins, cytokinins, abscisic acid, ethylene, or inhibitors of ethylene biosynthesis. Sequential and simultaneous hormone applications indicated no additive or synergistic effects between hormones, but auxin did reduce gibberellin-promoted growth. Analyses of endogenous auxins showed no significant variation, and ethylene production decreased prior to elongation, while a 20-fold increase in endogenous gibberellin activity was observed just prior to rapid corolla elongation. It appears that corolla growth in Gaillardia is accomplished by an increase in gibberellin activity alone, that multiple hormone interactions are not important in the control of corolla growth, and that part of the mode of action of gibberellin is acid-induced growth.     

D-Amino-acid-stimulated ethylene production in seed tissues

Ethylene production by axial and cotyledonary tissues excised from Xanthium pennsylvanicum Wallr. seeds was markedly (up to 5-fold) stimulated by the D-isomers of phenylalanine, valine, leucine, threonine, methionine and eithionine while the L-isomers caused no such effect. Responsiveness of these seed tissues to D-methionine appeared soon after the beginning of imbibition, reached a maximum after 6–12 and 12–24 h for the axial and cotyledonary tissues, respectively, and then decreased sharply. D-Phenylalanine and D-methionine also stimulated ethylene production in seed tissues of X. canadense Mill. and in cotyledonary segments from seeds of Helianthus annuus L., Cucurbita moschata Duch. and Vigna radiata (L.) Wilczek. The endogeneous ethylene production and the D-amino-acid-stimulated ethylene production by the seed segments was strongly inhibited by aminoethoxyvinyl glycine, a potent inhibitor of ethylene synthesis from L-methionine.     

Investigations into the possible regulation of negative gravitropic curvature in intact Avena sativa plants and in isolated stem segments by ethylene and gibberellins

Using Avena sativa L. cv. Victory oat seedlings and excised p-1 stem segments (including the p-1 and p-2 internodes) the effect of exogenously supplied ethylene and the removal of ethylene on internodal extension and gravitropic bending was assessed. Similarly, the ability of the excised system to respond to gravistimulation was assessed in the presence of inhibitors of ethylene action (AgNO₃) and ethylene synthesis (3,5-diiodo-4-hydroxybenzoic acid and benzyl isothiocyanate; BITC). The production of ethylene from both intact and excised systems was also measured from 0 to 48 h after gravistimulation, relative to vertical controls. Although gravitropic curvature is initiated, and indeed enters the most rapid phase of upward bending during the first 6 h, there is no difference in ethylene production between vertical and geostimulated plants during this period. The ethylene production of gravistimulated plants rises sharply to a maximum at 24 h, then decreases steeply to almost the control level by 48 h, at which time the rate of upward curvature is diminishing. Neither the addition nor removal of ethylene, nor the addition of inhibitors affecting ethylene-action (AgNO₃) or synthesis (DIHB) influence gravitropic bending or internodal extension in excised segments. Although the ethylene synthesis inhibitor BITC showed down the rate of upward bending, this effect could not be reversed by addition of ethylene. We conclude that the burst in ethylene production that develops in leaf-sheath bases (pulvini) after they have started to curve upwards is not primary to the induction of curvature. We further suggest that ethylene has no major effect or role in the induction of upward bending after gravistimulation. The metabolism of high specific activity gibberellin A₁ ([³H]-GA₁) in the excised system was assessed during 1, 2 and 4 h of gravistimulation. Changes in endogenous GAs and GA metabolism have been shown previously to be correlated (at the later stages) with gravistimulated bending in intact Avena shoots. The excised segments ‘leaked’ free [³H]-GAs and [³H]-GA glucosyl conjugate-like substances into the bathing medium, and this was a confounding factor. Nevertheless, gravistimulated stem segments, and especially the bottom half of the segment, were significantly less leaky then vertical segments. Thus, just 1 h after gravistimulation, bottom segment halves retained 22% more precursor [³H]-GA₁, 36% more free [³H]-GA-like metabolites, and 48% more [³H]-GA glucosyl conjugate-like metabolites than vertical segments. In contrast, the 1 h gravistimulated top halves retained slightly less (1–4%) precursor [³H]-GA and free [³H]-GA metabolites, but 21% more [³H]-GA glucosyl conjugate-like radioactivity than vertical segments.     

The inrolling phenomena of petals during senescence in cut carnations (Dianthus caryophyllus L cv. shinkibo)

The inward rolling of the petals is one of typical symptoms observed in the process of climacteric corolla senescence. Inrolling was mimicked by treating the lower part of the petal instead of the whole petal of cut carnations (cv. Shinkibo) with exogenous ethylene. In these petal segments, the climacteric ethylene burst occurred right at the inrolling stage, indicating that these petal segments may be an excellent model system for examining corolla senescence. According to kinetic analysis, an asymmetry in the lengths of the adaxial and abaxial sides of petal segments appeared to be the direct cause of the inward rolling. While the length of the abaxial side of the transverse section of petal segments increased during the analysis, the ultimate length of the adaxial side was shrunken by the same ethylene action. Interestingly, the kinetics curve of the adaxial side consisted of two distinct phases. The rate of expansion/shrink of either side of the petal and the slope of each phase varied with the chemicals affected in the rolling process of the petal segments: e.g., n-octanoic acid, polyamines, and inhibitors of the Ca²⁺-channel blocker.     

Chilling-induced ethylene production by beans and peas

The effects of chilling on ethylene production by leaf discs and whole plants of bean (chilling-sensitive) and pea (chilling-tolerant) were studied. When pea or bean leaf discs were excised and incubated at 25°C, transient increases in ethylene production and 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) accumulation were observed. Both pea and bean discs kept at 5°C evolved little ethylene, but levels of ACC increased in pea discs and not in bean discs. When discs of either species were chilled at 5°C immediately after excision and then transferred to 25°C 9 h later, increases in their ACC levels and ethylene production rates were observed. Discs were also incubated at 25°C for 12 h to allow excision-induced ethylene production to subside and then chilled at 5°C. Nine hours later, these discs were transferred to 25°C, and an increase in ethylene production was observed. These data indicate that chilling suppresses excision-induced ethylene production and enhances the production of ethylene after transfer to 25°C. Chilling of whole plants resulted in increased production of ethylene and ACC in the chilling-sensitive bean but not in the chilling-tolerant pea. Treatment of bean plants with the ethylene antagonists silver thiosulfate, norbornadiene, or aminooxyacetic acid, or of pea plants with ethylene, did not affect the appearance of chilling injury symptoms, indicating that ethylene does not induce injury symptoms and may not have an adaptive role in chilling stress.     

Effects of rapidly and slowly permeating osmotica on metabolism

Zea mays was exposed to solutions of low water potentials by addition of ethylene glycol or mannitol. Intact seedlings were treated for 1 hr at potentials between −10 and −20 atmospheres and then returned to high water potentials. Subsequent root extension was slow after mannitol treatment, but rapid when ethylene glycol had been used as the osmoticum. Cellular activity of excised roots was also affected much less by ethylene glycol than by mannitol. Processes studied included respiration, glucose uptake, and synthesis of methanol-insoluble compounds. These differences in response to various osmotica applied both during and after treatment at low water potentials.     

Rapidly Induced Wound Ethylene from Excised Segments of Etiolated Pisum sativum L., cv. Alaska: I. Characterization of the Response

A rapidly induced, transitory increase in the rate of ethylene synthesis occurred in wounded tissue excised from actively growing regions of etiolated barley, cucumber, maize, oat, pea, tomato, and wheat seedlings. Cutting intact stems or excising 9-mm segments of tissue from near the apex of 7-day-old etiolated Pisum sativum L., cv. Alaska seedlings induced a remarkably consistent pattern of ethylene production. At 25 C, wound-induced ethylene production by segments excised 9 mm below the apical hook increased linearly after a lag of 26 minutes from 2.7 nanoliters per g per hour to the first maxium of 11.3 nanoliters per g per hour at 56 minutes. The rate of production then decreased to a minimum at 90 minutes, increased to a lower second maximum at 131 minutes, and subsequently declined over a period of about 100 minutes to about 4 nanoliters per g per hour. Removal of endogenous ethylene, before the wound response commenced, had no effect on the kinetics of ethylene production. Tissue containing large amounts of dissolved ethylene released it as an exponential decay with no lag period. Rapidly induced wound ethylene is synthesized by the tissue and is not merely the result of facilitated diffusion of ethylene already present in the tissue through the newly exposed cut surfaces. Previously wounded apical sections did not exhibit a second response when rewounded. No significant correlation was found between wound-induced ethylene synthesis and either CO₂ or ethane production.