Polyamine levels in relation to growth and NaCl concentration in normal and habituated sugarbeet callus cultures

Abstract. The concentrations of putrescine, spermidine and spermine, the only polyamines detectable in normal and habituated calli of Beta vulgaris L. ssp. altissima , were much higher in the habituated callus than the normal callus, irrespective of experimental conditions. These results suggest that, in normal (tolerant to NaCl) and habituated (sensitive to NaCl) calli, there exists a competition for the common precursor of ethylene and polyamine biosynthesis viz. S-adenosylmethionine. A disequilibrium favouring the synthesis of putrescine and spermidine in the habituated callus might be linked to structural deterioration of the cell membrane following extended culture or severe osmotic stress (68 mol m⁻¹ NaCl). The maintenance of membrane integrity by the normal callus coincides with ethylene production at the expense of polyamine synthesis. In contrast to the habituated callus, the salinity tolerance of the normal callus is accompanied by the accumulation of proline under hypersaline conditions (274mol m⁻³). The important osmoregulatory role played by quaternary ammonium compounds in the-aerial parts of Chenopodiaceae, especially the sugarbeet, is not observed in the calli, these compounds being found in very low concentrations in saline conditions.