The Effects of Temperature and Form of Nitrogen Supply on the Relative Contribution of Root Uptake and Remobilization in Supplying Nitrogen for Laminae Regrowth of Lolium perenne L.

Plants of Lolium perenne L. cv. S23 were grown in sand culturesupplied with either ammonium (NH₄⁺) or nitrate (NO₃^–)in an otherwise complete nutrient solution at 12°C or 20°C.Three weeks after germination, plants were clipped weekly tosimulate grazing. After 10 weeks growth all nitrogen (N) wassupplied enriched with ¹⁵N to quantify the effects of form ofN supply and temperature on the relative ability of currentroot uptake and remobilization to supply N for laminae regrowth. The form of N supply had no effect on the dry matter partitioning,while at 20°C more dry weight was allocated to laminae regrowthand less to the remaining plant material. The current root uptakeof N, which subsequently appeared in the laminae regrowth, wassimilar for plants supplied with NH₄⁺ or NO₃^–, and bothwere equally reduced at the lower temperature of growth. Remobilizationof N to laminae regrowth was greater for plants receiving NH₄⁺than NO₃^–; remobilization with either form of N supplywas reduced at the lower temperature of growth. Remobilizationwas reduced to a lesser extent at 12°C than current rootuptake. It was concluded that remobilization became relativelymore important in supplying N for regrowth of laminae at lowertemperatures. Key words: Lolium perenne, ammonium, nitrate, temperature, remobilization     

The Measurement of Ribulose 1, 5-bisphosphate Carboxylase/Oxygenase Concentration in the Leaves of Potato Plants by Enzyme Linked Immunosorbtion Assays

Catt, J. W. and Millard, P. 1988. The measurement of ribulose1, 5-bisyphosphate carboxylase/ oxygenase concentration in theleaves of potato plants by enzyme linked immunosorbtion assays.—J.exp. Bot. 39: 157-164. An enzyme linked immunosorbtion assay (ELISA) has been developedfor the measurement of ribulose l, 5-bistfphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase(RUBISCO) concentrations in potato leaves. Extracts of leaveswere made using a buffer containing detergent and used to coatELISA plates. The amount of RUBISCO binding was estimated usinga double antibody technique. Various methods of extraction wereused and assessed and the efficiency of the assay was testedusing purified RUBISCO. The method is applicable to the determinationof RUBISCO from diverse sources. Key words: Ribulose 1, 5-bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase, immunosorbtion, Solanum tuberosum     

Increased Defoliation Frequency Depletes Remobilization of Nitrogen for Leaf Growth in Grasses

Plants ofLolium perenneandFestuca rubrawere grown in sand culturereceiving all nutrients as a complete nutrient solution containing1.5 mMNH₄NO₃, and subjected to one of three defoliation treatments:undefoliated, defoliated on one occasion, or defoliated weekly.¹⁵Nlabelling was used to determine the rate of N uptake, allowingthe amount of N remobilized from storage for the growth of thetwo youngest leaves (subsequently referred to as ‘newleaves’) growing over a 14 d period after defoliationto be calculated. The total plant N uptake by both species wasreduced, compared with undefoliated plants, by both a singleand repeated defoliation, although neither caused complete inhibitionof uptake. Regularly defoliatedL. perennehad a greater reductionin root mass, concomitant with a greater increase in N uptakeper g root than did regularly defoliatedF. rubra. In both species,the amount of N derived from uptake recovered in the new leaveswas unaffected by the frequency of defoliation. BothL. perenneandF.rubramobilized nitrogen to the new leaves after a single defoliation,mobilization being sufficient to supply 50 and 41%, respectively,of the total nitrogen requirement. In regularly defoliated plants,no significant nitrogen was mobilized to the new leaves inL.perenne, and only a small amount was mobilized inF. rubra. Plantsachieved greater leaf regrowth when only defoliated once. Weconclude that increasing the frequency of defoliation of bothL.perenneandF. rubrahad little effect on the uptake of nitrogenby roots which was subsequently supplied to new leaves, butdepleted their capacity for nitrogen remobilization, resultingin a reduction in the rate of growth of new leaves. Lolium perenne; Festuca rubra; defoliation frequency; mobilization; root uptake; nitrogen     

Fractionation and Distribution of Calcium in Sprouting and Non-sprouting Potato Tubers

Autoradiographs of potato tubers (Solatium tuberosumL. cv. MansPiper) grown in the presence of "Ca revealed high activity inthe periderm, vascular ring (predominantly xyiem), phloem bundlesand pith. It is calculated that only 40 per cent of tubeT Caentered directly through the periderm and the possibility ofimport via the phloem is discussed. Chemical fractionation proceduresshowed that more than 90 per cent of tuber Ca could be consideredto be in a physiologically active form and very little in theform of insoluble components such as calcium oxalate. Microautoradiographyconfirmed the infrequent occurrence of specialized calcium oxalate-containingcells. When tubers were sprouted in trays in the dark water-solubleforms of "Ca were preferentially transported to the sproutGreater depletion occurred from the outermost tissues of thetuber but there was no indication of preferential mobilizationfrom tissues immediately adjacent to the sprouting region. Sproutswhich developed sub-apical tip necrosis showed a positive gradientof "Ca from the tip to the base.     

Thermodynamic analysis of the physical state of water during freezing in plant tissue, based on the temperature dependence of proton spin-spin relaxation

Multi-proton spin-echo images were collected from cold-acclimated winter wheat crowns (Triticum aestivum L.) cv. Cappelle Desprez at 400 MHz between 4 and ?4 °C. Water proton relaxation by the spin-spin (T2) mechanism from individual voxels in image slices was found to be mono-exponential. The temperature dependence of these relaxation rates was found to obey Arrhenius or absolute rate theory expressions relating temperature, activation energies and relaxation rates, Images whose contrast is proportional to the Arrhenius activation energy (E_a), Gibb's free energy of activation (ΔG^?), and the entropy of activation (ΔS^?) for water relaxation on a voxel basis were constructed by post-image processing. These new images exhibit contrast based on activation energies rather than rules of proton relaxation. The temperature dependence of water proton T₂ relaxation rates permits prediction of changes in the physical state of water in this tissue over modest temperature ranges. A simple model is proposed to predict the freezing temperature kof various tissue in wheat crowns. The average E_a and ΔH^? for water proton T₂ relaxation over the above temperature range in winter wheat tissue were ?6.4 ± 14.8 and ?8.6 ± 14.8kj mol^?1, respectively. This barrier is considerably lower than the E_a for proton translation in ice at 0°C, which is reported to be between 46.0 and 56.5 kj mol^?1     

Nitrogen Partitioning Within the Potato (Solarium tuberosum L) Plant in Relation to Nitrogen Supply

Nitrogen uptake and partitioning have been studied in field-grownpotato crops which were subjected to N deficiency (no fertilizerN applied), or received large applications of N (20 g N m^–2)at planting. Isolation of part of the root system of the plantsallowed pulses of 1SN to be applied at three different stagesof crop development. Partitioning of ¹⁵N throughout the plantswas followed during a subsequent chase, to distinguish betweenthe use in tuber growth of recently absorbed N, and redistributionof N from the existing N capital of the plant When a pulse of ¹⁵N was applied 26 d after emergence (DAE),the distribution of ¹⁵N within the plant closely followed thatof total N for the duration of the chase, which finished 110DAE. Application of fertilizer N decreased the proportion of¹⁵N recovered in the tubers, while increasing that found inthe canopy, because of an increase in leaf growth, particularlyat the top of the canopy, after 69 DAE. When fertilized plantswere supplied with 18N 69 DAE, a greater proportion of ¹⁵N wasrecovered in new leaf growth during the subsequent chase, thanwhen the ¹⁵N was supplied earlier in the season. It appearsthat current uptake of N is used to augment N pools within thecanopy and, where appropriate, support leaf growth at the endof the season. In contrast, transfer of N into the tubers isby remobilization of the existing N capital, as leaves senesce.The results are discussed in relation to studies of N partitioningin potatoes and other crops Solatium tuberosum, nitrogen-15, uptake, partitioning, pulse-chase