Abstract: | Diepenbrock, W. 1988. Alterations in membrane lipids and nutrientuptake during root development of rape-seed (Brassica napusL.). J. exp. Bot. 39: 193198. Oil-seed rape was grown hydroponically in two experiments. Inthe first one, the effects of root development on phosphorusbound in lipids (lipid-P) and on nutrient uptake were tested.The content of lipid-P in root tissue decreased markedly withtime. This decline was accompanied by reduced rates of nitrogenaccumulation in the shoot. In the second experiment, plantswere grown in a split-root system with two chambers per pot.A part of the root system was harvested at 28 d after seedlingtransfer (DAS) referring to continuous growth.The other part was cut at 14 DAS and roots from the same chamberwere gathered at 14 d after root cutting (DAR) referring tore-growth Not only at 14 DAS but also at 14 DARhigh concentrations of lipid-P were detected whereas at 28 DASthe lipid-P content decreased dramatically. Changes in lipid-Pwere reflected in the fluctuation of fatty acid compositionof phosphatidyl choline, a major phospholipid in root tissue.It was clearly demonstrated that during re-growth, nutrientuptake was intensified as compared to continuous growth. Generally,membrane lipids and nutrient uptake were closely related. Key words: Root, lipids, nutrient uptake |