Abscisic acid in developing grains of wheat and barley genotypes differing in grain weight

Two genetically related wheat lines growing in cabinets were given different temperatures during grain filling, and abscisic acid (ABA) was measured in whole grains by gas chromatography with an electron-capture detector. Three genetically related barley lines grown in the field were assayed for ABA content in endosperm and embryo fractions separately by radiommunoassay.Maximum grain growth rate and final weight per grain of the two wheat lines differed by 50–60% at low temperature and 30–40% at high temperature. During grain development two peaks in ABA level were observed at low temperature but only one at high temperature. At times when differences in grain growth rate between genotypes and between temperature treatments were large, the corresponding differences in ABA concentration were small. In barley, one line (Iabo 14) had 30% heavier grains than the other two (Onice and Opale). Endosperm ABA concentrations showed no clear differences between genotypes until grain filling was nearly complete. Embryo ABA levels were up to 10-times greater than those in the endosperm, with Opale having significantly less ABA in the embryo than the other two cultivars.Our experiments did not provide evidence for a causal relationship between ABA levels during grain filling and grain growth rate or final weight.Abbreviations ABA Abscisic acid - DAA days after anthesis - DW dry weight - FW fresh weight