Studies on the Flowering Mechanism in Lemna |
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Authors: | A. KARIM KHUDAIRI JUESON MAENG |
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Affiliation: | Biology Department, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, U.S.A. |
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Abstract: | The dark reaction of the short day plant Lemna perpusilla was investigated. It was found that 3-phosphoglycerate and pyruvate (10?6M) increased the flowering rate in the presence of nitrates. Pyruvate-2-14C was added to the culture solution during two hours of the dark reaction and 14C was incorporated into serine, aspartate and glutamate. It was postulated that pyruvate reacted with a nitrogen source forming an intermediate, possibly aspartate, which was further converted into serine. L. perpusilla failed to flower when the dark period was interrupted with red light and as a result endogenous serine accumulated in a high concentration. The dark reaction of L. perpusilla, in which serine was involved, required (1) oxygen, (2) ATP, (3) moderate temperature, and (4) an enzyme system. |
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