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Endogenous cytokinins in vegetative shoots of peas

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Abstract

In G2 peas senescence only takes place in long days. In order to determine the role of cytokinins in this process the endogenous cytokinins from vegetative shoots of G2 peas were characterized using gas chromatography-mass spectroscopy following purification by HPLC. Cytokinins were extracted and purified with and without the addition of 15N labelled internal standards of several cytokinins to estimate cytokin content by isotope dilution in the mass spectra. Samples without internal standards were bioassayed after HPLC. Bioassays showed the presence of zeatin, zeatin riboside and zeatin-0-glucoside. The presence of zeatin was confirmed by its mass spectrum of its permethylated derivative. Tentative identification of zeatin riboside, zeatin-0-glucoside, dihydrozeatin, and dihydrozeatin-0-glucoside was obtained by the coincidence of the major ion for the permethylated natural and 15N labelled internal standards on GC-MS, and the similar coincidence of ions for permethylated zeatin riboside-0-glucoside by direct probe MS. There was no indication of the presence of significant quantities of zeatin-7-glucoside or zeatin-9-glucoside. The amounts in the tissue ranged from 200–1000 ng/kg fresh weight for each cytokinin and about 2–4 μg/kg fresh weight for total cytokinins. There was no apparent difference in the levels in mature but pre-senescent shoots grown in long days and short days indicating that apical senesecence in G2 peas does not appear to be induced by a decline in cytokinin level in the shoots.

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Abbreviations

CK:

Cytokinin

Z:

trans zeatin

[9R]Z:

t-zeatin riboside

[9R-5′P] Z:

t-zeatin riboside-5′-monophosphate

(OG)Z:

t-zeatin-0-glucoside

(OG)[9R]Z:

t-zeatin riboside-0-glucoside

[7Z]G:

t-zeatin-7-glucoside

[9G]Z:

t-zeatin-9-glucoside

(diH)Z:

dihydrozeatin

(diH)[9R]Z:

dihydrozeatin riboside

iP:

N6(Δ2-isopentenyl) adenine

[9R]iP:

N6(Δ2-isopentenyl) adenosine

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Section of Plant Biology, Cornel University, 14853, Ithaca, NY, USA

    Peter J. Davies & Roger Horgan

  2. Department of Botany and Microbiology, University College of Wales, Aberystwyth, Dyfed, Wales, UK

    James K. Heald & Brian A. McGaw

Authors
  1. Peter J. Davies
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  2. Roger Horgan
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  3. James K. Heald
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  4. Brian A. McGaw
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Additional information

Work performed while PJD was on leave at the University College of Wales at Aberystwyth.

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Davies, P.J., Horgan, R., Heald, J.K. et al. Endogenous cytokinins in vegetative shoots of peas. Plant Growth Regul 4, 311–323 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00024931

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00024931

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