Abstract
The influence of water shortage and ethylene (ethephon) application on ear fertility and tillering of barley plants were compared. In both cases, highest sensitivity was observed during jointing and pre-anthesis (Feekes 7–9). The ear initial with the surrounding tissue was identified as the site of ethylene action. Treating this region of barley plants with AVG before wilting partly prevented drought effects. These results, in connection with rising ethylene values in ear-bearing stem segments of wilting barley plants (more obvious in increasing ACC and MACC levels), especially in the drought-sensitive stages, favors a role for ethylene in the development of cereal plants under drought.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aharoni N (1978) Relationship between leaf water status and endogenous ethylene in detached leaves. Plant Physiol 61:658–662
Apelbaum A, Yang SF (1981) Biosynthesis of stress ethylene induced by water deficit. Plant Physiol 68:594–596
Bergner C, Otto S (1974) Untersuchungen zur Entwicklung neuer Halmstabilisatoren für Weizen (Triticum aestivum L.) und Gerste (Hordeum vulgare L.) Ph.D. thesis, Martin Luther Universität Halle, Wittenberg
Bergner C, Teichmann C, Hahn G, Sembdner G (1990) Unter-suchungen über die physiologische Rolle von Ethylen bei der Trockenstressadaptation von Sommergerstepflanzen. In: Otto S, Wagenbreth D (eds) Wachstumsregulatoren. Akademie der Landwirtschafts-wissenschaften der DDR, Berlin, pp 101–112
Briggs DE (1978) The growth of the barley plant. In: Briggs DE (ed) Barley. Chapman and Hall, London, pp 222–232
El-Beltagy AS, Hall MA (1974) Effect of water stress upon endogenous ethylene levels in Vicia faba. New Phytol 73: 47–60
Graves WR, Gladon RJ (1985) Water stress, endogenous ethylene and Ficus benjamina leaf abscission. Hort Sci 20:273–275
Hoffman NE, Liu Y, Yang SF (1983) Changes in 1-(malonyl-amino)cyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid content in wilted wheat leaves in relation to their ethylene production rates and 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid content. Planta 157:518–523
Hubick KT, Taylor JS, Reid DM (1986) The effect of drought on levels of abscisic acid, cytokinins, gibberellins and ethylene in aeroponically-grown sunflower plants. Plant Growth Regul 4:139–151
Jackson MB (1987) A structured evaluation of the involvement of ethylene and abscisic acid in plant responses to aeration stress. In: Hoad GV, Lenton JR, Jackson MB, Atkin RK (eds) Hormone action in plant development—A critical appraisel. Butterworth, London, pp 189–199
Kende H (1989) Enzymes of ethylene biosynthesis. Plant Physiol 91:1–4
Lizada MCC, Yang SF (1979) A simple and sensitive assay for 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid. Anal Biochem 100:140–145
McKeon TA, Hoffman NE, Yang SF (1982) The effect of plant-hormone pretreatments on ethylene production and synthesis of 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid in water-stressed wheat leaves. Planta 155:437–443
Morgan PW, He C-J, De Greef JA, De Proft MP (1990) Does water deficit stress promote ethylene synthesis by intact plants? Plant Physiol 94:1616–1624
Narayana I, Lalonde S, Saini HS (1991) Water-stress-induced ethylene production in wheat. A fact or artifact? Plant Physiol 96:406–410
O'Toole JC, Chang TT (1979) Drought resistance in cereals—rice: A case study. In: Mussell H, Staples RC (eds) Stress physiology in crop plants. Wiley, New York, pp 374–405
Sachs L (1982) Statistische Methoden, 5th ed. Springer-Verlag, Berlin
Wright STC (1977) The relationship between leaf water potential (Ψleaf) and the levels of abscisic acid and ethylene in excised wheat leaves. Planta 134:183–189
Wright STC (1981) The effect of light and dark periods on the production of ethylene from water-stressed wheat leaves. Planta 153:172–180
Yang SF, Hoffman NE (1984) Ethylene biosynthesis and its regulation in higher plants. Ann Rev Plant Physiol 35:155–189
Yu YB, Yang SF (1979) Auxin-induced ethylene production and its inhibition by aminoethoxyvinylglycin and cobalt ion. Plant Physiol 64:1074–1077
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Bergner, C., Teichmann, C. A role for ethylene in barley plants responding to soil water shortage. J Plant Growth Regul 12, 67 (1993). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00193235
Received:
Accepted:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00193235