Jenneth M. Sasse

Physiological Actions of Brassinosteroids: An Update

In general, this overview covers literature from 1999 until early 2003. Topics covered include aspects of the biosynthesis and transport of brassinosteroids, their effects on cell division, expansion, and differentiation, and their effects on whole plants, including source-sink relations and other endogenous interactions. Some interactions with environmental signals are discussed, as well as results that may promise applications in future. Topics that warrant further investigation of the roles of BRs include phenotypic variability, reproductive physiology, senescence, branching, and apical dominance, whereas topics in which possible roles for BRs are relatively unexplored include lignification, phototropism, photoperiodism, and endogenous rhythms.

Detection of brassinosteroids in pollen of Lolium perenne L. by immunocytochemistry

Bioactive brassinosteroids have been localized in developing and mature pollen of anhydrously fixed rye-grass (Lolium perenne) by immunocytochemistry using polyclonal antibodies to castasterone generated in rabbits. Tricellular pollen fixed by freeze-substitution was also labelled in the starch granules. Study of the developmental sequence of the pollen through the microsporocyte, microspore, bicellular and tricellular stages showed that the brassinosteroids were increasingly sequestered in starch granules as the amyloplasts matured, supporting the view that these are storage organelles for these potent plant growth promoters. In bicellular pollen, heavy labelling was seen in the zone within 0.5 μm of the starch granule, where stromal tissue remains. Thus, the stroma may be the site of synthesis of these compounds. During aqueous fixation, the brassinosteroids leached from the starch granules of tricellular pollen, indicating that they would be quickly available after imbibition to influence the physiology of germinating pollen. The results from high-performance liquid chromatography of dansylaminophenylboronates from partially purified extracts of freshly dehisced tricellular pollen of rye-grass showed 25-methylcastasterone may be a minor component, together with two unknown peaks. No specific binding of brassinolide to any soluble proteins extracted from tricellular rye-grass pollen was observed using the antibodies in gel electrophoresis or enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays.

Assessment of salt tolerance in eucalypts using chlorophyll fluorescence attributes

Chlorophyll fluorescence attributes were investigated for their potential as rapid, non-invasive indices of salt stress in eucalypts. After representative clones of E. camaldulensis and E. urophylla×grandis were subjected to salinity treatments, dark-adapted and quenching attributes did not show consistent responses to salinity stress. The light-adapted attribute Fds, when measured in a controlled environment, did decline, often before physical symptoms of stress were visible. This value is required for the derivation of the effective quantum yield, and each measurement can be acquired and automatically recorded in a few seconds, permitting the rapid survey of large groups in a propagation facility. Monitoring of plants, that were treated with increasing concentrations of NaCl over time, permitted overall ranking of the responses of groups of clones and seedlings. Usually the data were heteroscedastic, so non-parametric methods of statistical analysis were used, and P≤0.01 for ascribing significance to differences. Also, following the responses of individuals within clones and provenances showed the method should be useful for the early detection of particularly susceptible or resistant seedlings.

Distribution of podolactone-type plant growth inhibitors in the coniferae

Abstract Plant growth inhibitors of the podolactone-type have been detected by bioassay in ten further species of Podocarpus . The most active extracts in P. elatus were from root tips, root cortex and very young leaves. Fifty-seven other conifers were examined for this type of activity. It is present in Cephalotaxus harringtonia where it is probably due to the presence of harringtonolide, which, like momilactone B from rice husks, shows podolactone-type inhibition of the growth of etiolated dwarf pea hooks.

Brassinolide-induced elongation

The promotive effects of brassinosteroids (BRs) on elongation seem general, as members of the family affect young vegetative tissue in fifteen species (listed in Sasse, 1991a). There is also a specific effect, as 24-epibrassinolide (24epiBL) forms part of the sequential response in young elongating tissue (Sasse, 1985). The case for BRs as a new family of plant hormones is strong (Sasse, 1991a); however, if BRs and their interactions with other natural plant growth regulators have an endogenous role in the control of plant growth, the compounds must be shown to occur in adequate amounts in appropriate tissuein vivo.

Iridoids of garrya elliptica as plant growth inhibitors

Abstract Extracts from catkins of Garrya elliptica inhibit the growth of wheat embryos. The components responsible for this activity have been identified as the iridoids geniposide and geniposidic acid together with their aglucones.