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© 1977 Oxford University Press

RESEARCH-ARTICLE

Mitochondrial Activity and Carbohydrate Levels in Tulip Bulbs in Relation to Cold Treatment

GRAEME E. HOBSON and JACK N. DAVIES

Glasshouse Crops Research Institute Rustington, Littlehampton, West Sussex, BN16 3PU

Changes in mitochondrial activity and in the levels of various carbohydrates were followed in tulip bulbs (cv. Apeldoorn) kept in the dark at low and high temperatures (9 and 18 °C respectively) from the time of flower differentiation until anthesis. After the first 10 weeks at either temperature, the activity of the mitochondria, measured by their ability to oxidize succinate, malate, or 2-oxoglutarate, was at a minimum. Thereafter oxidation rates improved up to about the 26th week when mitochondria from cooled (9 °C) bulbs were usually more active than those from uncooled (18 °C) bulbs. Subsequently, rates for both treatments fell rapidly. In contrast, levels of total alcohol-soluble carbohydrates and of sucrose in the cooled bulbs were at a maximum after 10 weeks and were falling rapidly by the 26th week. Statistically significant inverse correlations between mitochondrial activity, typified by the succinate oxidation rate, and these carbohydrates were established. No such relationships were found for uncooled bulbs, however, and carbohydrate levels in such bulbs tended to increase slowly throughout the growing period. In addition, transfer of carbohydrates to the growing shoot was slow, and the flowers either failed to develop normally or were of poor quality. The mechanism whereby the bulb controls the activity of its mitochondria is at present unknown, but the rise in sucrose levels and its subsequent redeployment to the shoot brought about by cold treatment appear essential for normal flowering.


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