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JXB Advance Access published online on September 26, 2007
Journal of Experimental Botany, doi:10.1093/jxb/erm198
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© The Author [2007]. Published by Oxford University Press [on behalf of the Society for Experimental Biology]. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oxfordjournals.org

RESEARCH PAPER

On the role of abscisic acid in seed dormancy of red rice

Alberto Gianinetti1,* and Paolo Vernieri2

1C.R.A. – Experimental Institute for Cereal Research, Via S. Protaso 302, I-29017 Fiorenzuola d'Arda (PC), Italy
2Dept Biologia delle Piante Agrarie – Università di Pisa, Viale delle Piagge 23, I-56124 Pisa, Italy

* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: agianinetti{at}tin.it

Abscisic acid (ABA) is commonly assumed to be the primary effector of seed dormancy, but conclusive evidence for this role is lacking. This paper reports on the relationships occurring in red rice between ABA and seed dormancy. Content of free ABA in dry and imbibed caryopses, both dormant and after-ripened, the effects of inhibitors, and the ability of applied ABA to revert dormancy breakage were considered. The results indicate: (i) no direct correlation of ABA content with the dormancy status of the seed, either dry or imbibed; (ii) different sensitivity to ABA of non-dormant seed and seed that was forced to germinate by fluridone; and (iii) an inability of exogenous ABA to reinstate dormancy in fluridone-treated seed, even though applied at a pH which favoured high ABA accumulation. These considerations suggest that ABA is involved in regulating the first steps of germination, but unidentified developmental effectors that are specific to dormancy appear to stimulate ABA synthesis and to enforce the responsiveness to this phytohormone. These primary effectors appear physiologically to modulate dormancy and via ABA they effect the growth of the embryo. Therefore, it is suggested that ABA plays a key role in integrating the dormancy-specific developmental signals with the control of growth.

Key words: Abscisic acid, development arrest, Oryza sativa f. spontanea, pericarp splitting, red rice, seed dormancy, seedling growth

Received 26 June 2007; Revised 21 July 2007 Accepted 25 July 2007


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