Journal of Experimental Botany, Vol 49, 1413-1419, Copyright © 1998 by Oxford University Press
K Shackel and N Turner
The turgor pressure in cells of chickpea (Cicer
arietinum L.) and faba bean (Vicia faba L.)
seed coats was measured with a pressure probe. Measurements were made under
in situ conditions by removing a section of wall from
a pod, which remained attached to the plant, and exposing the intact seed.
If the pod wall was removed and the turgor measurements made under ambient
laboratory conditions of 50% to 70% relative humidity (RH), cell turgor
pressure declined over time, typically reaching 0 MPa. If the pod wall was
removed and the turgor measurements made under conditions of 100% RH,
however, cell turgor pressure was stable over time, relatively uniform
within the seed coat tissue, and was found to be 0.1-0.3 MPa for chickpea,
and 0.1-0.2 MPa for faba bean. In both species there was a marked decline
in cell turgor, beginning within about 60 s, when humidification was
discontinued. The decline in cell turgor occurred regardless of the depth
of the cell within the seed coat tissue, and this decline could be stopped,
but not entirely reversed, when humidification was restored. An increase in
cell turgor could also be caused by wetting of the seed. These responses
indicate that a very rapid water exchange can occur within the seed coat
tissue in situ. The rapid and, in some cases,
relatively permanent loss of seed coat cell turgor in the absence of
humidification raises serious concerns regarding desiccation artefacts
which may be involved in the empty seed coat technique, often used to study
seed carbon and water relations in grain
legumes.Keywords: Chickpea, faba bean, air humidity,
turgor pressure, seed coat
ARTICLES
Seed coat cell turgor responds rapidly to air humidity in chickpea and faba bean
Centre for Legumes in Mediterranean Agriculture, University of Western Australia, Nedlands, WA 6907, Australia; CSIRO Plant Industry, Private Bag, PO Wembley, WA 6014, Australia; Department of Pomology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616-8683, USA; Corresponding author at the University of California
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