Relationship between Indole-3-Acetic Acid Levels in Apple (Malus pumila Mill) Rootstocks Cultured in Vitro and Adventitious Root Formation in the Presence of Indole-3-Butyric Acid

In vitro rooting response and indole-3-acetic acid (IAA) levels were examined in two genetically related dwarfing apple (Malus pumila Mill) rootstocks. M.26 and M.9 were cultured in vitro using Linsmaier-Skoog medium supplemented with benzyladenine (BA), indole-3-butyric acid (IBA), and 1,3,5-trihydroxybenzoic acid (PG). Rooting response was tested in Lepoivre medium supplemented with IBA and PG. IBA concentrations of 12.0 and 4.0 micromolar induced the maximum rooting percentages for M.9 and M.26, respectively. At these concentrations rooting response was 100% for M.26 and 80% for M.9. Free and conjugated IAA levels were determined in M.26 and M.9 shoots prior to root inducing treatment by high performance liquid chromatography with fluorescence detection and validated by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry using (13)[C(6)]IAA as internal standard. Basal sections of M.26 shoots contained 2.8 times more free IAA than similar tissue in M.9 (477.1 +/- 6.5 versus 166.6 +/- 6.7 nanograms per gram fresh weight), while free IAA levels in apical sections of M.26 and M.9 shoots were comparable (298.0 +/- 4.4 versus 263.7 +/- 9.3 nanograms per gram fresh weight). Conjugated IAA levels were significantly higher in M.9 than in M.26 indicating that a greater proportion of total IAA was present as a conjugate in M.9. These data suggest that differences between M.26 and M.9 rooting responses may be related to differences in free IAA levels in the shoot base.