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Permeability and Respiratory Properties of Germinating Pollen
Author(s) -
Dickinson David B.
Publication year - 1967
Publication title -
physiologia plantarum
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.351
H-Index - 146
eISSN - 1399-3054
pISSN - 0031-9317
DOI - 10.1111/j.1399-3054.1967.tb07149.x
Subject(s) - oligomycin , germination , pollen , respiration , oxidative phosphorylation , calcium , sucrose , biochemistry , pollen tube , biology , botany , chemistry , enzyme , atpase , pollination , organic chemistry
A study of permeability and respiration of germinating lily pollen ( Lilium longi‐florum , variety Ace) was conducted. Calcium was needed in the culture medium to maintain the integrity of the cell membranes. Carbohydrates leaked from pollen when calcium was absent, but little or no leakage occurred when calcium was present. A culture medium containing penlaerythritol was developed for this study. Pentaerythritol allowed normal germination and did not interfere with measurement of carbohydrates. Intact pollen grains possessed a β‐fructofuranosidase external to the cell membrane which hydrolyzed sucrose in the culture medium. External α‐ or β‐glucosidases were absent, although soluble α‐glucosidase was present within the pollen. Oligomycin, an inhibitor of oxidative phosphorylation, eliminated the 3‐phase patters of respiration associated with normal germination. O 2 uptake was inhibited by oligomycin while CO 2 output was stimulated. 2,4‐Dinitrophenol, an uncoupler of oxidative phosphorylation, reversed the inhibition of O 2 uptake caused by oligomycin.