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Survival of Solanum tuberosum suspension cultures to –14°C: The mode of action of proline
Author(s) -
Hellergren J.,
Li P. H.
Publication year - 1981
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.1399-3054.1981.tb02715.x
Subject(s) - proline , plasmolysis , sucrose , solanum tuberosum , chemistry , botany , suspension (topology) , biology , biochemistry , amino acid , cell wall , mathematics , homotopy , pure mathematics
Normally suspension cultures of potato, Solanum tuberosum , can survive only to a freezing temperature of –2°C. The treated cultures were able to survive at much lower freezing temperature after the addition of l ‐proline of 0.43 M or more to the suspension medium and treatment for 1.5 h. Cultures could survive to ‐14°C with 0.87 M proline treatment. Treatments with higher concentration than 0.87 M resulted in no additional freezing survival. Microscopical observations of the treated cultures before freezing showed that proline induced plasmolysis, which was initiated at the 0.43 M level and reached maximum at 0.87 M. The mode of action of proline, appears to be due to the removal of excessive intracellular water by the osmotic gradient. Sucrose at about the same concentration acted in the same way as proline. The cryoprotective role of proline and sucrose is discussed in relation to the action of the permeant dimethylsulfoxide.