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STUDIES ON THE DISTRIBUTION OF OXYGEN AROUND THE ROOTS OF MUSTARD SEEDLINGS ( SINAPIS ALBA I.)
Author(s) -
GREENWOOD D. J.
Publication year - 1971
Publication title -
new phytologist
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.742
H-Index - 244
eISSN - 1469-8137
pISSN - 0028-646X
DOI - 10.1111/j.1469-8137.1971.tb02514.x
Subject(s) - oxygen , partial pressure , chemistry , nitrogen , sinapis , botany , agar gel , horticulture , biology , organic chemistry , microbiology and biotechnology , brassica
S ummary Evidence was obtained that oxygen transport through the plant greatly influenced the oxygen partial pressures in the medium surrounding the roots. Seedlings with their leaves in air had their roots embedded in agar gel that had been saturated with nitrogen, air or oxygen and after a 5‐hour period of incubation the distribution of oxygen in the gel was determined. When the gel had been saturated with nitrogen gas, oxygen partial pressures increased towards the surfaces of the roots of whole plants but not towards the surfaces of severed roots. When the gel had been saturated with air or oxygen, however, oxygen partial pressures always decreased towards the root surfaces irrespective of whether the roots had been severed or not. In oxygenated gel, the decreases were much greater towards intact roots than towards those that had been severed but in aerated gel the converse held. The results were in agreement with those expected if substantial amounts of oxygen moved from stem to root or in the opposite direction depending on the sign and magnitude of the oxygen partial pressure/distance gradients.