Premium
Atmospheric nitrogen dioxide gas is a plant vitalization signal to increase plant size and the contents of cell constituents
Author(s) -
Takahashi Misa,
Nakagawa Makiko,
Sakamoto Atsushi,
Ohsumi Chieko,
Matsubara Toshiyuki,
Morikawa Hiromichi
Publication year - 2005
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.1469-8137.2005.01493.x
Subject(s) - shoot , nitrogen , phosphorus , carbon dioxide , chemistry , potassium , nutrient , nitrogen dioxide , magnesium , botany , horticulture , environmental chemistry , biology , organic chemistry
Summary• We report the unexpected novel finding that exogenously supplied atmospheric NO 2 at an ambient concentration is a plant vitalization signal to double shoot size and the contents of cell constituents. • When seedlings of Nicotiana plumbaginifolia were grown for 10 wk under natural light and irrigation with 10 m m KNO 3 in air containing (+NO 2 plants) or not containing (–NO 2 plants) 15 NO 2 (150 ± 50 ppb), shoot biomass, total leaf area, and contents per shoot of carbon (C), nitrogen (N), sulphur (S), phosphorus (P), potassium (K), calcium (Ca), magnesium (Mg), free amino acids and crude proteins were all approximately 2 times greater in +NO 2 plants than in –NO 2 plants. • In mass spectrometric analysis of the 15 N/ 14 N ratio, it was found that NO 2 ‐derived N (NO 2 ‐N) comprised < 3% of total plant N, indicating that the contribution of NO 2 ‐N to total N was very minor. • It thus seems very likely that the primary role of NO 2 is as a multifunctional signal to stimulate plant growth, nutrient uptake and metabolism.