biologia plantarum

Biologia plantarum 51:322-326, 2007 | DOI: 10.1007/s10535-007-0062-4

Effects of methyl jasmonate and excess copper on root and leaf growth

W. Maksymiec^1,*, Z. Krupa¹

¹ Department of Plant Physiology, Maria Curie-Skłodowska University, Lublin, Poland

A short time effects of 25 and 150 µM Cu²⁺ or 50 µM methyl jasmonate (MJ) on growth of roots and leaves of Phaseolus coccineus, Allium cepa and Zea mays were investigated. Both Cu²⁺ and MJ inhibited root growth. Jasmonate synthesis inhibitors (ibuprofen, IB, salicylhydroxamic acid, SHAM, and propylgallate, PG) partially reversed the inhibitory effect of Cu²⁺ in P. coccineus, but in A. cepa this effect was not clear. Pretreatment with NADPH oxidase inhibitor (20 mM imidazole, IM), and especially ethylene inhibitor (silver thiosulphate, STS) mostly weakened Cu²⁺ effect on root growth in P. coccineus and A. cepa. The growth of P. coccineus leaves also slowed down by Cu²⁺ and this effect was partially ameliorated by IB, PG and IM, and completely by SHAM and STS. In Z. mays the effect of STS was considerably lower than that of PG and SHAM which reversed the effect of Cu²⁺. These results indicate that jasmonate, ethylene and NADPH oxidase activity may be involved in Cu²⁺ inhibitory action on the roots of dicotyledon plants, but in A. cepa only ethylene and NADPH oxidase are involved. However, leaf growth inhibition induced by excess Cu²⁺ is connected in Z. mays especially with jasmonate, and in P. coccineus with ethylene, NADPH oxidase and, to a minor degree, with jasmonate.

Keywords: ethylene; heavy metal; hydrogen peroxide; NADPH oxidase; signalling

Subjects: Allium cepa; copper; ethylene; heavy metals; hydrogen peroxide; in vitro culture, root cultivation, rooting; leaf growth; methyl jasmonate; NADPH oxidase; Phaseolus coccineus; signalling; Zea mays

Received: June 22, 2005; Accepted: March 25, 2006; Published: June 1, 2007  Show citation