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Studies of the Mechanism of Enhancement of Phytochrome-dependent Lettuce Seed Germination by Prechilling

Seed Research Laboratory, Plant Genetics and Germplasm Institute, Agricultural Research, Beltsville, Maryland, Science and Education Administration, United States Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, Maryland

Temperature and kinetic studies were performed to examine the mechanism by which prechilling stimulates phytochrome-dependent seed germination in lettuce, Lactuca sativa, L. cv. Grand Rapids. Imbibed seeds were given a short far red irradiation and one day of dark incubation at 20 C to establish very low levels of the far red-absorbing form of phytochrome—(Pfr). Germination was greatly stimulated by subsequent prechilling treatments when they were followed by a second short far red irradiation. Prechilling therefore increased germination sensitivity to the low, normally inhibitory Pfr levels established by far red irradiation. This sensitivity increased with lowered prechilling temperature to a maximum near 4 C. It was linearly dependent upon duration of prechilling at 4 C up to a near maximal response at 10 hours, and it decayed in a converse manner when seeds were returned to 20 C after 10 hours at 4 C. Prechilling also increased germination responses to subsequent periods of high levels of Pfr which were initiated by red and terminated by far red irradiations. High Pfr periods adequate to promote the germination of unchilled seeds produced sharp inflections at 18 C in the dependence of germination on prechilling temperature. Rates of phytochrome potentiation of germination were not affected by prechilling. The response to prechilling fit a mechanism involving homeoviscous adaptation of membrane lipids to temperature.

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