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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Gainesville, Florida » Center for Medical, Agricultural and Veterinary Entomology » Chemistry Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #210745
Title: Photosynthetic and carbohydrate status of easy and difficult-to-acclimate sea oats (Uniola Paniculata L.) genotypes during in vitro culture and ex vitro acclimation

Author
item VALERO-ARCAMA, CARMEN - DEPT OF ENV HORTICULTURE
item KANE, MICHAEL - DEPT OF ENV HORTICULTURE
item WILSON, SANDRA - DEPT OF AGRONOMY
item Vu, Joseph
item Anderson, Joan
item PHILMAN, NANCY - DEPT OF ENV HORTICULTURE

Submitted to: In Vitro Cellular and Developmental Biology - Plants
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/21/2006
Publication Date: 12/1/2006
Citation: Valero-Arcama, C., Kane, M., Wilson, S., Vu, J.C., Anderson, J.C., Philman, N. 2006. Photosynthetic and carbohydrate status of easy and difficult-to-acclimate sea oats (Uniola Paniculata L.) genotypes during in vitro culture and ex vitro acclimation. In Vitro Cellular and Developmental Biology - Plants. 42:572-583.

Interpretive Summary: Sea oats, a perennial grass native to southeastern U.S., is used for beach and dune restoration and stabilization. Micropropagation of this species is necessary, due to limited natural sources of the plants and seeds. In this study, two sea oats genotypes with differing acclimatization capacity, an easy-to-acclimatize (EK 16-3) and a difficult-to-acclimatize (EK 11-1) genotype, were micropropagated, and photosynthetic performance and carbohydrates were measured during chamber tissue culture and greenhouse plant acclimatization. The research was carried out by a PhD candidate with the University of Florida, and was guided by a scientist of the ARS-CMAVE Chemistry Research Unit who served as a graduate committee member. Understanding the metabolism of such genotypes during micropropagation would explain the reason for acclimatization difference and allow efficient commercial production of sea oats. The results showed that, compared to EK 16-3, EK 11-1 had lower chlorophyll, carbohydrates, protein and photosynthetic performance, and these factors contributed to poor growth and low survival of EK 11-1.

Technical Abstract: Photosynthesis and carbohydrate status of an easy-to-acclimatize (EK 16-3) and a difficult-to-acclimatize (EK 11-1) genotype of sea oats (Uniola paniculata), a native dune species of the southeastern U.S., were evaluated during in vitro culture and ex vitro greenhouse acclimatization. During in vitro culture, EK 16-3 plantlets utilized leaf starch reserves more rapidly than EK 11-1 plantlets, and this correlated with the development of leaves with expanded leaf blades for EK 16-3 plantlets. After 6 weeks at in vitro, chlorophyll and protein contents and ribulose bisphosphate carboxylase and phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase activities were greater in EK 16-3 than EK 11-1 shoots. After ex vitro transfer, starch and soluble sugars in shoots and roots of both genotypes decreased, but the photosynthetic rate of EK 16-3 plantlets was eight-fold greater than that of EK 11-1 plantlets. The higher photosynthetic ability of EK 16-3 resulted in greater accumulation of shoot soluble sugars than EK 11-1 after 2 weeks at ex vitro. For ex vitro EK 16-3 plantlets, the rapid production of photosynthetically competent leaves resulted in 100% survival. Conversely, poor production of photosynthetically competent leaves and rapid exhaustion of carbohydrate reserves led to poor acclimatization and survival of ex vitro EK 11-1 plantlets.