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The effect of activated oxygen during the production of endogenous ethylene induced by exogenous ethylene

Ke Deshen, Wang Aiguo, Luo Guanghua

South China Institute of Botany, The Chinese Academy of Sciences.　Guangzhou 510650, Guangdong

Abstract

After the treatment with various concentrations of ethrel for　different time, the rate of production of ethylene in etiolated　seedlings of Phaseolus radiatus L., the activity of SOD and CAT,and the　rate of production of O~(.)_(2) and H_(2)O_(2) were measured.Under some conditions, exogenous ethylene decreased the activity of　superoxide dismutase (SOD) and catalase (CAT), increased the rate of　production of superoxide radical O~(.)_(2) and H_(2)O_(2), and induced effectively the increase of the evolution of endogenous ethylene. There is a　threshold value for each of the above effects of exogenous ethylene: it　was 10~(-2)　#mu#mol/L and 10_(-1) #mu#mol/L for the inhibition of SOD and CAT respectively, and was 10_(-2) #mu#mol/L for the production of active oxygen and of endogenous ethylene.On the other hand, endogenous ethylene production was increased by　adding exogenous O~(.)_(2) (Na_(-2)S_(-2)O_(-3)) and H_(2)O_(2). The scavenger of O~(.)_(2)(SOD), and the　scavenger of H_(2)O_(2) (CAT) inhibited effectively the production of　endogenous ethylene(Fig.7). Exogenous ethylene can induce effectively　the production of endogenous ethylene.Because the involvement of　O~(.)_(2)) and H_(2)O_(2) in ethylene biosynthesis has been identified, the production of endogenous ethylene induced by exogenous ethylene is caused possibly by an increase of the rate of production of O~(.)_(2) and H_(2)O_(2), and by a decrease of the activity of the SOD and CAT. This may be the mechanism of induction of production of endogenous ethylene by exogenous ethylene.

Key words: Ethylene;SOD;CAT;Superoxide radical;H_(2)O_(2)

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Citing This Article：

Ke Deshen, Wang Aiguo, Luo Guanghua. The effect of activated oxygen during the production of endogenous ethylene induced by exogenous ethylene. Acta Physiol Sin 1997; 49 (1): (in Chinese with English abstract).