Abstract
The effect of ethylene on petiole growth of the Fringed Waterlily (Nymphoides peltata (S.G. Gmelin) O. Kuntze) changes during leaf ontogeny. During early development (before expansion of laminae), ethylene causes an increase in both cell number and cell size; later in development, promotion of rapid cell expansion is the dominant effect. The early effects may contribute to the accommodation of new leaves to water columns of different depth. The later effects on cell expansion only are shown to contribute to the rapid accommodation of floating leaves when changes in water level submerge the laminae. This kind of accommodation results from an interaction between accumulated ethylene, which increases wall extensibility, and the tension in petioles due to natural buoyancy which, it is suggested, supplements the driving force for cell expansion. Cell age (position) within a petiole and age of the whole petiole influence the growth response to ethylene alone and the amount of extra growth produced by applying tension when ethylene is present. In young petioles, apical cells are highly sensitive to ethylene and tension causes little further growth; older cells in both immature and mature petioles show little response to ethylene unless the petiole is under tension. Young (but not mature) petioles respond slowly to applied tension even in the absence of ethylene. It is concluded that as cells age the driving force for expansion limits increasingly their capacity to respond to the wall-loosening effects of ethylene. Dual sensitivity to ethylene and buoyant tension facilitates rapid accommodation responses but sensitivity of young petioles to tension alone may exclude Nymphoides from habitats where current velocity is appreciable.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Cleland RE (1967) A dual role of turgor pressure in auxin-induced cell elongation in Avena Coleoptiles. Planta 77:182–191
Cleland RE (1977) The control of cell elargement. Symp Soc for Experimental Biology, 31:101–115
Cookson C and Osborne DJ (1978) The stimulation of cell extension by ethylene and auxin in aquatic plants. Planta 144:39–47
Funke GL and Bartels PM (1937) Observations on the growth of water plants. Biol Jaarb 4:316–344
Malone M (1983) On the mechanism of depth accommodation in Nymphoides peltata and other water plants. D Phil Thesis, The Open University
Malone M and Ridge I (1983) Ethylene-induced growth and proton excretion in the aquatic plant Nymphoides peltata. Planta 157:71–73
Musgrave A and Walters J (1974) Ethylene and buoyancy control rachis elongation of the semi-aquatic fern Regnellidium diphyllum. Planta 121:51–56
Musgrave A, Jackson MB and Ling E (1972) Callitriche stem elongation is controlled by ethylene and gibberellin. Nature New Biol 238:93–96
Ridge I and Amarasinghe I (1981) Ethylene as a stress hormone and its role in submergence responses of shoots. In Abstr. Responses of Plants to Environmental Stress and Their Mediation by Plant Growth Substances. AAB/BPGRG, Letcome Laboratory, Wantage, Berks., UK
Walters J and Osborne DJ (1979) Ethylene and auxin-induced cell growth in relation to auxin transport and metabolism and ethylene production in the semi-aquatic plant Regnellidium diphyllum. Planta 146:309–317
Ward TM, Wright M, Roberts JA Self R and Osborne DJ (1978) Analtytical procedures for the assay and identification of ethylene. In Hillman JR, ed. Isolation of Plant Growth Substances, pp 135–151. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Ridge, I., Amarasinghe, I. Ethylene and growth control in the fringed waterlily (Nymphoides peltata): Stimulation of cell division and interaction with buoyant tension in petioles. Plant Growth Regul 2, 235–249 (1984). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00124772
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00124772