Abstract
The effect of short-term heat stress on the tonoplast membrane of lamb's lettuce (Valerianella locusta (L.) Betcke) mesophyll vacuoles has been investigated. The maintainance of a proton concentration difference (δpH) across the tonoplast membrane served as a criterion for the integrity of the vacuoles. After heat treatment, δpH was measured at room temperature using the fluorescent amine, 9-aminoacridine. It was found with this method that thermal damage to isolated vacuoles mainly occurred in the temperature range above 50°C. Compared with this results, the photosynthetic functions of isolated lettuce protoplasts proved to be markedly more thermolabile, e.g. photosynthetic CO2 fixation and light-induced chlorophyll fluorescence were drastically reduced at temperatures between 40° and 50°C. Heating of whole leaves and protoplasts and subsequent isolation of vacuoles showed that tonoplast-membrane integrity is not affected by heat stress in situ up to 45°C. Measurement of 9-aminoacridine fluorescence in protoplasts, which allowed conclusions to be drawn regarding the integrity of the tonoplast membrane in its natural cytoplasmic environment, revealed that heat treatment up to 55°C did not significantly affect vacuolar compartmentation. The data provide evidence that the tonoplast membrane is relatively heat stable compared with photosynthetic membranes.
Similar content being viewed by others
Abbreviations
- 9-AA:
-
9-aminoacridine
References
Alexandrov, V.Y. (1977) Cells, molecules and temperature. Conformational flexibility of macromolecules and ecological adaptation. (Ecological studies, vol. 21) Springer, Berlin Heidelberg New York
Badger, M.R., Björkman, O., Armond, P.A. (1982) An analysis of photosynthetic response and adaptation to temperature in higher plants: temperature acclimation in the desert evergreen Nerium oleander L.. Plant Cell Environ. 5, 85–99
Berry, J.A., Fork, D.C., Garrison, S. (1975) Mechanistic studies of thermal damage to leaves. Carnegie Inst. Washington Yearb. 74, 751–759
Björkman, O. (1975) Thermal stability of the photosynthetic apparatus in intact leaves. Carnegie Inst. Washington Yearb. 74, 748–751
Kaiser, W.M., Kaiser, G., Prachuab, P.K., Wildman, S.G., Heber, U. (1981) Photosynthesis under osmotic stress. Inhibition of photosynthesis of intact chloroplasts, protoplasts, and leaf slices at high osmotic potentials. Planta 153, 416–422
Krause, G.H., Santarius, K.A. (1975) Relative thermostability of the chloroplast envelope. Planta 127, 285–299
Langridge, J., McWilliam, J.R. (1976) Heat response in higher plants. In: Thermobiology, pp. 231–239, Rose, A.H., ed. Academic Press, London New York
Lavorel, J. (1969) On the relation between fluorescence and luminescence in photosynthetic systems. In: Progress in photosynthesis research, vol. 2: pp. 883–898. Metzner, H., ed. Int. Union Biol. Sci., Tübingen
Levitt, J. (1980) Responses of plants to environmental stresses, 2nd edn, vol. 1.: Chilling, freezing and high temperature stress. Academic Press, New York London Toronto Sydney San Francisco
Papageorgiou, G. (1975) Fluorescence: an intrinsic probe of photosynthesis. In: Bioenergetics of photosynthesis. pp. 320–371, Govindjee, ed. Academic Press, New York
Rottenberg, H. (1979) The measurement of membrane potential and δpH in cells, organelles, and vesicles. Methods Enzymol. 55, 547–569
Santarius, K.A. (1975) Sites of heat sensitivity in chloroplasts and differential inactivation of cyclic and noncyclic photophosphorylation by heating. J. Thermal Biol. 1, 101–107
Santarius, K.A., Müller, M. (1979) Investigations on the heat resistance of spinach leaves. Planta 146, 529–538
Schreiber, U., Armond, P.A. (1978) Heat induced changes of chlorophyll fluorescence in isolated chloroplasts and related heat damage at the pigment level. Biochim. Biophys. Acta 502, 138–151
Schreiber, U., Berry, J.A. (1977) Heat induced changes of chlorophyll fluorescence in intact leaves correlated with damage of the photosynthetic apparatus. Planta 136, 233–238
Schuldiner, S., Rottenberg, H., Avron, M. (1972) Determination of δpH in chloroplasts. 2. Fluorescent amines as a probe for the determination of δpH in chloroplasts. Eur J. Biochem. 25, 64–70
Thebud, R., Santarius, K.A. (1982) Effects of high temperature stress on various biomembranes of leaf cells in situ and in vitro. Plant Physiol. 70, 200–206
Weigel, H.J., Weis, E. (1983) Determination of the proton concentration difference (δpH) across the tonoplast membrane of isolated mesophyll vacuoles by means of 9-aminoacridine fluorescence. Plant Sci. Lett. (in press)
Weis, E. (1981) Reversible heat inactivation of the Calvin cycle: a possible mechanism of the temperature regulation of photosynthesis. Planta 151, 33–39
Weis, E. (1982) The influence of metal cations and pH on the heat sensitivity of photosynthetic oxygen evolution and chlorophyll fluorescence in spinach chloroplasts. Planta 154, 41–47
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Weigel, HJ. The effect of high temperatures on leaf cells of Valerianella: relative heat stability of the tonoplast membrane of mesophyll vacuoles. Planta 159, 398–403 (1983). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00392074
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00392074