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Ethanol reduces sensitivity to ethylene and delays petal senescence in cut Tweedia caerulea flowers

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Abstract

Tweedia caerulea flowers are sensitive to ethylene and the closing of the flowers, a characteristic of senescence, is accelerated by exposure to ethylene. T. caerulea flowers were continuously treated with ethanol at concentrations of 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10 or 12 %, and treatment levels at 4 % and above showed delayed closing. Ethanol accelerated climacteric increase in ethylene production from flowers. Although ethylene production was higher in gynoecium than in petals, ethanol treatment accelerated ethylene production by both organs. Exposure to ethylene increased autocatalytic ethylene production, and production was further accelerated by ethanol treatment. When flowers treated with ethanol were exposed to ethylene, senescence was delayed compared to that for untreated flowers, suggesting that ethanol reduces the sensitivity of flowers to ethylene. These results indicate that treatment with ethanol delays petal senescence in cut T. caerulea flowers, possibly through reduced sensitivity to ethylene.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Dr. W. G. van Doorn (Wageningen University and Research Centre) for his advice on this work. UKP gratefully acknowledges support of a postdoctoral fellowship from the Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science.

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  1. NARO Institute of Floricultural Science, Fujimoto, Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8519, Japan

    Umed K. Pun, Tomoko Niki & Kazuo Ichimura

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  1. Umed K. Pun
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  2. Tomoko Niki
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  3. Kazuo Ichimura
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Correspondence to Kazuo Ichimura.

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Pun, U.K., Niki, T. & Ichimura, K. Ethanol reduces sensitivity to ethylene and delays petal senescence in cut Tweedia caerulea flowers. Plant Growth Regul 69, 125–130 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10725-012-9755-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10725-012-9755-6

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