Depression of β-subunit accumulation in nitrogen deficient soybean seeds
Abstract
Non-nodulating soybean plants (T201) were cultivated either with low N (LN: 1 mM NO3 -) or normal N (NN: 5 mM NO3 -) conditions. In the LN treatment, the seed cell size and the accumulation of N and protein bodies were markedly decreased relative to the NN treatment. Also, the β-subunit of β-conglycinin was not detectable in LN seeds. There were no significant differences in the amino acid composition of immature seeds or of seed coat exudates between LN and NN plants. A sparagine was the predominant amino acid in both N treatments. The abscisic acid (ABA) level increased with time in LN seeds, and was significantly higher than in NN seeds at the final three sampling stages. From the results obtained, the depression of β-subunit accumulation by N deficiency may not be directly regulated by amino acid composition transported from pods, but may be related to increased levels of ABA accumulation in the seed.
Key words
abscicic acid β-subunit nitrogen deficiency soybeanReferences
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