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. 1990 Sep;94(1):328–333. doi: 10.1104/pp.94.1.328

Phosphorus Stress Effects on Assimilation of Nitrate 1

Thomas W Rufty Jr 1,2,3,4,5, Charles T MacKown 1,2,3,4,5, Daniel W Israel 1,2,3,4,5
PMCID: PMC1077228  PMID: 16667705

Abstract

An experiment was conducted to investigate alterations in uptake and assimilation of NO3 by phosphorus-stressed plants. Young tobacco plants (Nicotiana tabacum [L.], cv NC 2326) growing in solution culture were deprived of an external phosphorus (P) supply for 12 days. On selected days, plants were exposed to 15NO3 during the 12 hour light period to determine changes in NO3 assimilation as the P deficiency progressed. Decreased whole-plant growth was evident after 3 days of P deprivation and became more pronounced with time, but root growth was unaffected until after day 6. Uptake of 15NO3 per gram root dry weight and translocation of absorbed 15NO3 out of the root were noticeably restricted in −P plants by day 3, and effects on both increased in severity with time. Whole-plant reduction of 15NO3 and 15N incorporation into insoluble reduced-N in the shoot decreased after day 3. Although the P limitation was associated with a substantial accumulation of amino acids in the shoot, there was no indication of excessive accumulation of soluble reduced-15N in the shoot during the 12 hour 15NO3 exposure periods. The results indicate that alterations in NO3 transport processes in the root system are the primary initial responses limiting synthesis of shoot protein in P-stressed plants. Elevated amino acid levels evidently are associated with enhanced degradation of protein rather than inhibition of concurrent protein synthesis.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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