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. 1982 Jan;69(1):63–66. doi: 10.1104/pp.69.1.63

Influence of Protein Synthesis on NO3− Reduction, NH4+ Accumulation, and Amide Synthesis in Suspension Cultures of Paul's Scarlet Rose

James A Bradford 1, John S Fletcher 1
PMCID: PMC426146  PMID: 16662185

Abstract

Changes in the concentrations of NH4+ and amides during the growth of suspension cultures of rose (Rosa cv. Paul's Scarlet) cells were examined. When cells were grown in medium possessing only NO3− as a nitrogen source, the concentrations of NH4+ and amides increased to 4.0 × 10−1 and 5.9 micromoles per gram fresh weight, respectively. The amounts of both constituents declined during the later stages of growth. When a trace amount of NH4+ was added to the NO3− base starting medium, the concentration of NH4+ in the cells was increased to 7.0 × 10−1 micromoles per gram fresh weight.

A comparison between the concentration of NH4+ in the cells (4.3 × 10−4 molar) with the Km values for glutamate dehydrogenase (5 × 10−3 molar) and glutamine synthetase (1.7 × 10−5 molar) showed that the endogenous NH4+ would have to be concentrated 10-fold in compartments possessing glutamate dehydrogenase in order for the substrate to reach one-half the saturation level for that enzyme.

The influence of protein synthesis on the level of NH4+ and amides was examined by blocking protein synthesis with cycloheximide or puromycin and measuring changes in NH4+ and amide concentration over the subsequent 4 hours. The level of both NH4+ and amides showed substantial increases when protein synthesis was blocked. Ammonium accumulated to concentrations surpassing those reported by other authors to be toxic to plants. The reduction of NO3− did not appear to be influenced by the blockage of 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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