Attempts to detect cyclic adenosine 3':5'-monophosphate in higher plants by three assay methods

Endogenous levels of cyclic adenosine-3':5'-monophosphate in coleoptile first leaf segments of oat (Avena sativa L.), potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) tubers, tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) callus, and germinating seeds of lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) were measured with a modified Gilman binding assay and a protein kinase activation assay. The incorporation of adenosine-8-(14)C into compounds with properties similar to those of cyclic AMP was also measured in studies with germinating lettuce seeds. The binding assay proved reliable for mouse and rat liver analyses, but was nonspecific for plant tissues. It responded to various components from lettuce and potato tissues chromatographically similar to but not identical with cyclic AMP. The protein kinase activation assay was much more specific, but it also exhibited positive responses in the presence of compounds not chromatographically identical to cyclic AMP. The concentrations of cyclic AMP in the plant tissues tested were at the lower limits of detection and characterization obtainable with these assays. The estimates of maximal levels were much lower than reported in many previous studies.