Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 16, 2026

A Seed Coat Bedding Assay to Genetically Explore In Vitro How the Endosperm Controls Seed Germination in Arabidopsis thaliana
Published on: November 9, 2013
Abscisic Acid-related changes in composition and physical state of membranes in bean leaves
1Institute of Biochemistry, Biological Research Center, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Szeged, Hungary.
Abstract:
Leaf discs of bean, maize, and wheat were incubated in the presence of either 2-(14)C mevalonic acid or methyl-(14)C choline chloride and varying concentrations of abscisic acid. Abscisic acid inhibited, dependent on concentration, the incorporation of mevalonate into free sterols and stimulated the incorporation of choline chloride into phosphatidylcholine. As a result the dpm ratio of free sterols to phosphatidylcholine decreased. Untreated bean leaf membranes exhibited phase separation temperatures at around 17 and 9°C using the TEMPO in vivo spin labelling technique. Both the upper and lower phase separation temperatures were shifted to lower temperatures in chill, or water stressed plants. Administration of abscisic acid brought about corre-sponding changes in phase behaviour of leaf membranes. It is suggested that beneficial effect of the hormone on chill tolerance of plants manifests itself, at least partially, thorough the modification of the physical state of membranes.
Related Concept Videos
Adaptations that Reduce Water Loss
Responses to Heat and Cold Stress
Membrane Fluidity
Assembly of the Lipid Bilayer in the ER
A large chunk of any biological membrane is composed of phospholipids. These lipids have a heterogeneous distribution across different subcellular organelles and even between...
Seed Structure and Early Development of the Sporophyte
C4 Pathway and CAM
C4 Pathway
The C4 pathway is used by plants such as...

