Footitt, Steven, Palleschi, Simonetta, Fazio, Eugenio, Palomba, Raffaele, Finch-Savage, William E. and Silvestroni, Leopoldo (2016) Ultra-weak photon emission from the seed coat in response to temperature and humidity - a potential mechanism for environmental signal transduction in the soil seed bank. Photochemistry and Photobiology, 92 (5). pp. 678-687. doi:10.1111/php.12616 ISSN 0031-8655.

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Abstract

Seeds beneath the soil sense the changing environment to time germination and seedling emergence with the optimum time of year for survival. Environmental signals first impact with the seed at the seed coat. To investigate whether the seed coat has a role in environmental sensing we investigated their ultra-weak photon emission (UPE) under the variable temperature, relative humidity and oxygen conditions they could experience in the soil seed bank. Using a custom built luminometer we measured UPE intensity and spectra (300-700 nm) from Phaseolus vulgaris seeds, seed coats and cotyledons. UPE was greatest from the internal surface of the seed coat. Seed coat UPE increased concomitantly with both increasing temperature and decreasing relative humidity. Emission was oxygen dependent and it was abolished by treatment with dinitrophenylhydrazine demonstrating the key role of seed coat carbonyls in the phenomenon. We hypothesize that beneath the soil surface the attenuation of light (virtual darkness: low background noise) enables seeds to exploit UPE for transducing key environmental variables in the soil (temperature, humidity and oxygen) to inform them of seasonal and local temperature patterns. Overall, seed coats were found to have potential as effective transducers of key fluctuating environmental variables in the soil.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Subjects:	Q Science > QK Botany S Agriculture > SB Plant culture
Divisions:	Faculty of Science, Engineering and Medicine > Science > Life Sciences (2010- )
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Seeds -- Physiology , Germination , Photon emission, Soil seed banks , Common bean
Journal or Publication Title:	Photochemistry and Photobiology
Publisher:	Wiley-Blackwell Publishing, Inc
ISSN:	0031-8655
Official Date:	19 August 2016
Dates:	Date Event 19 August 2016 Published 8 July 2016 Available 13 June 2016 Accepted 9 March 2016 Submitted
Volume:	92
Number:	5
Page Range:	pp. 678-687
DOI:	10.1111/php.12616
Status:	Peer Reviewed
Publication Status:	Published
Access rights to Published version:	Open Access (Creative Commons)
Date of first compliant deposit:	12 July 2016
Date of first compliant Open Access:	16 December 2016
Funder:	Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (Great Britain) (BBSRC)
Grant number:	BB/I022201/1

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