doiSerbia

Ageing-induced changes of reduced and oxidized glutathione in fragments of maize seedlings

Dragićević Vesna D. (Maize Research Institute 'Zemun Polje', 11185 Belgrade-Zemun, Slobodana Bajića 1)
Sredojević Slobodanka (Maize Research Institute 'Zemun Polje', 11185 Belgrade-Zemun, Slobodana Bajića 1)
Spasić Mihajlo B. (Institute for Biological Research 'Siniša Stanković', 11000 Belgrade, 29. Novembra 142)
Vrvić Miroslav M. (Faculty of Chemistry, University of Belgrade, 11001 Belgrade, Studentski trg 16, P. O. Box 158, Serbia and Montenegro)

A trial with four maize inbred lines with the ability to have different durations of seed germination in the course of the accelerated ageing (AA) treatment was set up. Changes of the content of total, reduced and oxidized glutathione (expressed as monomers) were observed in the seeds and seedlings before and after the treatment. For the first time, changes of glutathione in whole seedlings, as well as in the rest of the seed, were analyzed. It was noticed that maize in breds with a smaller decrease of the total glutathione but with an increase of the oxidized form had the ability of prolonged germination. In the control seed- lings, the amount of total glutathione was lower than in the treated ones. Maize seeds which lost germination faster had greater losses of total glutathione with an increased content of the oxidized form in seedlings. The ability of prolonged germination together with the possibility of glutathione synthesis in seedlings are genotypic traits.

Keywords: ageing, maize seedling, reduced and oxidised gluthatione