ETHYLENE PRODUCTION AND POLYAMINE CONTENT OF FULLY HABITUATED SUGAR-BEET CALLI

Compared with a normal (N) auxin- and cytokinin-requiring sugarbeet ca llus, two habituated (a nonorganogenic HNO and a self-shooting HO) cal li, obtained from the same mother strain produced a very low amount of ethylene. Ethylene production by HO callus cells in the presence of 1 -aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (ACC) was increased by about 20 t imes versus 3-fold for HNO cells. The polyamine content of HNO cells w as very high compared with N cells, but that of HO was lower. The resu lts are compared with literature data on hormone autonomous lines and shooty tumors. The possible interactions between ethylene and polyamin e metabolism are also discussed.