pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov

Glass Formation and Desiccation Tolerance in Seeds

Abstract

The formation of intracellular glass may help protect embryos from damage due to desiccation. Soluble sugars similar to those found in desiccation tolerant embryos were studied with differential scanning calorimetry. Those sugars from desiccation tolerant embryos can form glasses at ambient temperatures, whereas those from embryos that do not tolerate desiccation only form glasses at subzero temperatures. It is concluded that tolerant embryo cells probably contain sugar glasses at storage temperatures and water contents, but intolerant embryo cells probably do not.

302

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Crowe J. H., Crowe L. M., Carpenter J. F., Rudolph A. S., Wistrom C. A., Spargo B. J., Anchordoguy T. J. Interactions of sugars with membranes. Biochim Biophys Acta. 1988 Jun 9;947(2):367–384. doi: 10.1016/0304-4157(88)90015-9. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Koster K. L., Leopold A. C. Sugars and desiccation tolerance in seeds. Plant Physiol. 1988 Nov;88(3):829–832. doi: 10.1104/pp.88.3.829. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Luyet B., Rasmussen D. Study by differential thermal analysis of the temperatures of instability of rapidly cooled solutions of glycerol, ethylene glycol, sucrose and glucose. Biodynamica. 1968;10(210):167–191. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Williams R. J., Leopold A. C. The glassy state in corn embryos. Plant Physiol. 1989 Mar;89(3):977–981. doi: 10.1104/pp.89.3.977. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]