title: Biological effect of radiation-degraded alginate on flower plants in tissue culture.
abstract: Alginate with a weight-average molecular mass (Mw) of approx. 9.04 x 10(5) Da was irradiated at 10-200 kGy in 4% (w/v) aqueous solution. The degraded alginate product was used to study its effectiveness as a growth promoter for plants in tissue culture. Alginate irradiated at 75 kGy with an Mw of approx. 1.43 x 10(4) Da had the highest positive effect in the growth of flower plants, namely limonium, lisianthus and chrysanthemum. Treatment of plants with irradiated alginate at concentrations of 30-200 mg/l increased the shoot multiplication rate from 17.5 to 40.5% compared with control. In plantlet culture, 100 mg/l irradiated alginate supplementation enhanced shoot height (9.7-23.2%), root length (9.7-39.4%) and fresh biomass (8.1-19.4%) of chrysanthemum, lisianthus and limonium compared with that of the untreated control. The survival ratios of the transferred flower plantlets treated with irradiated alginate were almost the same as the control value under greenhouse conditions. However, better growth was attained for the treated plantlets.
authors.affiliation: Graduate School of Agricultural Life Sciences, University of Tokyo, 1-1-1 Yayoi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8657, Japan.
authors.forename: Q Luan
authors.initials: QL
authors.lastname: Le
authors.forename: Q Hien
authors.initials: QH
authors.lastname: Nguyen
authors.forename: Naotsugu
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nagasawa
authors.forename: Tamikazu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kume
authors.forename: Fumio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Yoshii
authors.forename: Tomoko M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Nakanishi
mesh_terms: D000464:Alginates / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000528:radiation effects*; D002455:Cell Division / Q000502:physiology; D031202:Chrysanthemum / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism; D003470:Culture Media / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000528:radiation effects*; D046508:Culture Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D004307:Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; D035263:Flowering Tops / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development* / Q000378:metabolism*; D020723:Glucuronic Acid / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000528:radiation effects*; D006603:Hexuronic Acids / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000528:radiation effects*; D029606:Plumbaginaceae / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000464:Alginates; D003470:Culture Media; D006603:Hexuronic Acids; D020723:Glucuronic Acid