Abstract:
This paper presents a tutorial for the germination of bean seeds (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp.) in strong electrostatic fields up to 1240 V/cm. The seeds were allowed to germinate under different electric field strengths for 48 h. Although most of such germination experiments did not show any visible effect, the field strength of 945 V/cm strongly increased the seedling\'s vigor during the early growth stage. In the end, 30 % more yield was obtained from stimulated seeds when compared to the control group. This article postulates for the first time a hypothesis of the mechanism of action of the electric field during germination. In biological cells of any species, water confined between narrow surfaces can undergo a phase transition that shifts its melting point to higher temperatures when an external electric field is applied. This effect has already been known as electrofreezing, and has been confirmed by several experimental and molecular modeling studies. As a consequence, the transport kinetics of molecules across cell organelle membranes might be altered, which in turn leads to different plant properties. With emphasis on the presented method, this work reports: •An inexpensive electric circuit for the generation of strong electric fields•Instructions regarding the setup and operation of an adequate germination chamber.
摘要:
本文介绍了豆子种子发芽的教程(VignaunguiculataL.Walp。)在高达1240V/cm的强静电场中。使种子在不同电场强度下发芽48小时。尽管大多数这样的发芽实验没有显示出任何可见的效果,945V/cm的场强大大提高了幼苗生长早期的活力。最后,与对照组相比,从刺激的种子中获得了30%的产量。本文首次提出了发芽过程中电场作用机理的假设。在任何物种的生物细胞中,限制在狭窄表面之间的水可以经历相变,当施加外部电场时,将其熔点转移到更高的温度。这种效应已经被称为电冷冻,并得到了一些实验和分子建模研究的证实。因此,分子穿过细胞器膜的运输动力学可能会改变,这反过来又导致不同的植物属性。强调了所提出的方法,本工作报告:•用于产生强电场的廉价电路•关于适当发芽室的设置和操作的说明。