The 2011 ASHS Annual Conference

Lysophosphatidylethanolamine (LPE) is natural lipid that has been shown to act as a signaling molecule. Recent evidence suggests that LPE can act like auxin promoting shelf life and growth of plant tissues. Using potato shoot cultures we have shown that calcium deficiency can result in shoot tip necrosis resulting in the loss of apical dominance and development of axillary shoots. In the present study we investigated the possibility of promoting root growth by including LPE in the media thus enhancing calcium uptake and mitigating calcium deficiency injury. Shoot cultures of three potato cultivars were grown in the presence and absence of 400 ppm LPE in a calcium deficient media. Shoot tip health and development of axillary shoots was recorded. Three cultivars vary in the media calcium levels for the development of calcium deficiency symptoms suggesting genetic variations for this trait; for each cultivar inclusion of LPE in the media mitigated the calcium deficiency symptoms at a specific thresh hold of media calcium concentration. For example this thresh hold of media calcium concentration was about 60 mM for the cultivar Snowden whereas for the cultivar Burbank this concentration was almost 700 ppm. Visual observations showed that root growth was promoted by including LPE in the media. Our results support the evidence that LPE can have an auxin like effect on plants.