PRUITT, PAUL. No Institution, 107 Bloomingdale Ave.--Apt. 212, Wayne, PA 19087. - A Simple Unified Theory of Plant Hormones.
In this poster, I will show how many questions of plant physiology can
be simply explained. Auxin is seen as made when there are good shoot
growing conditions: when any cell is receiving a good supply of sugar,
CO2, and O2. Conversely gibberellin (GA) is seen as made in cells
under poor shoot conditions: the scarcity of a supply of sugar, CO2,
and O2. Cytokinin is seen as made under good root conditions: a good
supply of water and minerals. Conversely abscisic acid is seen as made
under bad root conditions: a scarcity of water and minerals. Ethylene,
as is well accepted, is seen as being made under overall stress
conditions. Conversely, I add that brassinosteroid is made under good
overall non-stressful conditions. I postulate that positive feedback
loops exist which are responsible for both apical dominances and
senscence. It has been shown that IAA induces the attraction of all
nutrients and hormones, and I postulate that this causes apical
dominance. The effect is produced because a bud experiencing
excellent growing conditions, will start attracting nutrients and, as
mentioned above, this will induce more auxin production, which will
induce more nutrient uptake etc. One bud soon dominates this
competition, but is kept from starving the rest of the plant of all
nutrients because the nutrients follow the "auxin train" down the
phloem to the roots. Also ABA, GA, an ethylene induced in secondary
buds by their nutrient starvation, may "back" inhibit the auxin
production. I believe plants using cytokinin in a similar process,
induce apical dominance in the roots. I postulate a positive feedback
loop also exists for senescence, because ABA, GA and or ethylene, push
nutrients out of cells and the more nutrients pushed out, the more
ABA, GA, and ethylene are made. My full paper can be seen at
http://www.op.net/~socrtwo/plants.htm.
Key words: Plant Hormone Theory, auxin, cytokinin, ehtylene, abscisic acid, gibberellin