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Plants
Special Issues
Physiological Features of Seeds: From Dormancy to Germination
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Physiological Features of Seeds: From Dormancy to Germination

A special issue of Plants (ISSN 2223-7747). This special issue belongs to the section "Plant Physiology and Metabolism".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (20 October 2022) | Viewed by 3603

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Alberto Gianinetti

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Council for Agricultural Research and Economics (CREA)—Research Centre for Genomics and Bioinformatics, Via S. Protaso 302, 29017 Fiorenzuola d’Arda, PC, Italy
Interests: seed dormancy; germination; seed physiology and biology; red rice; barley and rice seed quality; barley and rice breeding
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

In their broadest meaning, seeds are the dispersal units by means of which plants ensure a new generation is produced. A seed, thus, represents the stage, in the life cycle of higher plants, at which spreading and survival predominate over other vital functions such as growth. To this aim, seeds are usually able to sustain long periods of conditions which are unfavorable for growth. Under natural conditions, to increase the probability that new plants will find an environment capable of supporting their growth, germination is usually delayed, and/or spread over time even if the immediate conditions are favorable for seedling establishment because of a development arrest (dormancy) that keeps seeds in a dormant state until the combination of an array of environmental clues induces the breaking of dormancy (finely tuned according to the eco-physiological features of each species) and germination can, then, take place.

As it regulates the occurrence of germination, seed dormancy—specifically, physiologically regulated dormancy—is important to both plant ecology and agriculture. Notwithstanding its large interest, however, the physiological factors that determine seed dormancy are not yet well understood. Plant hormones have been shown to have a role, which, however, is not specific to dormancy, as hormones are involved in any aspect of the physiology of the plants. This Special Issue, thus, welcomes studies aiming at clarifying physiological aspects of seed dormancy and the transition from dormancy to germination.

Dr. Alberto Gianinetti
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Plants is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • germination
  • seed dormancy
  • seed after-ripening
  • plant hormones
  • phytohormones metabolism and transport

Published Papers (2 papers)

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Research

12 pages, 1751 KiB  
Article
A Model for Changes in Germination Synchrony and Its Implements to Study Weed Population Dynamics: A Case Study of Brassicaceae
by Keyvan Maleki, Kourosh Maleki, Elias Soltani, Mostafa Oveisi and Jose L. Gonzalez-Andujar
Plants 2023, 12(2), 233; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants12020233 - 04 Jan 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1501
Abstract
In every agricultural system, weed seeds can be found in every cubic centimeter of soil. Weed seeds, as a valuable trait underlying the fate of weed populations, exhibit differing levels of seed dormancy, ensuring their survival under uncertain conditions. Seed dormancy is considered [...] Read more.
In every agricultural system, weed seeds can be found in every cubic centimeter of soil. Weed seeds, as a valuable trait underlying the fate of weed populations, exhibit differing levels of seed dormancy, ensuring their survival under uncertain conditions. Seed dormancy is considered as an innate mechanism that constrains germination under suitable conditions that would otherwise stimulate germination of nondormant seeds. This work provides new insight into changes in germination patterns along the dormant to nondormancy continuum in seeds with physiological dormancy. Notable findings are: (1) germination synchrony can act as a new parameter that quantitatively describes dormancy patterns and, subsequently, weed population dynamics, (2) germination synchrony is dynamic, suggesting that the more dormancy decreases, the more synchrony is obtainable, (3) after-ripening and stratification can function as a synchronizing agent that regulates germination behavior. Freshly harvested seeds of Brassica napus with type 3 of non-deep physiological dormancy showed the most synchronous germination, with a value of 3.14, while a lower level of germination asynchrony was found for newly harvested seeds of Sinapis arvensis with type 1 of non-deep physiological dormancy, with an asynchrony value of 2.25. After-ripening and stratification can act as a synchronizing factor through decreasing the asynchrony level and increasing synchrony. There is a firm relationship between seed dormancy cycling and germination synchrony patterns, ensuring their survival and reproductive strategies. By germinating in synchrony, which is accompanied by cycling mechanisms, weeds have more opportunities to persist. The synchrony model used in the present study predicts germination behavior and synchrony along the dormant to nondormancy continuum in weed seeds with physiological dormancy, suggesting a useful method for the quantification of germination strategies and weed population dynamics. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Physiological Features of Seeds: From Dormancy to Germination)
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23 pages, 1556 KiB  
Article
In Dormant Red Rice Seeds, the Inhibition of Early Seedling Growth, but Not of Germination, Requires Extracellular ABA
by Alberto Gianinetti
Plants 2022, 11(8), 1023; https://doi.org/10.3390/plants11081023 - 09 Apr 2022
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1607
Abstract
The phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA) inhibits seed germination and seedling growth and is required for the inception of dormancy. Xanthoxal (also known as xanthoxin) is the first specific biosynthetic precursor of ABA. In this study, a modified method to produce xanthoxal is described. [...] Read more.
The phytohormone abscisic acid (ABA) inhibits seed germination and seedling growth and is required for the inception of dormancy. Xanthoxal (also known as xanthoxin) is the first specific biosynthetic precursor of ABA. In this study, a modified method to produce xanthoxal is described. I tested the ability of either xanthoxal or ABA to reinstate dormancy in dormant red rice seeds whose dormancy was broken by fluridone (an inhibitor of the synthesis of carotenoids and, subsequently, ABA). Xanthoxal was shown to have a stronger inhibitory effect on germination than ABA when exogenously provided. Although this could indicate an additional effect of xanthoxal above that expected if xanthoxal were simply converted to ABA in the seed, alternative hypotheses cannot be excluded. One alternative is that exogenous xanthoxal may be trapped inside the cells to a greater extent than exogenous ABA, resulting in an intracellular level of ABA higher than that reached with a direct application of ABA. As a further alternative, exogenous xanthoxal may interfere with ABA action in the apoplast. In this study, following germination, early seedling growth was delayed only if ABA was applied. This suggests that inhibition of early seedling growth, but not of germination, requires extracellular ABA. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Physiological Features of Seeds: From Dormancy to Germination)
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