ABSTRACT

The production of nitric oxide (NO) in cotton callus tissue derived from Coker 312 has been examined in relation to salt stress and the activity of four antioxidant enzymes. A series of experiments was undertaken in which hermetically sealed jars containing cotton callus were linked together by glass tubing. The results of these experiments reveal the activity of a gaseous agent that up-regulates the activity of four antioxidant enzymes which allows salt-sensitive callus tissue to survive on media amended with 150 mM NaCl. A second series of experiments were carried out to measure the amount of NO produced by cotton callus under salt stress conditions. The results of these experiments show NO production to be higher in salt sensitive callus growing on media containing 0mM NaCl and also in salt tolerant callus acclimated to grow on media containing 150mM NaCl and subsequently transferred to media containing 250mM NaCl. NO production was reduced to about half of these values in salt sensitive callus transferred from media containing 0 mM NaCl to media containing 150mM NaCl.