Changes in ATP Content of Sorghum Seeds Imbibed in Aqueous Extracts of Germination‐Inhibitory Animal‐Waste Composts

Abstract

AbstractThe changes of the ATP content in sorghum seeds imbibed in aqueous extracts of animal‐waste composts were studied to clarify the mode of action of the germination‐inhibitory composts. The seeds were imbibed in water or 1, 4 and 8 % extracts (w/v) of composts for 0, 1,2, 3, 4, 8, 16 and 24 h.ATP content in the non‐imbibed sorghum seeds was 0.182 n mol seed−1. The ATP content of seeds increased 2.6 fold during the first hour of imbibition. Statistically significant differences in the ATP content were observed between the treatments from 3 h of imbibition. The seeds imbibed in deionized water contained the highest ATP content at all imbibition durations. The ATP content decreased with the increase in concentration of the extracts. Significant linear correlations were observed between the ATP content and the increase of a‐amylase activity at 4 h (r = 0.75**), 16 h (r = 0.70*) and 24 h (r = 0.91**) of imbibition.The changes in the ATP content in seeds were observed prior to the increase of amylase activity. The reduction of ATP content is the first observable biochemical change in seeds caused by the germination‐inhibitory animal‐waste compost extracts. The ATP content of seeds could be considered as a sensitive indicator to detect the germination‐inhibitory composts.