Gibberellic Acid and Abscisic Acid Effects on Germination Across Arabidopsis Genotypes: Confirmation of Compound Identity and Genotypic Responses

Abstract

It is well known that plant growth depends on the interaction of auxin and hormones, but whether different hormones have different effects on seed growth in different varieties is not fully understood. This study used a controlled experimental setup in which seeds from three different genotypes (assumed to be wild-type, abscisic acid (ABA) insensitive, and gibberellic acid (GA) deficient) were exposed to treatments of these compounds (labeled compounds A and B), as well as a control treatment using ethanol. Our results confirm the identities of Compound A as gibberellic acid and Compound B as abscisic acid through their consistent effects on seed germination. Gibberellic acid (Compound A) significantly enhanced germination across all genotypes. With the help of Gibberellic acid, GA-deficient genotype also showed a dramatic increase in germination rates which suggested a compensatory effect. Conversely, abscisic acid (Compound B) markedly inhibited germination, with the most pronounced effect observed in the wild-type genotype. The ABA-insensitive genotype demonstrated reduced susceptibility to Compound B, supporting its phenotypic characterization. The study highlights the key antagonistic role of gibberellic acid and abscisic acid in seed germination, providing valuable insights into defining genotypic-phenotypic interactions in plant responses to environmental and chemical signals.