Intracellular localization of the active process in polar transport of auxin

Abstract

The cytoplasm of maize coleoptile cells was displaced to either the apical or basal ends of the cells by centrifuging (1750xg for 10 min) segments in which protoplasmic streaming had been stopped by pretreatment with cytochalasin B. Centrifugation toward the base of the segment promotes the subsequent basipetal transport of indole-3-acetic acid, whereas apical centrifugation dramatically inhibits this transport. Apical centrifugation neither promotes acropetal transport nor reverses the polarity of auxin transport. Experiments in which the amyloplasts were separated from the bulk of the cytoplasm indicate that the basipetal transport is independent of both the position and pressure exerted by the amyloplasts but is strongly dependent on the amount of cytoplasm at the basal end of the cells. These effects of centrifugation on auxin transport lead to the conclusion that the metabolic component of the transport is a polar secretion of auxin localized in the basal plasma membrane of each cell.