Abstract
Experiments were done to relate the presence of tannin vacuoles to plant movements. When surveyed, 4 out of 10 species exhibited rapid thigmonastic or nyctinastic movements, and only those 4 species had tannin vacuoles in their motor cells. Interestingly, plants ofAlbizzia julibrissin whose seed was obtained in New Haven, Connecticut had rapid nyctinasty and tannin vacuoles in the tertiary pulvini, whereasAlbizzia collected in Winston-Salem, North Carolina had neither. Nyctinasty ofMimosa pudica andAlbizzia NH, both of which had tannin vacuoles, was at the rate of 4.2 °/min, whereasAlbizzia WS andSamanea saman, neither of which had tannin vacuoles, exhibited leaflet closure at the rate of 2.0–2. 1 °/min. Pretreatment with the Ca2+ channel agonist Bay K-8644 increased, and with the antagonist verapamil decreased, the rate of leaflet closure only inMimosa andAlbizzia NH. Pretreatment with the Ca2+ inhibitor Erythrosin B substantially blocked reopening only inMimosa andAlbizzia NH. We conclude that tannin vacuoles assist nastic movements to be rapid by acting as a store of Ca2+ and releasing it as a second messenger upon mechanical perturbation or darkness.
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