Abstract
Plants adopt several strategies to acquire phosphorus (P) under P deficient conditions. Exudation of organic acids and synthesis of certain enzymes involved in the solubilization of bound P in the soil are among the important strategies. We investigated the involvement of organic acids and acid phosphatase in acquiring P under deficient conditions. In our earlier experiments we classified Pigeon pea genotypes, as high and low P uptake types based on root dry weight and P content of the leaves. Here we report that the root exudates of high P uptake genotypes had higher organic acids, indicated by higher P solubilization capacity of these genotypes. Further, the acid phosphatase activity was also higher in these genotypes under P deficient conditions compared to low P uptake types. There was an inverse relationship between root P content, P solubilisation capacity and root acid phosphatase activity. Differences in P uptake are attributed to root characteristics and altered plant metabolism to cope with P stress. We also report here a novel technique for the measurement of root surface area using nitrite assay method.
Published Version
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