Phototropism involves a lateral gradient of growth inhibitors, not of auxin. A review

Abstract

During phototropic curvature, indolyl-3-acetic acid (IAA) remains evenly distributed in the hypocotyl of sunflower ( Helianthus annuus L.) and in the oat ( Avena sativa L.) coleoptile. At the irradiated side, growth-inhibiting substances accumulate. In sunflower, basipetal movement of a growth factor is not involved, since the top of the seedling can be covered or removed without affecting the phototropic response; this response, moreover, is independent of the rate of elongation growth. The chemical nature of the growth-inhibiting substances is only partly known. In the hypocotyl they occur in the neutral fraction: in sunflower cis-xanthoxin is one of them, in radish ( Raphanus sativus L.) cis- and trans-raphanusanins, and possibly raphanusamide, are involved. The inhibitor(s) in the oat coleoptile are acidic. During curvature, their amount remains rather constant but the distribution changes with an accumulation at the irradiated side. It is concluded that phototropic curvature is brought about by an accumulation, at the irradiated side, of growth-inhibiting substances that unilaterally reduce cell elongation even though the IAA distribution is uniform.