EFFECT OF WATER DEFICIT ON THYLAKOID MEMBRANE OF TWO WHEAT CULTIVARS

摘要

The responses of crop plants to drought stress are a serious problem and the important selective factor in evolution of plants, which influence their growth and development. To cope with these external stresses, plants fulfill numerous morphological,physiological and metabolic answers. Of crucial importance in desiccation-tolerant plants are the physical properties of the photosynthetic apparatus, which is very sensitive and liable to injury. Membrane proteins are particularly important for the functionality of the photosynthetic apparatus. The function of membrane proteins are influenced by the lipid matrix In which they are embedded, and changes in the physical properties of bulk membrane lipids can alter the behavior of membrane protein complexes. The adaptation shown by many plants to drought could be due to changes in membrane composition and phase behavior, which optimizes the fluidity and directly connected with protein system of membranes which answers stress essential qualitative and quantitative reorganizations (Quartacci et al 3995, Navari-Izzo et al 2000). Among crop plants, durum wheat (Triticum durum L.), which is often grown in water-limited conditions, is an attractive study system because of the natural genetic variations in traits related to drought tolerance (Labhilili et al 1995). A better understanding of the mechanisms that enable plants to adapt to water deficit and maintain growth and productivity during drought periods will ultimately help in the selection of drought-tolerant cultivates.