CLASS XII

UGHSS
2073
 Cytokinins
 Cytokinins are hormones that are produced in the roots,
stimulate growth and have anti-aging effects.
 Produced in roots, cytokinins travel to reach target areas, such
as the stems and leaves.
 Cytokinins have several responsibilities, including working
with auxins to stimulate growth and cell differentiation in both
stems and roots.
 Cytokinins also specifically promote growth and development
of chloroplasts, the cell organelle responsible for
photosynthesis.

MD
 Cytokinins are a group of
hormones that stimulate
cytokinesis (cell division).

 Cytokinins are produced
in roots and are
transported throughout
the plant.

 They have a variety of

effects depending on the
target organ.
A CRE1 mutant that cannot bind
cytokinins has short roots (left)
 Cytokinins (CK) promotes cell division, or
cytokinesis, in plant roots and shoots. They are
involved primarily in cell growth and differentiation,
but also affect apical dominance, axillary bud
growth, and leaf senescence. Folke Skoog
discovered their effects using coconut milk in the
1940s at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.
A unique role of Cytokinins is to produce anti-aging effects
on some plant parts. Cytokinins actually provide a younger,
healthier look in plants. Florists commonly use cytokinins to
make cut flowers look fresh for longer. By adding this
hormone to cut flowers, florists are able to slow down the
aging process, providing us with prettier flowers for longer.
MD
 In addition to stimulating
cell division, cytokinins
influence the direction of
organ development
(organogenesis).

 For example, the relative

amounts of cytokinins and
auxin determine whether
roots or shoots will
develop.
• Cytokinins also modify
apical dominance in
stems and promote
lateral bud growth.

• They also stimulate seed

germination.
Ethylene - fruit ripening gas
Ethylene is the most commercially produced organic compound
in the world and is used in many industrial applications. Ethylene
is also a gaseous plant hormone.

The hormone effects of ethylene on general plant growth were first noted in
1864 when leakage from gas street lighting systems caused stunting and
deformation of nearby plants. In 1901 Neljubow identified the active component
of the gas to be ethylene but it was not until 1934 that Gane identified that
plants could synthesize ethylene and in 1935 Crocker proposed ethylene to be
the hormone responsible for fruit ripening and senescence of vegetative tissues.

Research has since demonstrated that ethylene has an important role in many
plant development processes, including seed germination, vegetative growth,
leaf abscission, flowering, senescence and fruit ripening. Ethylene also plays a
role in response to water stress, chilling and mechanical injury.
 Ethylene
 This is a gaseous hormone
that promotes the ripening
of fruit.

 During the later stages of

fruit development,
ethylene gas fills the
intercellular air spaces
within the fruit and
stimulates its ripening by
enzymatic breakdown of
cell walls.
 How to store banana fresh for a long time?

https://fullplateliving.org/fruit-vegetable-strorage-to-stay-fresh-longer
Banana ripening in progress in the US
• Ethylene is also involved in
stimulating the production
of flowers.

• In addition, ethylene (in

combination with auxin)
inhibits the elongation of
roots, stems, and leaves and
influences leaf abscission
(the aging and dropping of
leaves).
 Abscisic Acid (ABA)
• Abscisic Acid (ABA) is a
growth inhibitor.
• It promotes stomatal
closing during drought
stress
• It also promotes leaf
senescence (aging)
when plants go
dormant for the winter.
Abscisic acid is misnamed because it was once believed to play
a role in abscission (the dropping of leaves, fruits, and
flowers), but we now know abscission is caused by ethylene.

The actual role of abscisic acid is to close the stomata, the tiny
openings in leaves that allow substances to enter and leave,
and to maintain dormancy. When a plant is stressed due to
lack of water, abscisic acid tells the stomata to close. This
prevents water loss through the stomata.

When the environment is not good for a seed to germinate,

abscisic acid signals for the dormancy period of the seed to
continue.
 How do fruits know when to fall?

Fruits, such as these peaches, do not leave their trees until it's the
right time. The seeds are mature, and the fruit is ripe. But what
tells the fruits it's time to drop? The signal that is sent through the
tree is a type of hormone.
• Deciduous plants undergo changes in preparation
for winter dormancy.

• Photosynthetic pathways in leaves shut down.

• An abscission layer of cells forms at the petiole to

seal the leaf off from the rest of the plant.

• Eventually the leaf falls.

Abscisic acid also tells the buds of plants to stay in the dormancy
stage. When conditions improve, the levels of abscisic acid drop and
the levels of gibberellins increase, signaling that is time to break
dormancy.
• Abscisic acid promotes
seed dormancy and
inhibits early
germination.
• Dormancy in these
seeds is broken by an
increase in gibberrelins
or by other In some desert species, seed dormancy
is overcome by the leaching of ABA from
mechanisms that seeds by rains.
respond to cues such as
temperature or light.