Free proline changes in Pinus taeda L. callus in response to drought stress.

The amino acid, proline (PRO), may have an important role in plant adaptation to drought stress. To study the effect of drought stress on PRO content of pine tissues, we measured free PRO by high pressure liquid chromatography in control ( -0.4 MPa) and drought-stressed ( -0.8, -1.0, -1.3, -1.6 MPa) callus tissue of Pinus taeda L. after eight weeks of growth. Drought stress was induced by adding polyethylene glycol (PEG) to the nutrient media. The relation between PRO accumulation and water potential was influenced by composition of the medium and temperature. Callus growing in media with water potentials of -0.8 MPa showed no increase in PRO compared to control callus in media at -0.4 MPa. When callus tissue was subjected to low water potentials (-1.6 MPa), endogenous PRO concentration increased 40-fold, while callus fresh weight decreased by more than 90%. When exogenous PRO was added to the nutrient media, endogenous PRO was directly proportional to the exogenous PRO concentration rather than reduction in callus growth. Thus low water potential in callus results in endogenous PRO accumulation and large reductions in callus fresh weight growth. Proline accumulation in pine cells appears to be related to mechanisms associated with tolerance to desiccation.