Mechanisms of hormone action: use of deuterated ethylene to measure isotopic exchange with plant material and the biological effects of deuterated ethylene.

We observed no exchange between deuterated ethylene (C(2)D(4)) and the hydrogen of pea seedlings (Pisum sativum L. cv. Alaska). This suggests that bonding forces in which exchange could readily occur are not important in the physiological action of ethylene. Deuterated ethylene was just as effective as normal ethylene in inhibiting the growth of pea root sections. These results indicate that splitting carbon to hydrogen bonds did not occur during ethylene action.