Mode of action studies on nitrodiphenyl ether herbicides: I. Use of barley mutants to probe the role of photosynthetic electron transport.

5-[2-Chloro-4-(trifluoromethyl)phenoxy]-2-nitroacetophenone oxime-o-(acetic acid, methyl ester) (DPEI), is a potent nitrodiphenyl ether herbicide which causes rapid leaf wilting, membrane lipid peroxidation, and chlorophyll destruction in a process which is both light- and O(2)-dependent. These effects resemble those of other nitrodiphenyl ether herbicides. Unlike paraquat, the herbicidal effects of DPEI are only slightly reduced by pretreatment with the photosynthetic electron transport inhibitor 3-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-1,1-dimethylurea. DPEI is a weak inhibitor of photosynthetic electron transport (I(50) 15 micromolar for water to paraquat) in vitro, with at least one site of action at the cytochrome b(6)f complex. Ultrastructural studies and measurements of ethane formation resulting from lipid peroxidation indicate that mutants of barley lacking photosystem I (PSI) (viridis-zb(63)) or photosystem II (viridis-zd(69)) are resistant to paraquat but susceptible to DPEI. The results indicate that electron transfer through both photosystems is not essential for the toxic effects of nitrodiphenyl ether herbicides. Furthermore, the results show that neither cyclic electron transport around PSI, nor the diversion of electrons from PSI to O(2) when NADPH consumption is blocked are essential for the phytotoxicity of nitrodiphenyl ether herbicides.