Chloroplast development in low light-grown barley seedlings.

Segments of 7-d low light-grown barley laminae cut at 0.5 cm intervals up from the intercalary meristem were examined ultrastructurally and biochemically. The different regions upwards showed the succession of plastid development in light-grown tissues of eoplasts, amyloplasts, amoeboid, immature and mature plastids as described by Whatley (1977). Semi-crystalline bodies were detected in all of them. The eoplast-amyloplast regions are characterised by a greater proportion of mitochondria and high levels of ATP and 3-phosphoglyceric acid, together with low levels of inorganic phosphate conducive to the activation of ADP glucose pyrophosphorylase. The amoeboid and immature plastid regions have higher levels of inhibitory phosphate and starch breakdown may be responsible for the release of metabolites and energy for development. Segments containing amoeboid and immature plastids also have reduced levels of ATP (and 3-phosphoglyceric acid) as photosynthetic components are synthesised. Using ultrastructural assessments of areas of thylakoids, first β-carotene and violaxanthin, followed by chlorophyll a and lutein and, lastly, chlorophyll b are concentrated in the developing lamellar systems of the immature and mature chloroplasts. The formation of additional membraneous material which spreads these pigment systems over a greater thylakoid area within the plastids is the final stage of plastid morphogenesis in low light-grown seedlings.