Reversal by pressure of seed germination promoted by anesthetics.

Germination of Panicum capillare L. caryopses induced by solutions of ethanol and ethyl ether was prevented by application of pressure >1 MPa during the period of exposure to the anesthetic. This effect of pressure indicates that germination is correlated with expansion at a site of anesthetic action in a cell membrane. The effects of several other anesthetics were measured on germination of P. capillare seeds. Ethanol, chloroform, and ethyl ether had the highest activity. Methanol and isopropanol were inactive. The effective compounds are thought to distribute preferentially to lipid-solution interfaces in cell membranes of the seeds.