Eco-physiological studies on Indian arid zone plants : III. Effect of sodium chloride and gibberellin on the activity on the enzymes of carbohydrate metabolism in leaves of Pennisetum typhoides.

Seedlings of Pennisetum typhoides were grown in sodium chloride (NaCl) and gibberellic acid (GA3) separately and in combination, and the effects on the activity of amylase, phosphorylase, aldolase, invertase, hexose-phosphateisomerase, sucrose-synthetase and sucrose-6-phosphate-synthetase were studied. Treatment of the seedlings with NaCl caused an inhibition of the activity of amylase and invertase in the leaf homogenate, but enhanced that of phosphorylase, aldolase, sucrose-synthetase and sucrose-6-phosphate-synthetase. GA3 alone, as observed earlier, promoted the activity of invertase but indicated no significant influence on the other enzymes tested. In combination with salt, however, GA3 tended to counteract, partially or wholly, the effect of NaCl on the activity of several enzymes tested. The possible significance of the similarities between the action of abscisic acid (ABA) and salinity in influencing growth and metabolism of plants during stress is discussed.