UTILISATION OF SOLUBLE CARBOHYDRATES DURING SORGHUM GERMINATION AND SEEDLING GROWTH

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Abstract
Sucrose, raffinose, glucose and fructose levels were determined in the scutellum of intact and excised sorghum seedling during growth. In the scutellum of the intact grain embryo, sucrose and raffinose levels declined sharply over the germination phase but increased at post-germination (i.e. root emergence) as hexose sugars from the modifying endosperm passed into the scutellum. Although sucrose and raffinose also declined in the germinating excised embryo scutellum, the former recovered at post-germination while the latter remained low. Maltose, maltotriose and glucose were the main products of the enzymic modification of the endosperm during seedling development, which is a post-germination event. The growing axis of the embryo, with its higher invertase activity showed greater capacity for sucrose metabolism than the scutellum.