Intrinsic factors controlling growth under sink limited conditions

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Growth in plants is either limited by source activity (carbon fixation) or by the capacity of the sinks to use or store carbon. We still do not know exactly what limits growth in major sinks such as storage organs. In spring ephemerals, storage organ growth is mostly determined by cell size rather than by cell number, and these organs get larger when plants are grown at lower temperatures. We want to test the role plays by endoreduplication in determining cell size in these organs. The level of endoreduplication can be monitored by quantifying cell DNA content using flow cytometry. We will determine when endoreduplication takes place and how it is influenced by growth temperatures in different spring ephemerals and a few temperate storage crops such as beet and potato. We will then try to modulate the number of endoreduplication cycles by applying metabolites and phytohormones known to influence the cell cycle.