Journal article
Burning vegetation produces cyanohydrins that liberate cyanide and stimulate seed germination
Nature Communications, Vol.2(1), Article No. 360
2011
Abstract
Cyanide is well known for its toxicity towards living organisms. Many plants use cyanide as a defensive agent against herbivores, releasing it through the enzymatic hydrolysis of endogenous cyanogenic compounds. At low concentrations, cyanide has been proposed to have a regulatory role in many plant processes including stimulation of seed germination. However, no ecological role for cyanide in seed germination has been established. In the present study, we show that burning plant material produces the cyanohydrin, glyceronitrile. We also show that, in the presence of water, glyceronitrile is slowly hydrolysed to release cyanide that stimulates seed germination of a diverse range of fire-responsive species from different continents. We propose that glyceronitrile serves as an ecological store for cyanide and is an important cue for stimulating seed germination and landscape regeneration after fires.
Details
- Title
- Burning vegetation produces cyanohydrins that liberate cyanide and stimulate seed germination
- Authors/Creators
- G.R. Flematti (Author/Creator)D.J. Merritt (Author/Creator)M.J. Piggott (Author/Creator)R.D. Trengove (Author/Creator)S.M. Smith (Author/Creator)K.W. Dixon (Author/Creator)E.L. Ghisalberti (Author/Creator)
- Publication Details
- Nature Communications, Vol.2(1), Article No. 360
- Publisher
- Nature Publishing Group
- Identifiers
- 991005542834607891
- Copyright
- © 2011 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.
- Murdoch Affiliation
- School of Biological Sciences and Biotechnology
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article
UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
This output has contributed to the advancement of the following goals:
Source: InCites
Metrics
99 Record Views
InCites Highlights
These are selected metrics from InCites Benchmarking & Analytics tool, related to this output
- Collaboration types
- Domestic collaboration
- Citation topics
- 3 Agriculture, Environment & Ecology
- 3.40 Forestry
- 3.40.86 Plant Communities
- Web Of Science research areas
- Plant Sciences
- ESI research areas
- Plant & Animal Science