Adenylate and Nicotinamide Nucleotides in Developing Wheat Grains

Water content, adenylate kinase, and mitochondria drive adenylate balance in dehydrating and imbibing seeds

“…When dry seeds were investigated, low AEC ratio values were obtained, generally in the 0.1–0.4 range, which is not surprising given that dry seeds are metabolically inactive; the AEC ratio increased rapidly during imbibition to reach the typical values of metabolically active tissues ( Brown, 1965 ; Moreland et al , 1974 ; Abernethy et al , 1977 ; Hourmant and Pradet, 1981 ; Benamar et al , 2008 ). In agreement with the values of AEC in dry seeds, a decrease in the AEC ratio has been measured during seed development ( Ching and Ching, 1972 ; Ching et al , 1974 ; Quebedeaux, 1981 ; Kumar and Singh, 1984 ). A major question that has intrigued researchers since these early observations is how such dramatic changes in energy metabolism between the active hydrated and the quiescent dehydrated states could be managed.…”