VIEW ARTICLE

Respiration of Pea Seeds (Pisum sativum) Infected with Aspergillus ruber. Gary E. Harman, Assistant Professor, Department of Seed Investigations, New York State Agricultural Experiment Station, Geneva 14456; Robert E. Drury, Research Associate, Department of Seed Investigations, New York State Agricultural Experiment Station, Geneva 14456. Phytopathology 63:1040-1044. Accepted for publication 10 February 1973. DOI: 10.1094/Phyto-63-1040.

Respiration of testae, and probably of cotyledons, of unimbibed peas (Pisum sativum) infected with Aspergillus ruber, was primarily fungal. Respiration of embryonic root-shoot axes from infected peas was correlated with activity of pea mitochondria and decreased as early as sporulation was detected. Respiration of axes from infected peas increased much less than respiration of axes from noninfected peas after imbibition. Mitochondria isolated from axes of infected peas were much less active than mitochondria isolated from axes of comparable noninfected peas. This evidence for mitochondrial dysfunction suggests that damage to host mitochondria induced by A. ruber may play a role in deterioration of infected pea seeds.