Sodium absorption by barley roots: its mediation by mechanism 2 of alkali cation transport

Abstract

When barley roots absorb Na(+) at concentrations ranging from 1 to 50 mm, in the presence of low concentrations of Ca(2+) and K(+), absorption of Na(+) is mediated by carrier mechanism 2 of alkali cation transport, mechanism 1 being unavailable for Na(+) transport under these conditions. The absorption isotherm depicting the rate of Na(+) absorption as a function of the external Na(+) concentration, over the 1 to 50 mm range of concentrations, shows several inflections. This stepwise response occurs whether Cl(-) or SO(4) (2-) is the counterion, but actual rates of Na(+) absorption are lower in the latter case.When the concentration of Na(+) is 50 mm, and the concentration of either K(+) or Ca(2+) is increased from nil to 50 mm, the rate of absorption of Na(+) is diminished not as a smooth function of increasing concentrations of the interfering ions but stepwise. Similarly, when the concentration of K(+) is 50 mm, and the concentration of either Na(+) or Ca(2+) is increased from nil to 50 mm, the rate of absorption of K(+) is diminished not as a smooth function of increasing concentrations of the interfering ions but stepwise.Together, this evidence supports the previous conclusion to the effect that mechanism 2 of alkali cation transport possesses a spectrum of carrier sites with different ionic affinities.When both K(+) and Na(+) are presented at equivalent concentrations over the 1 to 50 mm range, mechanism 2 transports Na(+) almost exclusively, and mechanism 1 K(+) almost exclusively. These findings support previous conclusions to the effect that the active sites of mechanism 2 have higher affinity for Na(+) than for K(+), whereas the reverse is true for mechanism 1.