A method for rapid analysis of the root hydrotropic response in Arabidopsis thaliana

Abstract

The system for analyzing the hydrotropic curvature with a moisture gradient in wild-type Arabidopsis roots was modified. Optimal conditions were determined for detecting a hydrotropic curvature of 90° just after 4 h of stimulation. This system only requires 15 ml of a solution of K₂CO₃ with a density of 1.48 g·ml^-1 to generate a rapid moisture gradient inside a square Petri dish without decreasing root growth. In this, the root growth rate observed in hydrostimulated wild-type and miz1 mutant, utilized as a negative control, increases sixfold compared with those roots examined using the former method.

Keywords: Arabidopsis thaliana; hydrotropic curvature; moisture gradient.