Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 June 2017
The influence of sublethal levels of a number of herbicides and plant growth regulators on the germinability of the seeds and the growth and development of seedlings of mouseearcress [Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. ♯ ARBTH] was determined. Only 7 of the 22 chemicals tested had a persistent effect on progeny. Amitrole (3-amino-s-triazole) was one of the most effective compounds. It caused a characteristic bleaching only in shoot tips and pods in parent plants and appeared to act directly on the progeny by accumulation in the seed. Two auxin transport inhibitors, TIBA (2,3,5-triiodobenzoic acid) and CPII (5-O-carboxyphenyl-3-phenylisoxazole), and four of the six photosynthetic electron transport inhibitors included in the study also affected progeny. They appeared to act indirectly by interfering with seed development.