Mitochondria-addressed cations decelerate the leaf senescence and death in Arabidopsis thaliana and increase the vegetative period and improve crop structure of the wheat Triticum aestivum.

Plastoquinone or its methylated form covalently bound to the membrane-penetrating decyltriphenylphosphonium cation (SkQ1 and SkQ3) retarded the senescence of Arabidopsis thaliana rosette leaves and their death. Dodecyltriphenylphosphonium (C(12)TPP(+)) had a similar effect. Much like SkQ1, C(12)TPP(+) prevented production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) measured by the fluorescence of 2',7'-dichlorofluorescein in mitochondria of the plant cells. SkQ1 augmented the length of the vegetation period and the common and productive tillering, improved the crop structure and the productivity of the wheat Triticum aestivum. These results indicate that the tested compounds act as antioxidants, that ROS participate in aging and death of A. thaliana leaves, and wheat tillering is increased and the crop structure is improved by SkQ1.

[Spin-lattice relaxation of water protons in plant and animal cells].

NMR-spin echo method has been used to study spin-lattice relaxation time of protons T1 in plant and animal cells - muscle tissue of fish, the cells of which unlike plant cells have no developed system of vacuoles, plastids and a solid cell wall. According to the values of T1 time a new NMR parameter K, a coefficient of relaxation effectiveness of a cell structure, has been calculated. This parameter can be used for quantitative characterization of the influence of different cell structures, the tissue water interact with, for a time of spin-lattice relaxation of water protons. It has been ascertained that the values of K coefficient in animal tissue and in storing tissues of some plants differ little; it may be stipulated by permanent transmembrane water exchange which occurs at high rate in the living cell. It has been concluded that there exists a certain similarity between water state in protoplast of plant and animal cells.

[Concerning measurements of the self-diffusion coefficient of water molecules and time of proton spin-lattice relaxation in plant tissues]. / Ob izmerenii koéffitsienta samodiffuzii molekul vody i vremen spin-reshetchatoi relaksatsii protonov v rastitel'nykh tkaniakh

Measurements of the coefficient of water molecules self-diffusion (D) and the time of spin-lattice relaxation (T1) in prosenchyme (elongated) plant cells, whose length significantly exceeding their transverse size, show that the orientation of plant tissues in the H0 field significantly affects the measured parameters. We conclude that this effect should be taken into account in experiments on the measurement of self-diffusion coefficients and time of proton spin-lattice relaxation in plant tissues containing prosenchyme cells.

[Effect of paramagnetic additives on the spin lattice relaxation of the protons of intracellular water]. / Issledovanie vliianiia paramagnitnykh primesei na spin-reshetochnuiu relaksatsiiu protonov vnutrikletochnoi vody.

Studies of the effects of Mn2+ and Fe3+ paramagnetic ions on spin-lattice relaxation of water protons in plant cells have shown that paramagnetic admixtures which are in the cells under normal conditions (in natural quantities) produce no significant effect on the rate of spin-lattice relation of water protons. On the basis of the investigations of proton, spin-lattice relaxation at increased content of Mn2+ paramagnetic ions in plant cells possible separation of relaxation times T1l and T1s which are corresponded by different water fractions in the cells is shown as well as possible stimation of water quantity in the fractions.