Hydroxyproline Formation and Its Relation to Auxin-induced Cell Elongation in the Avena Coleoptile.

A study has been made of the effects on hydroxyproline formation of 4 factors that influence the rate of cell elongation in the Avena coleoptile; auxin, sugars, an external osmoticum, and actinomycin D. Hydroxyproline formation is increased by a combination of auxin and sucrose, but is affected to a much lesser extent by either factor alone. Its formation is inhibited by an external osmoticum but is scarcely affected by actinomycin D. The lack of correlation between the amount of hydroxyproline synthesis and the growth rate suggests that hydroxyproline formation is not involved in the actual process of wall loosening. It is suggested, instead, that if the wall is to retain its capacity for rapid extension, those hemicelluloses which are incorporated into it by intussusception rather than by apposition must be attached to a hydroxyproline-protein.