Energy status and its control on embryogenesis of legumes: ATP distribution within Vicia faba embryos is developmentally regulated and correlated with photosynthetic capacity

To analyse the energy status of Vicia faba embryos in relation to differentiation processes, we measured ATP concentrations directly in cryosections using a quantitative bioluminescence-based imaging technique. This method provides a quantitative picture of the ATP distribution close to the in vivo situation. ATP concentrations were always highest within the axis. In pre-storage cotyledons, the level was low, but it increased strongly in the course of further development, starting from the abaxial region of cotyledons and moving towards the interior. Greening pattern, chlorophyll distribution and photosynthetic O2 production within embryos temporally and spatially corresponded to the ATP di…