The Effect of Phosphinothricin (Glufosinate) on Photosynthesis II. The Causes of Inhibition of Photosynthesis

It was shown in the previous study that phosphinothricin (glufosinate) causes an accumulation of ammonia and inhibition of photosynthesis. The extent to which there is a connection between these two processes is now investigated in the present study. First of all. the role of NH3 per se in the impairment of photosynthesis was to be clarified. For this purpose, the inhibition of photosyn­thesis was investigated in relation to exogenously applied ammonia in chloroplasts, protoplasts and entire leaves. The comparison with the experimental results in leaves in which the ammonia was formed endogenously (by action of phosphinothricin) shows that the ammonia toxicity at least cannot be solely resp…