Quantitative Assessment of Chlorophyll 'a' and 'b' in Tomato Leaves

Abstract

In studies on plant nutrition it is not enough to know how much of a particular element is present in the plant; it is also necessary to know how the element is distributed around the plant and in what chemical form the element exists. Knowing this sort of information should give us clues about the roles of the element. In her thesis on the fractionation of magnesium in tomato, Lowry worked out a system which enabled her to separate compounds of magnesium according to their solubilities in different solvent systems. She established that the magnesium levels in the various fractions differed markedly for any one tissue, and that the magnesium level of any one fraction can vary widely depending on whether the fraction was made of leaf, stem or root tissue. As a result of this work, many interesting avenues for further research have been opened up. This present project is devoted to the investigation of one such avenue.