Tetrazolium test for assessment of seed viability of atemoya (Annona cherimola Mill. x A. squamosa L.)

• Autor(a) principal: Gimenez, Juliana Iassia [UNESP]
• Data de Publicação: 2014
• Outros Autores: Ferreira, Gisela [UNESP], Cavariani, Cláudio [UNESP]
• Tipo de documento: Artigo
• Idioma: eng
• Título da fonte: Repositório Institucional da UNESP
• Texto Completo: http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/2317-1545v36n31004; http://hdl.handle.net/11449/114441
• topic: Annonaceae; cloreto de 2,3,5 trifeniltetrazólio; teste de germinação; Annonaceae; 2,3,5 triphenyltetrazolium chloride; germination test

The study aimed to adapt the tetrazolium test to assess the viability of atemoya (Annona cherimola Mill. x A. squamosa L.) seeds. The experimental design was completely randomized in 3 x 3 factorial arrangement (tetrazolium salt concentrations x exposure times), totaling 9 treatments with four replicates of 25 seeds. After immersion in water for 24 hours, the seeds were longitudinally sectioned and exposed to three tetrazolium salt concentrations (0.05%, 0.5% and 1%) for three periods of time (2, 4 and 6 hours). The evaluations were performed according to pre-established criteria of tissue integrity and staining. The germination test was performed, using the GA 4+7 + N-(fenilmetil)-aminopurina regulators at concentrations of 0 and 300 mg.L-1, because dormancy is observed in species of the family Annonaceae. Tetrazolium salt at 1% yielded the highest percentage of viable seeds within the shortest time, while longer exposure times were necessary with concentrations of 0.05% and 0.5%. It can be concluded that the concentration of 1% of tetrazolium salt for two hours of exposure is more appropriate for assessing the viability of atemoya seeds.