Further studies on the alcohol dehydrogenases in barley: Evidence for a third alcohol dehydrogenase locus and data on the effect of an alcohol dehydrogenase – 1 null mutation in homozygous and in heterozygous condition

This paper presents evidence that the alcohol dehydrogenases (ADHs) in barley are specified by three loci. Six distinct ADH isozymes are observed following native slab polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of crude extracts from flooded wild-type roots. Three of these isozymes are missing in flooded roots of plants homozygous for the Adhl-M9 mutation. The results also indicate that a simple binomial model (incorporating random dimerization and no inhibitive interaction of the two subunit species within heterodimers) is unable to account for the distribution of the total ADH activity between the ADH isozymes observed. Finally, the level and distribution of ADH activity in heterozygous (Adhl+ / Adhl-M9) flooded roots is not what would be expected if these contain only one-half of the available ADH1 protomers and the same frequency of available ADH2 and ADH3 protomers as is contained in the flooded roots of wild-type homozygotes (Adhl + / Adhl +). © 1983, Cambridge University Press. All rights reserved.