Application of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Methods to Plant Tissues

This chapter discusses the practical details of implementing the methods and the principles of compartmental analysis in plant tissues by nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR). The high-resolution multinuclear NMR methods, and to a lesser extent, the low-resolution1H NMR method are the most suitable NMR techniques for studying plant tissues at the cellular and subcellular levels. NMR spectra are observed by placing the sample in a strong, homogeneous magnetic field, and applying pulses of radiofrequency power to induce transitions between the nuclear magnetic energy levels. Assigning resonances to individual compartments increases the potential usefulness of NMR as a noninvasive technique for studying plant cell metabolism. It makes it possible, in suitable cases, to study the subcellular composition of plant cells, to monitor metabolic processes that occur in particular organelles, and to assess the roles of particular membranes in such processes in functioning tissues. © 1987, Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.