Extraction and Quantification of Cytokinin from Ungerminated and Germinated Seeds of Sphenostylis stenocarpa (HOCHST. EX A. RICH.) Harms

Extraction and quantification of Cytokinin was carried out from ungerminated and germinated seeds of Sphenostylis stenocarpa. Cytokinin was extracted with methanol-chloroform-formic acid-water. The hormones were purified with polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) column chromatography and quantified with high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). High performance liquid chromatography analysis identified and quantified four endogenous cytokinins zeatins, trans-zeatin, isopentenyladenine, isopentenyladenosine. The ungerminated seeds of S. stenocarpa contain higher amount of zeatin, trans-zeatin, isopentenyladenine and isopentenyladenosine as compared with germinated seeds in all the hormone fractions. This study suggests that Cytokinin extracted from ungerminated and germinated seeds of S. stenocarpa could be a source of phytohormones for research and agricultural purposes.