Uptake pathways of fluorescent indicators by pea seed and seedlings and their potential as anti-counterfeiting labeling for plant seeds

The present study investigates the effects of seed soaking in varying concentration of rhodamine b (rb) or safranine t (st) solutions on germination and seedling growth of pea seeds. the fluorescence in pea seedling at different developmental stages was observed. the results indicate that there were no adverse effects of seed soaking in rb (0.1mg/ml) and st (0.5,0.3,0.1mg/ml) solutions on germination,seedling growth,antioxidant enzyme activities,malondialdehyde (mda) and chlorophyll contents. the seeds treated with rb showed bright red and orange fluorescence under green (546 nm) and blue (495 nm) light excitation,respectively while no red or orange color was observed in the control seeds. in addition,the vascular bundles of stem,seedling roots and aerial parts of seedlings treated with rb all emitted brilliant fluorescence for a longer time as compared with that treated with st. it can be concluded that pea seed labeled with rb by seed soaking at appropriate concentration could be used as a potential anti-counterfeiting technique in pea seeds. © 2015,pakistan botanical society. all rights reserved.