PEROXIDASE ISOZYMES IN MATURE BARLEY KERNELS

Fourteen cationic peroxidase isozymes were detected in mature barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) kernels using polyacrylamide slabs for disc electrophoresis at pH 4.75. The actual number of isozymes detected on electrophoretograms of a particular barley cultivar was dependent on the hydrogen donor used for staining the peroxidase isozymes. In this respect, 3-amino-9-ethyl carbazole and o-dianisidine were superior to guaiacol, catechol, and benzidine as donors for differentiating the isozymes. Barley cultivars were classified into three categories based on varietal differences of peroxidase isozyme patterns. Evidence is presented to suggest that peroxidase isozymes may be useful genetic markers in cereal breeding work, but the results were not sufficiently detailed to present a hypothesis on the mode of inheritance of the different isozymes.