UBC Undergraduate Research

The effect of UV irradiation on Vigna radiata seeds’ (mung beans) germination and growth Moss, Anthony William; Kim, Jongyoon (Jimmy)

Abstract

This experiment examined the effect of UVA/UVB irradiation of Vigna radiata germination and on the growth of the radicle/hypocotyl of the seeds, thereby testing the effects of global warming and climate change on modern agriculture. The effect of UV radiation on the depletion of the ozone layer has been thoroughly examined for many decades, thus catalyzing global warming [9]. There were three treatments: control, low UVA/UVB and high UVA/UVB exposure. Germination percentage and length of the radicle data was measured over a period of 48 hours to see whether the UVA/UVB irradiation promotes or inhibits germination time and growth. In this experiment, germination was defined as the first evidence of the emergence of a radicle and the length of the radicle was measured at 12-hour time intervals. It was hypothesized that UV radiation will speed up germination but prolonged exposure will inhibit or hinder the growth of the seeds. In support of the hypothesis, the results showed that low UVB radiation does have a positive effect on the average length of a radicle. However, at high UVB, it was found that growth was inhibited.

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