Occurrence of plant growth regulators in Psilotum nudum

The endogenous content of the auxin indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), the cytokinins trans-zeatin (tZ), trans-zeatin riboside (tZR), dihydrozeatin (DHZ), dihydrozeatin riboside (DHZR), isopentenyladenine (iP) and isopentenyladenosine (iPR), the gibberellins GA 1 , GA 3 , GA 4 , GA 7 , GA 9 and GA 20 in the rhizome and aerial shoots during and after sporogenesis were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry in the fern Psilotum nudum . The present study shows, for the first time, the presence of the auxin IAA, the cytokinins tZR, DHZR and iP, and the gibberellins GA 4 , GA 9 and GA 20 in the rhizome and aerial shoots of this species and suggests a possible role of gibberellins in the evolution of ferns.