Comparative depressive actions of barbiturates on potassium chloride uptake by intact barley and rice seedlings

Summary The comparative depressive actions of the three barbiturates, barbital, amobarbital, and secobarbital, respectively classed as long-, medium-, and short-acting barbiturates, on potassium and chloride ion uptake by intact barley and rice seedlings were investigated. Barbital exerted the least and secobarbital the most depressive action on the uptake of both potassium and chloride ions by both types of seedlings. The functioning of the Meyer-Overton principle regarding lipid solubility in relation to drug or anaesthetic potency, observed previously in germinating angiosperm seedlings and in germinating pollen grains, was also evident in this investigation.