ABSTRACT
Longitudinal sections of barley kernels at different stages of germination were examined by scanning electron microscopy. Degradation of the protein matrix, endosperm cell walls and starch granules started in the ventral crease region of the endosperm-embryo junction and moved along this junction to the dorsal edge. After 72 hr of germination at 18°C there was a narrow band of highly degraded starch granules along the endosperm-embryo junction but only limited degradation was detected under the aleurone. Protein and cell wall degradation had progressed much further into the endosperm.
