Abstract:The ovules of Nicotiana tabacum var. macrophylla 8 days after pollination were fixed successively with 2% EDC (1-ethyl-3-(3-dimethyl-aminopropyl) carbodiimide) and a mixture solution of paraformaldehyde and glutaraldehyde, then slightly postfixed in 0.5 % osmium solution. UI- trathin sections of 6-, 9- or 12- celled proembryos embedded in Epon 812 resin were stained in an anti-GA MAb and sheep anti-mouse IgG-colloidal gold (10 nm). This MAb specifically recognizes methyl esters of GA7 and GAn. Therefore, it could be used as a probe to localize GA7 and GAn in cells after EDC fixation. The 12-celled proembryo is composed of a 9-celled embryo and a 3-celled suspensor. Wide distribution of GA7 and GAn was observed in all proembryo cells and most organelles at subeellular level, including walls, plasmodesmata, plasma membrane, cytoplasmic matrix, mitochondria, plastids, vacuoles, endoplasmic reticulum and nuclei. Clusters of gold granules were found in nuclear envelope, nucleomatrix, nucleolus, chromosome, cytoplamic matrix. In a region composed of cytoplasmic matrix, a vacuole and a mitochondrium, such concentrated gold granules were particularly obviously observed. There appeared a gradient distribution of GA7 and Gan from embryo cells decreasingly to suspensor cells. GA7 and GAn could be translocated via intercellular walls, plasmodesmata and vesicles between embryo and suspensor. 1he authors suspect the direction of GA translocation in proembryo may be from suspensor to embryo. To author‘s knowledge, this is the first report to indicate subcellular and gradient distributions of bioactive gibberellins in plant proembryos.