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turn, was reflected in a progressive decrease in seed vigor. The combination of 35ºC/48 h was the most efficient for evaluating vigor in cowpea. The BR 17 Gurgueia and BRS-Guariba cultivars showed the highest values of vigor. A lack of DNA degradation in the laddering pattern on an electrophoresis gel is an indicator that DNA degradation and cell death in cowpea seeds did not occur by apoptosis but by nonprogrammed processes, such as Maillard reactions, lipid peroxidation and hydrolysis of sugars.