Seed dispersal and seedling emergence in an old field community in central New York (USA)

Summary Seed dispersal and seedling emergence of common taxa growing in a Solidago-dominated old field in central New York (USA) were monitored from May 1982 to June 1984. Over 3.5x10⁴ seeds per m² were captured on seed traps in each of the two years, with peaks occuring in July (due to Hieracium) and in November (due to Solidago). About 4.0x10³ seedling/m² emerged beneath the intact community in each of the two years. Although seedlings emerged predominantly in the early spring, a secondary peak occurred in September and October when many seedlings of introduced grasses appeared. Two additional aspects of the reproductive biology of the major taxa were related to the seasonal timing of seed dispersal: As the date of peak seed dispersal (among taxa) became progressively later in the season, (1) the duration of dispersal increased from about one week to about one-half year, and (2) the delay between the peak of seed dispersal and the peak of seedling emergence increased from a few days to about one-half year.     

大豆花叶病毒种子传毒率测定方法的比较

用苗期症状观察和酶联免疫吸附试验(ELISA)两种方法检查了大豆种子内的大豆花叶病毒(sMV)的传毒率及带毒率,并对两种方法所得的结果进行了比较。带毒大豆种子产生的病苗,其症状主要有花叶、卷叶、叶脉束状、叶脉坏死、凸斑和单叶扭曲等类型。苗期症状观察得到的种子传毒率,与用ELISA法检查去种皮大豆种子的带毒率高度吻合,相关系数r=0.92(n=31),说明此两种方法检查种子传(带)毒率具有相同的生物学和病理学意义。 本文提出了种子“群体病毒浓度”的概念。“群体病毒浓度”=群体内病毒总量/群体内种子总数。38个处理组合和3,591粒种子逐粒用ELISA法检查表明,“群体病毒浓度”与该群体的种子传毒率呈正相关,r=0.93(n=38)。将种子群体作为一个整体用ELISA法检查的结果也证明,“群体病毒浓度”与种子传毒率呈直线相关。因此认为可以用ELISA法对种子群体直接进行测定来估计种子的传毒率。     

甜菜坏死黄脉病毒的分离提纯及其生物化学特性的研究

本研究工作中,建立了一个有效的甜菜坏死黄脉病毒的分离提纯程序,解决了该病毒粒体易于聚集难以提纯的问题,其操作要点是,(1)通过Sepharose 2B柱层析代替超离心,有效地除去一些小分子量核酸杂质;(2)经PEG再次沉淀浓缩后,调整pH至酸牲(pH3.0),使病毒充分悬浮以减少凝聚;(3)在病毒等电点(pH4.8～4.9)条件下,进一步沉淀以纯化病毒。根据病毒提取物的OD260/OD280比值,算出核酸含量约4.5％。核酸电泳出现4条带,分子量分别为:2.25×10~(?),1.8×10~(?),1.05×10~(?),0.75×10~(?)道尔顿。病毒提取物经超速离心出现4个界面,沉淀系数分别为,200.8S,165S,125.8S,100S。说明甜菜坏死黄脉病毒可能是4组分病毒粒体。病毒粒体含一蛋白亚基,分子量约为2.05±0.05×10~4道尔顿,由16种共199个氨基酸组成。     

Effect of presowing seed treatment with molybdenum and cobalt on growth,nitrogen and yield in bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.)

Summary Bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L. Cv. Burpees Stringless) seeds were subjected to two cycles of presowing soaking and drying treatments with sodium molybdate and cobalt nitrite at 1 and 5 ppm concentrations used separately and also in combination. Sodium molybdate 2 ppm and cobalt nitrite 1 ppm used singly proved better than the remaining treatments with respect to nodulation, dry matter, nitrogen and yield. Combined treatment with sodium molybdate and cobalt nitrite did not produce additive effect on any parameter studied compared to their usage alone.     

The regulation of the fatty-acid composition of the triacylglycerols in microsomal preparations from avocado mesocarp and the developing cotyledons of safflower

The utilisation of [¹⁴C]glycerol 3-phosphate and [¹⁴C]linoleoyl-CoA in the synthesis of triacylglycerol has been studied in the microsomal preparations of developing cotyledons of safflower seed. The results confirm that the glycerol backbone, which flows towards triacylglycerol from phosphatidic acid through the Kennedy pathway, can enter phosphatidylcholine from diacylglycerol. The equilibration between diacylglycerol and phosphatidylcholine offers a mechanism for the return of oleate to phosphatidylcholine for desaturation to linoleate. We have established that the oleate entering position 1 of sn-phosphatidylcholine from diacylglycerol is desaturated in situ to linoleate. The results indicate that the diacylglycerol phosphatidylcholine interconvertion coupled to the acyl exchange between acyl-CoA and position 2 of sn-phosphatidylcholine brings about the continuous enrichment of the glycerol backbone with C₁₈-polyunsaturated fatty acids and hence these enzymes are of major importance in regulating the acyl quality of the accumulating triacylglycerols. Microsomal preparations from avocado mesocarp, however, did not have detectable acyl exchange between acyl-CoA and phosphatidylcholine or diacylglycerol phosphatidylcholine interconversion despite the high activity of the enzymes of the Kennedy pathway. A scheme is presented which incorporates many of the observations on triacylglycerol synthesis and provides a working model for the regulation of acyl quality in linoleate-rich vegetable oils.Abbreviation BSA bovine serum albumin     

Gibberellins in immature seeds and dark-grown shoots of Pisum sativum

Gibberellins (GAs) A₁₇, A₁₉, A₂₀, A₂₉, A₄₄, 2OH-GA₄₄ (tentative) and GA₂₉-catabolite were identified in 21-day-old seeds of Pisum sativum cv. Alaska (tall). These GAs are qualitatively similar to those in the dwarf cultivar Progress No. 9 with the exception of GA₁₉ which does not accumulate in Progress seeds. There was no evidence for the presence of 3-hydroxylated GAs in 21 day-old Alaska seeds. Dark-grown shoots of the cultivar Alaska contein GA₁, GA₈, GA₂₀, GA₂₉, GA₈-catabolite and GA₂₉-catabolite. Dark-grown shoots of the cultivar Progress No.9 contain GA₈, GA₂₀, GA₂₉ and GA₂₉-catabolite, and the presence of GA₁ was strongly indicated. Quantitation using GAs labelled with stable isotope showed the level of GA₁ in dark-grown shoots of the two cultivars to be almost identical, whilst the levels of GA₂₀, GA₂₉ and GA₂₉-catabolite were significantly lower in Alaska than in Progress No. 9. The levels of these GAs in dark-grown shoots were 10²- to 10³-fold less than the levels in developing seeds. The 2-epimer of GA₂₉ is present in dark-grown-shoot extracts of both cultivars and is not thought to be an artefact.Abbreviations cv cultivar - GA_n gibberellin A_n - GC gas chromatography - GC-MS combined gas chromatographymass spectrometry - HPLC high-pressure liquid chromatography - KRI Kovats retention index - MeTMSi methyl ester trimethylsilyl ether     

The development and ultrastructure of the testa and tracheid bar inErythrina lysistemon Hutch. (Leguminosae: Papilionoideae)

Summary The development of the testa was studied inErythrina lysistemon using both light and electron microscopy. Cells of the outer epidermis of the outer integument divide anticlinally and undergo radial elongation to form a palisade layer. The outer tangential walls are thickened at an early stage, and deposition of fluted thickenings on the radial walls occurs at maturity. Palisade cells in the hilar region differentiate from sub-funicular tissue, and at maturity the outer ends of the cells undergo extensive deposition of secondary walls and associated lignification. The light line occurs at the junction between the outer, thickened portions of the cells and the inner, less thickened portions. An electron-translucent (suberised) cap develops in the outer tangential walls of the palisade cells at a late stage. Microtubules and dictyosomes are closely associated with the developing thickenings in palisade and tracheid bar, and the microtubules run parallel to the wall microfibrils. Differentiation of the tracheid bar coincides with final secondary wall deposition and lignification in the hilar palisade. The cells of the tracheid bar are dead at maturity, but are surrounded by sheaths of elongate parenchyma.     

The nature of inbreeding in a seed orchard of Douglas fir as shown by an efficient multilocus model

Summary The amounts of self-fertilization versus consanguineous matings (as measured by effective selfing) was estimated in a seed orchard of Douglas-fir, using progeny array data at six allozyme loci. The orchard is family structured, consisting several grafts (clones) and/or open-pollinated (o-p) progeny from each of several plus-trees. Population-wide selfing rates were found to be 7% for the o-p trees and 2% for the cloned trees. Estimates of mating system parameters for individual trees showed this difference for average outcrossing rate t (1) still largely remained when outcrossingpollen gene frequency p was not allowed to vary among trees and (2) disappeared when p was allowed to vary among trees. Under this joint t and p estimation, o-p trees showed both significant variation of t (based upon a one-way ANOVA grouped by common plus-tree) and significant regressions of p on ovule genotype (indicative of consanguineous matings); cloned trees showed neither. This higher rate of consanguineous mating for o-p trees might be explained by the larger and more variable size of o-p families in the orchard. Estimates of outcrossing rate t and outcrossingpollen gene frequency p were based upon a multilocus model which makes full use of the information in the data. The increased information it gives over observed outcross models is equivalent to adding 30–50% more loci, and it gives enough degrees of freedom to jointly estimate t and p for individual trees (individual progeny arrays) under certain conditions. In addition, inclusion of megagametophyte data nearly doubles the information about the mating system of individual trees.     

Similarities in the genomic sequence and coat protein structure of plant virsuses

The genomic sequences of several RNA plant viruses including cucumber mosaic virus, brome mosaic virus, alfalfa mosaic virus and tobacco mosaic virus have become available recently. The former two viruses are icosahedral while the latter two are bullet and rod shaped, respectively in particle morphology. The non-structural 3a proteins of cucumber mosaic virus and brome mosaic virus have an amino acid sequence homology of 35% and hence are evolutionarily related. In contrast, the coat proteins exhibit little homology, although the circular dichroism spectrum of these viruses are similar. The non-coding regions of the genome also exhibit variable but extensive homology. Comparison of the brome mosaic virus and alfalfa mosaic virus sequences reveals that they are probably related although with a much larger evolutionary distance. The polypeptide folds of the coat protein of three biologically distinct isometric plant viruses, tomato Bushy stunt virus, southern bean mosaic virus and satellite tobacco necrosis virus have been shown to display a striking resemblance. All of them consist of a topologically similar 8-standard β-Barrel. The implications of these studies to the understanding of the evolution of plant viruses will be discussed.