The Growth,physiological and biochemical response of foxtail millet to atrazine herbicide

Foxtail millet (Pennisetum glaucum L.) is a vital crop that is planted as food and fodder crop around the globe. There is only limited information is present for abiotic stresses on the physiological responses to atrazine. A field experiment was conducted to investigate the effects of different atrazine dosages on the growth, fluorescence and physiological parameters i.e., malonaldehyde (MDA) and reactive oxygen species (ROS) (H₂O₂ and O₂) in the leaves to know the extent of atrazine on oxidative damage of foxtail millet. Our experiment consisted of 0, 2.5, 12.5, 22.5 and 32.5 (mg/kg) of labeled atrazine doses on 2 foxtaill millet varieties. High doses of atrazine significantly enhanced ROS and MDA synthesis in the plant leaves. Enzymes activities like ascorbate peroxidase (APX) and peroxidase (POD) activities enhanced, while catalase (CAD) and superoxide dismutase (SOD) activities reduced with increasing atrazine concentrations. Finally atrazine doses at 32.5 mg/kg reduced chlorophyll contents, while chlorophyll (a/b) ratio also enhanced. Biomass, plant height, chlorophyll fluorescence parameters, minimal and maximal fluorescence (Fo, Fm), maximum and actual quantum yield, photochemical quenching coefficient, and electron transport rate are decreased with increasing atrazine doses.     

Relationships between rhizoplane and rhizosphere bacteria and verticillium wilt resistance in potato

Six cultivars and breeding lines of potato (Solanum tuberosum) differing in susceptibility to verticillium wilt caused by Verticillium dahliae were studied with respect to quantitative and qualitative differences in the bacterial flora of their soil and rhizosphere-rhizoplane. Although, no association was observed between the types of bacteria that inhabited the soil or roots of wilt resistant and susceptible cultivars, quantitative differences were evident. These differences provide the first direct evidence that potato genotypes can influence bacterial populations. Bacterial populations were 9–25-fold higher on roots than in the adjacent soil. As the plants aged, the total number of rootcolonizing bacteria increased between 15 and 245%. Pseudomonas spp. were the most abundant microbes in the soil and rhizosphere-rhizoplane. The bacteria antagonistic to V. dahliae in vitro were identified as members of the genera Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Flavobacterium, and Gluconobacter. A statistically significant trend was evident toward the association of antagonistic bacteria with the more resistant potato cultivars.     

1980s-2010s华北夏谷区主栽谷子品种SSR遗传多样性分析

通过对20世纪80年代以来具有代表性的华北夏谷区审(鉴)定的20个主栽谷子品种进行SSR标记多态性分析,研究了华北地区育成谷子品种的遗传多样性。49对引物在20个谷子品种中扩增出具有多态性的条带,共检测出142个等位变异,平均每个位点检测出的等位变异数为2.96个。标记位点多态性信息含量(PIC)变幅为0.0904～0.6896,平均为0.4168。20份材料间的遗传距离变幅为0.0173～0.9000,聚类分析将其分成3个类群,其中谷丰1号自成一类,表明谷丰1号的遗传距离较其他品种大。不同年代谷子品种间遗传距离分析结果显示,各年代品种之间的平均遗传距离由大到小依次是1980s>1990s>2000s>2010s,表明随着年代的递进育成品种的遗传差异减小,亲缘关系增近。     

Survival and life table parameters of soybean pod borer Maruca vitrata (Geyer) (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) on leguminous crop cultivars

The soybean pod borer, Maruca vitrata is one of the key insect pests of tropical legumes. It damages tender leaf axils, flower buds, flowers and pods by webbing and boring clusters of flowers and pods. In this study, we investigated the survival and life table parameters of M. vitrata on several leguminous crops; soybean (cvs. Daewon, Poongsannamool and Socheongja), azuki bean (cv. Hongeon), mung bean (cv. Sanpo), and cowpea (cv. Jangchae), compared to artificial diet to assess the antibiosis resistance to M. vitrata. The life‐variables of M. vitrata were significantly affected by the tested legume cultivars. None of the larvae fed cowpea cultivar Jangchae survived. The azuki bean cultivar Hongeon and mung bean cultivar Sanpo were found susceptible to M. vitrata, whereas cowpea cultivar Jangchae and soybean cultivar Daewon showed antibiosis resistance to M. vitrata. Further studies should examine the chemicals associated with leguminous crop cultivars and its mechanism to develop a control method against M. vitrata.     

Environmental variation shapes genetic variation in Bouteloua gracilis: Implications for restoration management of natural populations and cultivated varieties in the southwestern United States

With the increasing frequency of large‐scale restoration efforts, the need to understand the adaptive genetic structure of natural plant populations and their relation to heavily utilized cultivars is critical. Bouteloua gracilis (blue grama) is a wind‐dispersed, perennial grass consisting of several cytotypes (2n = 2×–6×) with a widespread distribution in western North America. The species is locally dominant and used regularly in restoration treatments. Using amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) and cpDNA analyses, we assessed the genetic variability and adaptive genetic structure of blue grama within and among 44 sampling sites that are representative of the species’ environmental and habitat diversity in the southwestern United States. Five cultivars were also included to investigate genetic diversity and differentiation in natural versus cultivated populations. Three main findings resulted from this study: (a) Ninety‐four polymorphic AFLP markers distinguished two population clusters defined largely by samples on and off the Colorado Plateau; (b) substructure of samples on the Colorado Plateau was indicated by genetic divergence between boundary and interior regions, and was supported by cytotype distribution and cpDNA analysis; and (c) six AFLP markers were identified as “outliers,” consistent with being under selection. These loci were significantly correlated to mean annual temperature, mean annual precipitation, precipitation of driest quarter, and precipitation of wettest quarter in natural populations, but not in cultivated samples. Marker × environment relationships were found to be largely influenced by cytotype and cultivar development. Our results demonstrate that blue grama is genetically variable, and exhibits genetic structure, which is shaped, in part, by environmental variability across the Colorado Plateau. Information from our study can be used to guide the selection of seed source populations for commercial development and long‐term conservation management of B. gracilis, which could include genetic assessments of diversity and the adaptive potential of both natural and cultivated populations for wildland restoration.     

Genotype Screening of Recipient Resources with High Regeneration and Transformation Efficiency in Chrysanthemum

Genetic transformation is one of the key steps in the molecular breeding of chrysanthemum, which relies on an optimal regeneration and transformation system. However, the regeneration system of different chrysanthemum cultivars varies, and the regeneration time of most cultivars is long. To screen cultivars with highly efficient regeneration, leaves and shoot tip thin cell layers (tTCL) from eight chrysanthemum cultivars with different flower colors and flower types were cultured on Murashige and Skoog media (MS) supplemented with 1.0–5.0 mg L⁻¹ 6-benzylaminopurine (6-BA) and 0.1–1.0 mg L⁻¹ α-naphthaleneacetic (NAA). The results showed that the most efficient regeneration media were MS + 6-BA 1.0 mg L⁻¹ + NAA 0.5 mg L⁻¹ for leaf explants and MS + 6-BA 5.0 mg L⁻¹ + NAA 0.1 mg L⁻¹ for tTCL explants. Subsequently, another 13 chrysanthemum cultivars were screened by using the media, and finally, three cultivars with high regeneration efficiency were obtained from 21 cultivars. Among these, C1 had the highest regeneration efficiency: the regeneration rate of leaf explants reached 80.0% after 42 days of culture, and the regeneration rate of tTCL explants reached 100% after 31 days of culture. Furthermore, we also established the transformation system for C1 as follows: preculturing for one day, infecting with Agrobacterium suspension (OD₆₀₀ = 0.6) for 10 min, and cultivating in the regeneration medium with 350 mg L⁻¹ carbenicillin and 10 mg L⁻¹ kanamycin, thus ultimately achieving a transformation rate of 4.0%. In this study, a new chrysanthemum cultivar with an efficient regeneration and transformation system was screened, which is beneficial to enrich the flower color of chrysanthemum transgenic plant recipients and to the functional research of flower color or type-related genes.     

Inclusion of sorghum,millet and cottonseed meal in broiler diets: a meta-analysis of effects on performance

A meta-analysis was conducted (i) to evaluate broiler response to partial or total substitution of corn by sorghum and millet and (ii) to determine the effect of soybean meal replacement by cottonseed meal in broiler diet. The database included 190 treatments from 29 experiments published from 1990 to 2013. Bird responses to an experimental diet were calculated relative to the control (Experimental−Control), and were submitted to mixed-effect models. Results showed that diets containing millet led to similar performance as the corn-based ones for all parameters, whereas sorghum-based diets decreased growth performance. No major effect of the level of substitution was observed with millet or cottonseed meal. No effect of the level of substitution of sorghum on feed intake was found; however, growth performance decreased when the level of substitution of corn by sorghum increased. Cottonseed meal was substituted to soybean meal up to 40% and found to increase feed intake while reducing growth performance. Young birds were not more sensitive to these ingredients than older birds since there was no negative effect of these ingredients on performance in the starter phase. Results obtained for sorghum pointed out the necessity to find technological improvements that will increase the utilization of these feedstuffs in broiler diet. An additional work is scheduled to validate these statistical results in vivo and to evaluate the interactions induced with the simultaneous inclusions of sorghum, millet and cottonseed meal in broiler feeding.     

Plant Growth‐promoting Fungus Penicillium oxalicum Enhances Plant Growth and Induces Resistance in Pearl Millet Against Downy Mildew Disease

Plant Growth‐promoting Fungus (PGPF) Penicillium oxalicum was isolated from rhizosphere soil of pearl millet and was tested for its ability to promote growth and induce systemic resistance in pearl millet against downy mildew disease. The fungal isolate P. oxalicum UOM PGPF 16 was identified as P. oxalicum using ITS sequencing and morphological analysis and sequence was deposited at NCBI with accession number KF150220. Pearl millet susceptible seeds were treated with three different inducers (CS, CF and LCF) of PGPF P. oxalicum and all the inducers significantly reduced the downy mildew disease and enhanced plant growth. Among the inducers tested, CS treatment recorded highest seed germination of 91% and 1427 seedling vigour followed by LCF and CF treatments. The vegetative growth parameter and NPK uptake studies under greenhouse conditions revealed that the CS treatment of P. oxalicum remarkably enhanced the parameters tested when compared to control plants. A significant disease protection of 62% and 58% against downy mildew disease was observed in plants pretreated with CS of P. oxalicum under greenhouse and field conditions, respectively. The spatio‐temporal studies revealed that inducers P. oxalicum required a minimum of 3 days for developing maximum disease resistance which was maintained thereafter. The maximum Peroxidase (POX) activity (62.7 U) was observed at 24 h in seedlings treated with CS of PGPF P. oxalicum and the activity gradually reduced at later time points after pathogen inoculation. Chitinase (CHT) activity was significantly higher in inducer treated seedlings when compared to control seedlings inoculated with pathogen after 48 h and remained constant at all time points.     

不同除草剂的田间杂草防效及对糜子生长发育的影响

筛选糜子适宜除草剂来防范农田药害,是糜子高效安全生产和改善生态环境亟待解决的关键问题。本研究以粳性糜子品种‘榆糜2号'为材料,探究22种除草剂对糜子田间杂草的防除效果及对糜子生长发育的影响。结果表明: 1)喷施土壤封闭型除草剂谷友、丁草胺、莠去津、苄嘧·丙草胺和茎叶型除草剂苯唑·二甲钠、阔世玛、藤净、陶氏·优先、阔菲后,基本无药害作用,糜子幼苗生长正常,其余除草剂均对糜子有不同程度的药害影响;2)参试的22种除草剂在糜子田中对杂草均表现出一定的防除效果,总体而言,土壤封闭型除草剂的杂草防效相对优于茎叶型除草剂,但所有参试除草剂对糜子株高、功能叶片叶绿素含量、单株穗重均造成不同程度的影响;3)与人工除草相比,参试除草剂均导致糜子产量有不同程度的下降;但与不除草对照相比,部分除草剂有明显的增产增效作用。土壤封闭型除草剂中,谷友、丁草胺、莠去津、苄嘧·丙草胺的杂草防效较好,较不除草对照增产60%以上;茎叶型除草剂中,阔世玛、苯唑·二甲钠的杂草防效较好,较不除草对照增产50%以上。因此,在糜子出苗前可用38%莠去津或44%单嘧磺隆进行土壤封闭处理,或在出苗后喷施茎叶型除草剂3.6%二磺·甲碘隆或55%苯唑·二甲钠,农田杂草防效较好,且对糜子生长发育的负面影响较小。     

谷子秸秆不同部位水浸液对3种杂草的化感作用

通过测定种子萌芽期生物学指标和盆栽苗期生理指标,研究谷子不同部位(叶片、茎秆)不同浓度(原液、10倍稀释液、50倍稀释液、100倍稀释液)浸提液对反枝苋、藜、狗尾草3种谷田恶性杂草的化感作用。结果表明: 谷子叶片、茎秆水浸提液对3种杂草均存在显著化感作用,且不同浓度浸提液化感作用存在差异,总体表现为原液有抑制作用,稀释液(10、50、100倍)有促进作用。叶片、茎秆浸提液原液处理下,反枝苋、藜、狗尾草的发芽率分别下降了63.9%、37.3%和41.7%,根长仅为对照的27.8%、37.8%和18.4%,芽长仅为对照的34.5%、27.7%和17.6%,净光合速率为对照的66.6%、89.9%和88.2%,蒸腾速率为对照的69.0%、87.5%和56.1%,原液对3种杂草的综合化感效应指数为-0.699、-0.716和-0.795,表现出较强的化感抑制作用。稀释液处理下化感促进作用随稀释倍数增加呈先上升后下降趋势,其中50倍稀释液促进作用最强,3种杂草的发芽率、根长和芽长均与对照达到差异显著水平,综合化感效应指数分别为0.261、0.217和0.165。谷田伴生杂草大量生长与谷子秸秆中化感物质淋溶有关。