Production and Analysis of Tobacco Transgenic Plants Expressing the Agrobacterial Gene for Tryptophan Monooxygenase

The expression of the agrobacterial iaaM gene for tryptophan monooxygenase, the enzyme catalyzing the first step in the auxin biosynthesis, induced substantial physiological and biochemical changes in transgenic tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) plants. All lines of transgenic plants grown in vitro manifested abnormal phenotypes: enhanced root formation, adventitious roots on stems, and curled leaves. When grown in vivo, plants manifested abnormal, normal, or intermediate phenotype. Under conditions of a greenhouse, the abnormal plants contained the highest amount of auxins in their leaves and manifested an increased number of adventitious roots, poor reproductivity, and the loss in seed germination. Transgenic plants with the normal phenotype did not substantially differ from the wild-type plants in their morphology, and their auxin content was lower than in the abnormal plants. The intermediate-phenotype plants were devoid of some morphological properties characteristic of the abnormal plants. Only the seeds of normal- and intermediate-phenotype transgenic plants germinated at a high rate.     

'Vitrified' Dianthus--Teratomata in vitro due to Growth Factor Imbalance

Cultured shoot tips of Dianthus caryophyllus often develop asabnormal, ‘vitrified’ plants that have the characteristicsof teratomata: stable, unlimited development with fasciatedshoot apices, a bush habit, reduced stem elongation and succulentleaves. High concentrations of NAA in the culture medium increasedand benzylaminopurine decreased the proportion of shoot-tipsthat developed as abnormal plants. The requirements of abnormaland normal plants for continued development differed. Duringthe initial stages of development abnormal plants did not requireauxin and they were able to continue their growth in the absenceof roots. It is suggested that the abnormal plants are teratomata,similar to those induced by Crown Gall bacteria, and their inductionand abnormal traits could be due to imbalance of auxins andcytokinins. Dianthus caryophyllus L., carnation, abnormal plant growth, habituation, vitrification, teratoma (plant)     

The Phytocommtunity and the Relations of the Element Contents Between Plants and Soils at Qing Chengzi Mining Area of Liaoning Province

The types of plant community and the floristic compositions in the leadzine abnormal and normal areas identified by geochemical exploration are basieally similar. According to the chemical analysis the contents of Pb, Zn, Cu, Cd of plants and soils in abnormal areas are higher than in normal areas. The absorption coeffieients of heavy metal elements by plants change with various chemical element, in the order of Cd>Zn, Cu>Pb. The results of the correlation analysis showed that the linear relationship between the contents of Pb, Zn in plant communities and in soil are singnifieant. There is a considerable linear correlation of Pb, Zn, Cu, Cd in soil and in Carex callitrichos, Sangnisorba officinalis, Polyoinum lopothitolium, Spirea pubescens, respectively. A close correlation presented in the contents of Pb, Zn, Cu, Cd between Carex callitrichos and soils. The multiple correlation coefficient is 0.999 (N=8, P<0.01). It may be suggested that Carex callitrichos can indicat the contents of Pb, Zn in soils.     

The rice RAD51C gene is required for the meiosis of both female and male gametocytes and the DNA repair of somatic cells

The RecA/RAD51 family of rice (Oryza sativa) consists of at least 13 members. However, the functions of most of these members are unknown. Here the functional characterization of one member of this family, RAD51C, is reported. Knockout (KO) of RAD51C resulted in both female and male sterility in rice. Transferring RAD51C to the RAD51C-KO line restored fertility. Cytological analyses showed that the sterility of RAD51C-KO plants was associated with abnormal early meiotic processes in both megasporocytes and pollen mother cells (PMCs). PMCs had an absence of normal pachytene chromosomes and had abnormal chromosome fragments. The RAD51C-KO line showed no obvious difference from wild-type plants in mitosis in the anther wall cells, which was consistent with the observation that the RAD51C-KO line did not have obviously abnormal morphology during vegetative development. However, the RAD51C-KO line was sensitive to different DNA-damaging agents. These results suggest that RAD51C is essential for reproductive development by regulating meiosis as well as for DNA damage repair in somatic cells.     

Failure of sexual reproduction found in micropropagated critically endangered plants prior to reintroduction: a cautionary tale

Micropropagation is a useful technique for ex situ multiplication and restoration of critically endangered plant species, but the sexual reproductive behaviour of micropropagated plants is seldom evaluated prior to reintroduction. We examined the critically endangered species Rulingia sp. ‘Trigwell Bridge’, with only three remaining plants known in the wild, as a model case to examine this issue. Abnormalities in micropropagated plants of this species related to four floral traits (lengths of sepals, petals and anthers and width of anthers). The number of pollen grains per flower of abnormal individuals was lower than in plants with apparently normal flowers (wild types), but not significantly so (P = 0.068). Pollen viability for the abnormal plant (0.87 ± 0.26%) was significantly lower than for the plants exhibiting wild‐type floral morphology (45.42 ± 4.47%). Experimental manipulations were used to examine the mating behaviour of normal and abnormal plants. The results showed that both male and female reproductive failure was linked to individuals exhibiting abnormal flowering attributes. Such aberrant reproductive performance in a micropropagated rare species predicates caution when using micropropagated plants in reintroduction programmes, highlighting the importance of screening for reproductive normality prior to release of micropropagated plants (especially for critically endangered species where reliance on in vitro propagation methods is often a necessity). © 2011 The Linnean Society of London, Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society, 2011, 165 , 278–284.     

Effects of Light on the Growth and Development of the Liverwort, Sphaerocarpos donnellii Aust

Fragments of thalli of the liverwort, Sphaerocarpos donnellii Aust., inoculated into liquid medium containing sucrose and mineral salts, attain a much greater dry weight after 9 days growth in continuous white light than in darkness. Light causes this difference by increasing the rate of growth of the plants. This growth response is mediated by the pigment systems of photosynthesis and phytochrome. An inhibitor of photosynthesis, DCMU, at concentrations which inhibit light-mediated CO₂ fixation, decreases the growth rate of light-grown but not dark-grown plants. Light still slightly increases the growth rate of plants in the presence of DCMU. This latter response is mediated by phytochrome, since it can be effected by a 2 minute exposure to low intensity red light every 12 hours, and far-red light reverses the effect of red. The increased growth rate effected by red light is related to a change in the morphology of the plants. Dark-grown plants form compact balls of tissue consisting of lobes. These lobes are rounded and thick and exhibit an abnormal callus-type growth, with few well-defined meristematic regions. Plants grown in red light form fluffy balls of tissue. The lobes of these plants have a morphology more typical of Sphaerocarpos in nature. They are 2 cell layers thick, flattened, and have numerous well-defined meristematic areas. The greater number of meristems allows for the increased growth rate of the plants grown in red light.     

致瘿昆虫对寄主植物生理和代谢的影响

虫瘿是致瘿昆虫刺激植物后诱导形成的畸形结构,是研究植物与昆虫协同进化的理想材料,同时致瘿昆虫通常还是重要的农林害虫.因此,研究致瘿昆虫对寄主植物的影响,一方面可进一步揭示致瘿昆虫与植物的关系,有助于揭示成瘿植物生长的一般过程;另一方面,了解成瘿植物对致瘿昆虫的响应有助于筛选植物抗性指标、抗性基因、敏感基因等,为抗性育种...     

Stable progeny production of the amphidiploid resynthesized Brassica napus cv. Hanakkori, a newly bred vegetable

Resynthesized Brassica napus cv. Hanakkori (AACC, 2n?=?38) was produced by cross-hybridization between B. rapa (AA, 2n?=?20) and B. oleracea (CC, 2n?=?18) as a new vegetative crop. Many studies have provided evidences for the instability and close relationship between A and C genome in the resynthesized B. napus cultivars. In fact, seed produced to obtain progeny in Hanakkori had unstable morphological characters and generated many off-type plants. In this study, we investigated the pollen fertility, chromosome number, structure, and behavior linked to various Hanakkori phenotypes to define factors of unstable phenotypic expression in the progeny. Hanakkori phenotypes were categorized into five types. The results of pollen fertility, chromosome number, and fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis for somatic mitosis cells indicated that the off-type plants had lower pollen fertility, aberrant chromosome number, and structures with small chromosome fragments. Observation of chromosomes at meiosis showed that the meiotic division in off-type plants led to appreciably higher abnormalities than in on-type plants. However, polyvalent chromosomes were observed frequently in both on- and off-type plants in diplotene stage of meiosis. We assume that the unstable morphological characters in resynthesized progeny were the result of abnormal division in meiosis. It results as important that the plants of normal phenotype, chromosome structure and minimized abnormal meiosis are selected to stabilize progeny.     

化学药剂诱导玉米孤雌生殖植株的细胞遗传学研究

对化学药剂诱导玉米孤雌生殖获得的植株的染色体组成及其稳定性进行了研究。试验用2％二甲基亚砜(DMSO)+0.1％秋水仙碱;40％ppm马来酰胼(MH)+0.1％秋水仙碱;40ppm MH+2％ DMSO三种处理,共获得130粒孤雌生殖种子。本文对孤雌生殖种子的植株及后代进行了细胞遗传学分析、讨论。试验分析了145株孤雌生殖植株和对照植株的根尖细胞,和其中的88株的花粉母细胞。有半数以上植株的根尖细胞为混倍体,但除1株外,其余的混倍体植株的花粉母细胞均为二倍体。这一异常植株的花粉母细胞仍为混倍体,其子代中有二倍体和各种非整倍体植株。这一结果表明,用这种方法不仅能获得二倍体纯系,而且还可以获得非整倍体。     

Alkaloid production by plants regenerated from cultured cells of Datura innoxia

Cellular aggregates in Datura innoxia suspension cultures give rise to large numbers of shoots when such aggregates are cultured in the light on an auxin-free agar medium supplemented with kinetin. These shoots form roots on a kinetin-free medium to develop into complete plants. Most of the regenerated plants are diploid, and the frequencies of ancuploid or polyploid plants are much lower than might be expected from the distribution of chromosome number in the cultured cells. During root ditterentiation and plant development, scopolamine synthesis is initiated and there is a progressive increase in the alkaloid content. Consequently, the general pattern of alkaloid composition is restored to a normal state in the majority of the regenerated plants including aneuploid or polyploids. Nevertheless, some of the plants show an abnormal expression in alkaloid metabolism, such as the complete hydrolysis of scopolamine in the dried leaves.     

A subtilisin-like serine protease is required for epidermal surface formation in Arabidopsis embryos and juvenile plants.

The surfaces of land plants are covered with a cuticle that is essential for retention of water. Epidermal surfaces of Arabidopsis thaliana embryos and juvenile plants that were homozygous for abnormal leaf shape1 (ale1) mutations were defective, resulting in excessive water loss and organ fusion in young plants. In ale1 embryos, the cuticle was rudimentary and remnants of the endosperm remained attached to developing embryos. Juvenile plants had a similar abnormal cuticle. The ALE1 gene was isolated using a transposon-tagged allele ale1-1. The predicted ALE1 amino acid sequence was homologous to those of subtilisin-like serine proteases. The ALE1 gene was found to be expressed within certain endosperm cells adjacent to the embryo and within the young embryo. Expression was not detected after germination. Our results suggest that the putative protease ALE1 affects the formation of cuticle on embryos and juvenile plants and that an appropriate cuticle is required for separation of the endosperm from the embryo and for prevention of organ fusion.     

Morphogenesis of the Stamenless-2 Mutant in Tomato: III. RELATIVE LEVELS OF GIBBERELLINS IN THE NORMAL AND MUTANT PLANTS

Tomato plants of a single-gene recessive mutant, stamenless-2(sl₂/sl₂), bear abnormal stamens but produce near-normal flowersfollowing application of gibberellic acid. Data presented hereshow that mutant plants have lower levels of extractable gibberellin-likesubstances in vegetative as well as floral parts compared withnormal ones. The significance of these observations in relationto gene-controlled stamen form, and sexuality of plants is discussed.     

拟南芥叶边缘锯齿状突变体的分离与鉴定

叶的极性建立直接决定叶的平展性发育,极性改变导致叶形态异常,影响植物体的各种正常生理活动。利用反向遗传学方法,从拟南芥基因激活标签突变体库中分离到一个叶片边缘锯齿状表型的突变体（命名为pCB1294）,该突变体同时表现出叶表皮腺毛形态发育异常。通过TailPCR方法成功定位突变基因为At5g41663,该基因编码miR319b基因。Real time PCR显示,pCB1294突变体植株中miR319b基因的表达量是野生型（col）植株的11倍多。所得结果为进一步研究miRNA调控叶极性的分子机制和进一步分析miR319b与叶形态发生的关系奠定了基础。     

Morphogenetic effects of various growth substances on the cotyledonary stomata of brinjal and tomato

The effect of different growth substances on the development of normal and abnormal stomata are presented. Anomocytic, paracytic, anisocytic and stoma with a single subsidiary cell are observed. Abnormal developments like persistent stomatal cells, degeneration of guard cells, unusual thickening, unequal guard cells, single guard cells and size and shape of the pore are noticed in various growth substances. The growth substances also affect the stomatal frequency, stomatal index, epidermal frequency and size of guard and epidermal cells in both the plants. The highest meristematic activity is found in MOR 100 ppm in brinjal and in GA 25 ppm in tomato. The largest size of stomata is found in COL 25 ppm in brinjal and in MH 50 ppm in tomato. The same growth substance responds differently in the two plants.     

Isolation and Identification of an Arabidopsis thaliana Mutant with Serration Leaf Margin

Leaf polarity determines leaf flatness development directly, and abnormal polarity usually results in many abnormal leaves, which subsequently affects many physiological functions of plants. So the normal leaf development is important to plants. Here, an abnormal serration leaf margin mutant with abnormal leaf trichome development, named pCB1294, was isolated from an activation tagging Arabidopsis mutant pool through reverse genetics. By Tail PCR, the mutant gene loci At5g41663 encoding miR319b was successfully identified. Real time PCR shows the relative expression level of miR319b gene in the pCB1294 mutant is eleven times of higher than that of the wild (col). Our study lay the foundation for further studying the genetic mechanism of leaf polarity and investigating the interaction between miR319b and leaf morphology.     

同一居群韭莲不同植株减数分裂行为差异的遗传分析

对韭莲(2n=48)小孢子母细胞减数分裂及小孢子发育进行研究。结果显示同一居群植株的减数分裂行为存在明显差异。多数韭莲植株小孢子母细胞减数分裂存在少量落后染色体、微核等现象,平均每株中具有异常分离行为的母细胞占14.02%,小孢子发育正常,但花粉无活力。并首次从减数分裂后期Ⅰ的特殊的细胞学形态证明韭莲是臂内倒位杂合体。而少数植株韭莲的小孢子母细胞减数分裂极其紊乱,后期Ⅰ出现多极分离、大量落后染色体,小孢子母细胞减数分裂总异常分离高达94.3%。四分孢子期多分孢子体高达73.4%。分析认为:前者减数分裂行为异常的原因主要由染色体结构变异所致,而后者的原因除染色体结构变异外,还可能与控制纺锤体形成的基因突变有关。     

Seasonal variation in the frequency of abnormal anaphases and mitotic index values in wild populations of herb-Paris (Paris quadrifolia L., Trilliaceae): implications for genetic monitoring

The main aim of our study was to investigate seasonal variation in the frequency of abnormal anaphases and mitotic index values in wild populations of herb-Paris (Paris quadrifolia L., Trilliaceae). Plant material was collected in the year 2000 in Norway and in the year 2001 in Lithuania. There was statistically significant variation in the mitotic index values (chi(2)=1087.9, d.f.=16, P<0.0001) with the highest values during the active growth period in May and the lowest values at the end of vegetation period in September. Seasonal variation in the frequency of abnormal anaphases was statistically significant as well (chi(2)=28.23, d.f.=16, P=0.0297). The most frequent type of anaphase abnormality was vagrant chromosomes (64.2%) followed by bridges (28.6%), fragments (3.6%), sticky chromosomes (2.4%) and multipolar anaphases (1.2%). During the fieldwork, quite deep late frosts occurred. Mitotic index was lower in the plants collected immediately after the frosts or 1 week later than in the plants sampled before the frosts (52+/-13 and 123+/-15, respectively, P=0.0014). On the contrary, frequency of abnormal anaphases was statistically significantly elevated (P=0.0082) in plants after the frosts (6.35+/-1.54%) when compared to plants before the frosts (2.49+/-0.56%). Our results clearly indicated significant variation in the mitotic index values and frequency of abnormal anaphases in the wild populations of herb-Paris during the growth season. This variation may be related to the physiological conditions of the analysed plants as well as to certain ecological factors.     

TERATOLOGY IN TRILLIUM GRANDIFLORUM

Hall , Marion Trufant . (Butler U., Indianapolis, Ind.) Teratology in Trillium grandiflorum. Amer. Jour. Bot. 48(9): 803–811. Illus. 1961.—Attempts were made to determine the causes of persistent but seasonally variable abnormalities in both vegetative and floral organs of an assemblage of plants grouped under the name Trillium grandiflorum var. variegatum Smith. Comparative studies of vegetative and floral morphology between normal and abnormal plants are presented and illustrated. Normal shoots of the same rhizome vary but little from season to season. Abnormal shoots of the same rhizome vary markedly in some instances and very little in others from season to season. In the abnormal shoots, leaves and petals vary most, then stamens, ovaries, and sepals, in that order. In the populations observed, abnormal plants did not mature seed even though only a few specimens were seen which had no viable pollen. A comparative study of leaf and flower proteins of normal (var. grandiflorum) and abnormal (var. variegatum) plants was made. Electrophoretic analysis showed no virus but showed leaf protein abundant in the floral organs, particularly in the petals. It is suggested that the presence of these extra leaf proteins is sufficient to increase variability in the floral organs and in most cases to prevent the normal development of the sporophylls.     

Plants expressing a miR164-resistant CUC2 gene reveal the importance of post-meristematic maintenance of phyllotaxy in Arabidopsis

In plants, the arrangement of organs along the stem (phyllotaxy) follows a predictable pattern. Recent studies have shown that primordium position at the meristem is governed by local auxin gradients, but little is known about the subsequent events leading to the phyllotaxy along the mature stem. We show here that plants expressing a miR164-resistant CUP-SHAPED COTYLEDON2 (CUC2) gene have an abnormal phyllotactic pattern in the fully grown stem, despite the pattern of organ initiation by the meristem being normal. This implies that abnormal phyllotaxy is generated during stem growth. These plants ectopically express CUC2 in the stem, suggesting that the proper timing of CUC2 expression is required to maintain the pattern initiated in the meristem. Furthermore, by carefully comparing the phyllotaxy in the meristem and along the mature inflorescence in wild types, we show that such deviation also occurs during wild-type development, although to a smaller extent. We therefore suggest that the phyllotactic pattern in a fully grown stem results not only from the organogenetic activity of the meristem, but also from the subsequent growth pattern during stem development.