Genotypic variation in drought response of silver birch (Betula pendula Roth): leaf and root morphology and carbon partitioning

This study investigates the drought response of four genotypes of Betula pendula with a focus on leaf and root morphological traits, leaf phenology and carbon partitioning between shoot and root. Potted one-year-old clonal plants of four genotypes from regions with low to high annual rainfall (550–1270 mm year⁻¹) were subjected to drought periods of 12–14 weeks in two subsequent years. Well-watered control plants of the four genotypes differed significantly with respect to total leaf area per plant (LA) and specific leaf area (SLA), whereas differences in total fine root surface area (RA), root specific area (SRA), and the fine root:leaf mass ratio (FR:LM) were not significant. Highest LA and SLA were found in the clone originating from the driest environment. In complementary physiological investigations this clone was found to have the highest water use as well which was interpreted as competitive superiority in terms of water consumption. Drought resulted in an increase in SLA in all genotypes, and a decrease in LA. Leaf area reduction was more pronounced in the genotypes from high than in those from low rainfall origin. The ratio of total root to leaf surfaces remained more or less constant after drought application despite an increase in FR:LM. This is explained by a decrease in SRA resulting from a reduced abundance of very small fine rootlets (diameter <0.2 mm) in the drought-treated plants. The loss in total root surface area due to a reduction in finest root mass was compensated for by a relative increase in total root dry mass per plant. Comparison of results from the first and second drought period indicated a marked influence of timing of drought, root system size, and putative root limitation on plant drought response. We conclude that leaf and root morphology, the total leaf and root surfaces, and the morphological response to drought in birch are to a large extent under genetic control.     

科尔沁沙地东部地区早稻品种引种及其生物学特性

开发节水的稻作农业是确保我国粮食安全的一个非常重要的战略问题．本文报导了科尔沁沙地东部地区6个旱稻品种的引种试验结果．田间引种试验表明,灌溉用水减少60％的情况下,西旱95—13和西旱95—13—6分别比对照增产10．2％和5．5％;其它4个旱稻品种产量减少6．7％～18．6％．从经济效益考虑,除吉品121外,其它5个旱稻品种的经济收入比对照都有增加,增收最大的两个品种西旱95—13和西旱95—13—6达到24．0％和19．3％．种植旱稻的水分生产力达到0．566kg·m^-3以上,比种植水稻提高了59．89％～116．38％．盆栽试验表明,含水量12．1％～16．3％土壤环境有利于旱稻生长,7月18日以前分蘖为有效分蘖．可以认为,在科尔沁沙地东部推广旱稻种植具有广阔的前景,可以逐步替代传统的水稻栽植模式,节省大量地下水资源．     

糜子育成品种苗期抗旱性评价与鉴定指标筛选

在年降雨量不足40 mm的敦煌市,对我国不同地区育成的56份糜子品种,采用反复干旱法进行了苗期抗旱性鉴定,利用反复干旱存活率和抗旱性综合评价值D的聚类结果筛选出一级抗旱品种4份,分别是陇糜5号、吉3、蒙粳糜1号和蒙粳糜7号;配对t测验显示:反复干旱胁迫后糜子苗高、植株含水量、单株叶面积、生物学产量分别降低了16.097 cm、0.393 g/株、10.358 cm2/株、0.075 g/株,差异达到了极显著水平,而根长、相对生长率反向增加了0.555 cm、3.213%;主成分分析中,植株含水量、生物学产量、单株叶面积3个指标在第1主成分中起决定作用(系数均≥0.881),且与两种抗旱评价参数值相关性均达到了极显著水平,因此,确定植株含水量、生物学产量、单株叶面积作为糜子苗期抗旱性鉴定1级指标。     

江苏省稻瘟病菌的毒性多样性及水稻品种的抗病性

在13个已知日本抗病基因品种上检测1997－1999年采集自江苏省吴江,赣榆,通州,高邮和宜兴等5个代表地区的324个稻瘟病菌株的毒性,结果可将上述菌株划分为90种毒性类型,表明江苏省稻瘟病菌存在着丰富的毒性多样性,毒性类型组成在地区间存在较大的差异,并且随着时间的推移,稻瘟病菌毒性类型组成有差异加大的趋势,在已知抗病基因品种上测定江苏省稻瘟病菌的毒力,结果显示：Pi-k^3,Pi-ta,Pi-ta^2和Pi-sh等抗病基因对江苏省的稻瘟病菌的抗谱很窄,而Pi-i,Pi-z,Pi-z^t和Pi-b等抗病基因的抗谱比较宽,可作为抗源加以利用,用6个代表性毒性类型菌株接种江苏省80筱水稻主载品种和新育成品种,品种抗性分析表明,上述水稻品种中的籼稻和杂交稻对江苏省稻瘟病菌具有较高的抗性,而粳稻品种的抗性较差,上述研究结果为利用水稻品种抗性多样性控制稻瘟病提供了依据。     

天山北坡前山带12种植物对干旱胁迫和复水的响应及抗旱性评价

【目的】探讨12种植物对干旱胁迫的动态生理适应性及抗旱能力,筛选适宜在天山北坡前山带进行植被恢复的灌木树种。【方法】以新疆天山北坡前山带种植的刺蔷薇、柠条锦鸡儿、文冠果、山杏、柽柳、梭梭、中亚沙棘、蒙古沙棘（‘新棘1号’、‘新棘2号’、‘新棘3号’、‘新棘4号’、‘新棘5号’）共12种植物为研究对象,观测灌水之后土壤水分的时空分布变化,分析干旱胁迫和复水处理对植物光合气体交换参数、抗逆生理生化指标、叶绿素荧光参数的影响,利用主成分分析法评价12种植物的抗旱能力。【结果】（1）在干旱胁迫发生前后,各植物立地土壤表层（0—20 cm）水分散失最快,中层（20—40 cm）次之,底层（40—60cm）水分散失最慢,而不同植物因其生长策略不同,通过改变其生长情况来适应干旱;（2）随着干旱胁迫的加剧,植物叶片光合生理指标净光合速率、气孔导度、蒸腾速率、胞间二氧化碳浓度、PSⅡ潜在活性、 PSⅡ最大光化学效率、电子传递速率和叶绿素含量降低,而抗逆生理指标超氧化物歧化酶活性、脯氨酸含量、丙二醛含量及非光化学猝灭系数升高,复水之后各指标都有一定程度的恢复,但均未达到初始水平;（3）主成分分析结果显示,净光合速率、叶绿素含量、电子传递效率和丙二醛含量等指标贡献率较大,梭梭、柽柳、刺蔷薇和柠条锦鸡儿抗旱性较强,中亚沙棘、‘新棘5号’、‘新棘1号’和山杏抗旱性次之,而‘新棘4号’、‘新棘3号’、文冠果和‘新棘2号’较弱。【结论】净光合速率、叶绿素含量、电子传递效率和丙二醛含量可作为评价各植物适应干旱胁迫的重要指标;新疆天山北坡前山带区域植被生态恢复过程中应优先考虑梭梭、柽柳、刺蔷薇及柠条锦鸡儿进行建植。     

Intraspecific variation in the resistance to flooding and drought in populations of Paspalum dilatatum from different topographic positions

Many studies have analysed plant responses to flooding or drought separately, without addressing the relations between plant resistance to each of these factors. In this paper, we compare the responses to drought and flooding under glasshouse conditions of three populations of Paspalum dilatatum, a perennial C₄ grass dominant at different positions along a topographic gradient in the flooding pampa of Argentina. Our results showed that flooding effects on yield were negative on an upland, null on an intermediate, and positive on a lowland population, whereas drought reduced yield equally across populations, showing that resistance to flooding was not related to resistance to drought at a population level. Drought decreased height and aerenchyma, and increased the proportion of roots, while flooding had opposite effects on these traits. The responses of the single clones that made up each population showed a positive relation between the resistances to both factors: along the ecocline formed by 58 clones, those more resistant to drought were also more resistant to flooding. In addition, the combined resistance of each clone to both factors was negatively related to yield at field capacity, (i.e. the most resistant clones were less productive) and unrelated to the proportion of roots and aerenchyma. This result agrees with predictions of Grime's plant strategy theory and differs from a few previous studies, which showed negative relations between the resistances to flooding and drought among genera and species.     

Changes in the water-permeability of roots of some trees during drought stress and recovery,as related to problems of growth in urban environment

Summary In relation to problems encountered in the urban environment a study was made of changes in the root's permeability to water of a number of tree species during a drought period, and of water conductivity during recovery. The results suggest than an important reduction of water conductivity occurs as soon as internal water stress builds up. Recovery appears to proceed irregularly. There appear to be differences in response — both as regards extent and speed — among different species.     

Screening the ability of rice roots to overcome the mechanical impedance of wax layers: importance of test conditions and measurement criteria

The development of a wax layer method for screening the ability of rice (Oryza sativa L.) roots to overcome mechanical impedance is described. Wax layers (3 mm thick) made of mixtures of white soft paraffin and paraffin wax were installed 50 mm deep in tubes of sand. The sand was watered with nutrient solution and planted with 3-d old rice seedlings. The numbers of root axes per plant that had penetrated the wax layers 24 d after planting were counted. The ratio of penetrated to total root axes per plant gave a misleading measure of root penetration ability, as rice varieties differed in the ratio of penetrated to total axes in a low impedance (3% wax) control. In non-flooded conditions, a 60% wax layer decreased root penetration (number of roots penetrating the wax layer per plant) to a mean of 74% of the low impedance control, whereas an 80% wax layer decreased mean root penetration to 31% of the control. The best measure of root penetration in non-flooded conditions was the number of axes penetrating an 80% wax layer. Flooding decreased root penetration of a 60% wax layer to a mean of 26% of the low impedance control. The best measure of root penetration in flooded conditions was the number of axes penetrating a 60% wax layer.     

东乡普通野生稻与栽培稻苗期抗旱性的比较

干旱影响水稻生长发育,不论什么时期发生最终都导致产量损失。研究水稻资源抗旱性有助于水稻抗旱改良和稳定干旱胁迫下水稻的产量。东乡普通野生稻被公认为是栽培稻的祖先,对增强水稻抗旱性可能十分重要。对4份来自3个仅存的居群的东乡野生稻与15份栽培稻进行苗期抗旱性比较,考察了3次重复的盆栽土培试验中8个抗旱指标。表明东乡普通野生稻比栽培稻更为抗旱,表现在最大根长、茎长、根干重、根鲜重、根干鲜重比及抗旱指数等6个性状,而不表现在根数及根茎长比;其中茎长、最长根长、根干重、根鲜重及根系相对含水量对水稻苗期抗旱性影响更大。采用抗旱指数和抗旱总级别值法对水稻抗旱性进行评定,结果表明4份东乡野生稻材料间的抗旱性存在很大差异,且来水桃树下居群的抗性最高,东乡野生稻抗旱性可能与其原生境状况有关。结果认为东乡普通野生稻可作为栽培稻抗旱改良的遗传资源。     

Patterns of bird abundance and habitat use in rice fields of the Kanto Plain, central Japan

Rice fields, the most widespread cropland in Japan, provide important habitat for birds, but few studies have examined bird communities that are influenced by agriculture in rice fields. I studied the seasonal pattern of bird abundance and their habitat preferences in terms of agricultural habitats in the rice fields of the central Kanto Plain, central Japan. In total, 19 waterbird species and 31 landbird species were recorded over the study year. Waterbird occurrence was largely restricted to the cultivation season (i.e. the flooded season, May–August), with maximum abundance in August. Rice fields dried up during winter and supported few waterbirds except for irregular occurrences of little egrets (Egretta garzetta) and common snipes (Gallinago gallinago), which selectively used ditches with shallow water. Landbird abundance increased after the start of cultivation (May) to August, but more birds were attracted to the rice fields in midwinter (around January). For both waterbirds and landbirds, most species preferred levees and fallow grass fields, but avoided fields with rice vegetation. Unplowed fields after harvest were preferred by several species including skylarks (Alauda arvensis), while plowed fields were less attractive to most species. These results suggest the need for advanced agricultural practices to include improvement in habitat quality for birds.     

Host response of Oryza glaberrima and O. sativa rice genotypes to the rice root-knot nematode Meloidogyne graminicola in a hydroponic system under growth chamber

The host response of 25 rice genotypes belonging to Oryza glaberrima and Oryza sativa to Meloidogyne graminicola infection was examined in a hydroponic system. The M. graminicola can build up high population densities in a hydroponic system. Resistance to this nematode species was found in O. glaberrima genotypes which supported significantly lower nematode numbers per plant and per unit root than O. sativa genotypes. The M. graminicola-infected O. sativa genotypes showed a higher root galling index than the O. glaberrima genotypes. The hydroponic system is efficient and reliable method to examine the host response of rice genotypes to M. graminicola infection, and can be useful for the fast screening of high numbers of rice genotypes for the selection of M. graminicola-resistant rice germplasm for breeding purposes.     

Comparison of the physiological responses of Phaseolus vulgaris and Vigna unguiculata cultivars when submitted to drought conditions

Three cultivars differing in their susceptibility to water stress were compared—Phaseolus vulgaris cv. Carioca (susceptible), Vigna unguiculata cv. IT83D (intermediately tolerant) and V. unguiculata cv. EPACE-1 (tolerant)—during an imposed water stress treatment. Variation in leaf gas exchange (i.e. assimilation and stomatal conductance) and leaf relative water content in response to progressive substrate water depletion were investigated. To verify the extent of the injury caused by the drought treatment, leaf gas exchange was measured after rehydration. In the three cultivars, stomatal conductance declined before leaf relative water content was affected. P. vulgaris showed the largest decrease in the rate of stomatal conductance with decreasing substrate water content compared to both V. unguiculata cultivars. Photosynthetic assimilation rates were largely dependent on stomatal aperture, but there was evidence of the participation of non-stomatal factors in the reduction of CO₂ fixation. The response of leaf gas exchange parameters to severe water stress conditions differed significantly between P. vulgaris and V. unguiculata cultivars. After rehydration, cultivars can be characterised according to the degree of injury induced by the drought treatment: V. unguiculata cv. EPACE-1 as the least affected, V. unguiculata cv. IT83D slightly affected and P. vulgaris cv. Carioca strongly affected. Similar ranking was obtained with experiments previously performed at a cellular and subcellular level. Our results confirm the utility of physiological parameters as early screening tools for drought resistance in bean cultivars.     

Patterns of tree dieback in Queensland,Australia: the importance of drought stress and the role of resistance to cavitation

During the extreme 1992–1997 El Niño drought event, widespread stem mortality, or tree dieback, of both mature and juvenile eucalypts occurred within the tropical savannas of northeast Australia. Most of the dieback occurred in individuals of the ironbark species complex (Eucalyptus crebra – E. xanthoclada) while individuals of the bloodwood species Corymbia erythrophloia, exhibited significantly less stem mortality. Indicative of greater water stress, predawn and midday xylem water potentials of ironbark adults and saplings were significantly more negative than predawn values of bloodwoods. The very negative xylem water potentials in ironbarks suggest that stem mortality in both adult and juvenile ironbarks results from drought-induced embolism and that ironbarks perhaps have a shallower and less extensive root system than bloodwoods. Although predawn and midday water potentials for ironbark adults and saplings were similar, a census of mature and juvenile ironbark trees indicated that mortality was higher in adult trees. Cavitation vulnerability curves indicated that ironbark saplings may be better buffered against cavitation than adult trees. If they possess smaller root systems, saplings are more likely than adults to experience low xylem water potentials, even in non-drought years. Xylem conduits produced in adult trees during periods of normal rainfall, although perhaps more efficient in water conduction, may be more vulnerable to cavitation during infrequent severe droughts.     

Resistance to boron toxicity amongst several barley and wheat cultivars: A preliminary examination of the resistance mechanism

The mechanism of resistance toB toxicity in barley and wheat was studied in a solution culture experiment using several cultivars displaying a large range of sensitivity to excessB supply. Plants were cultured for 35 d atB concentrations ranging from normal to excessive (15 to 5000 M, respectively) then examined for dry matter production and theB distribution between roots and shoots.In both species, increasedB supply was accompanied by increased tissueB concentrations, development ofB toxicity symptoms and depressed growth. At each level ofB supply, however, resistant cultivars accumulated considerably lessB than did sensitive cultivars, in both roots and shoots. Even at the lowestB supply, at which noB toxicity symptoms developed and growth was not affected, resistant cultivars maintained relatively low tissueB concentrations. No cultivar displayed an ability to tolerate high tissueB concentrations.These results indicate that sensitivity toB toxicity in barley and wheat is governed by the ability of cultivars to excludeB. If theB concentrations of tissues is used to indicate resistance toB toxicity, then cultivars have the same ranking whether cultured at a normal or excessB supply.     

Genetic, proteomic and metabolic analysis of the regulation of energy storage in rice seedlings in response to drought

We used proteomic analysis to determine the response of rice plant seedlings to drought-induced stress. The expression of 71 protein spots was significantly altered, and 60 spots were successfully identified. The greatest down-regulated protein functional category was translation. Up-regulated proteins were mainly related to protein folding and assembly. Additionally, many proteins involved in metabolism (e.g. carbohydrate metabolism) also showed differences in expression. cDNA microarray and GC-MS analysis showed 4756 differentially expressed mRNAs and 37 differentially expressed metabolites. Once these data were integrated with the proteomic analysis, we were able to elucidate the metabolic pathways affected by drought-induced stress. These results suggest that increased energy consumption from storage substances occurred during drought. In addition, increased expression of the enzymes involved in anabolic pathways corresponded with an increase in the content of six amino acids. We speculated that energy conversion from carbohydrates and/or fatty acids to amino acids was increased. Analysis of basic metabolism networks allowed us to understand how rice plants adjust to drought conditions.