Association mapping for chilling tolerance in elite flint and dent maize inbred lines evaluated in growth chamber and field experiments

Chilling sensitivity of maize is a strong limitation for its cultivation in the cooler areas of the northern and southern hemisphere because reduced growth in early stages impairs on later biomass accumulation. Efficient breeding for chilling tolerance is hampered by both the complex physiological response of maize to chilling temperatures and the difficulty to accurately measure chilling tolerance in the field under fluctuating climatic conditions. For this research, we used genome‐wide association (GWA) mapping to identify genes underlying chilling tolerance under both controlled and field conditions in a broad germplasm collection of 375 maize inbred lines genotyped with 56 110 single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP). We identified 19 highly significant association signals explaining between 5.7 and 52.5% of the phenotypic variance observed for early growth and chlorophyll fluorescence parameters. The allelic effect of several SNPs identified for early growth was associated with temperature and incident radiation. Candidate genes involved in ethylene signalling, brassinolide, and lignin biosynthesis were found in their vicinity. The frequent involvement of candidate genes into signalling or gene expression regulation underlines the complex response of photosynthetic performance and early growth to climatic conditions, and supports pleiotropism as a major cause of co‐locations of quantitative trait loci for these highly polygenic traits.     

SPERMIOGENESIS AND SPERMATOPHORE IN TELEMA TENELLA SIMON (ARANEAE: TELEMIDAE)—AN ULTRASTRUCTURAL STUDY

The spermatophore of the cave-spider Telema tenella is elaborated in the vas deferens. It has the shape of a long inverted gutter with two rows of digitations and spermatozoa piled up inside. The spermatozoon possesses a 9 + 3 axoneme, retracted in the cytoplasm to form from 4 to 4.5 peripheral whorls; the elongated nucleus and its acrosomal rod make 1.5 whorl. The spermatozoa keep the main part of their cytoplasm. The spermatophore is inserted in the male palp, then transferred to the female during coition. With the exception of this family, all other male Araneae transfer free spermatozoa during coition.     

Three-Dimensional Reconstruction of Rabbit-Derived Pneumocystis carinii from Serial-Thin Sections II: Intermediate Precyst

Three-dimensional reconstruction of a binucleate intermediate precyst of Pneumocystis carinii was performed from serial-thin sections using the CATIA (Conception Assistée Tridimensionnelle Inter Active) Dassault system program. The presence of a mitochondrion, complex well-developed endoplasmic structures, and numerous Golgi vesicles was established. A better understanding of the ultrastructure of rabbit-derived P. carinii stages made it possible to formulate hypotheses on the evolution and physiology of the endomembrane system. Thus, the presence of the well-developed endoplasmic saccular structure and more than 230 Golgi vesicles in its vicinity might be implicated in the differentiation of the parasite surface structures and might also be related to nuclear division and individualization of intracystic bodies.     

Garden Warbler Sylvia borin migration in sub-Saharan West Africa: phenology and body mass changes

The Garden Warbler is a classic subject for the study of Palaearctic–African bird migration strategies. Most studies have considered the situation close to the breeding areas, while the African and especially the sub‐Saharan part of the species’ migration have received comparatively little attention. Here we use autumn and spring ringing data from Nigeria and The Gambia to study the movements and energetics of the species in West Africa during the non‐breeding season. The first Garden Warblers arrive south of the desert around the beginning of September, roughly at the same time as the median date for their passage through the Baltic Sea region and c. 3 weeks before their median passage date through southern Italy. In the Nigerian Sahel savannahs, where, owing to the rainy season and its associated increase in food availability, many more Garden Warblers stop over in autumn than in the dry spring, the median date of passage is 1 October. The body mass on arrival south of the desert is normally only a few grams more than the lean body mass (LBM; 15 g) – with a mean of 16.6 g (sd = ±1.8 g) in The Gambia and 17.4 g (sd = ±1.8 g) in the Nigerian Sahel. After resting and refuelling in the Sahel, Sudan and Guinea‐type savannahs the Garden Warblers depart during November–December for wintering areas further south. Before leaving, they again increase their body mass, with an average fuel load of c. 20%, and often more than 50% relative to LBM. Some of the birds passing through Nigeria probably spend midwinter around the Congo Basin. During spring they return northwards to the Guinea savannah zone in April and fuel‐up there for the trans‐Sahara passage. At this time they normally increase their body reserves to around 50% of the LBM, but c. 10% of the birds gain 100%, thus doubling their mass. The passage there peaks around 20 April and continues well into May. That the main take‐off northwards is directly from the Guinea savannahs is indicated by the very low numbers trapped in the Sahel during spring.     

Nine polymorphic microsatellite loci for the parasitic wasp Neotypus melanocephalus (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae)

Nine polymorphic microsatellite loci were isolated from Neotypus melanocephalus (Gmelin), a parasitoid of the parasitic large blue butterfly Maculinea nausithous. Allelic diversity and heterozygosity were quantified in samples from the Upper Rhine valley in Southwest Germany.     

The Effect of Calcium Starvation on Assimilate Partitioning and Mineral Distribution of the Phloem

Populus plants were grown in a medium lacking calcium and exposedto ¹⁴CO₂. In contrast to plants in the complete nutrient medium,the percentage amount of ¹⁴C-assimilates increased in the leavesof calcium-deficient plants and decreased in the stem and theroots. When plants were grown without potassium or magnesiumno differences in the amount of ¹⁴C-label occurred in comparisonwith plants in the complete nutrient medium. Translocation wasrecorded by microautoradiography. It was observed that considerableamounts of labelled photoassimilates were unloaded from thephloem in the middle part of the stem in plants of the completenutrient medium. In contrast, during calcium starvation ¹⁴C-labelwas restricted to the phloem of the stem. In addition, the concentrationsof magnesium and phosphorus showed a remarkable increase instem sieve tubes of calcium-deficient plants. When sieve tubesof source leaves from Populus, barley and maize were comparedwith those of sink leaves, the latter showed higher calciumconcentrations. The results suggest that calcium is a necessaryfactor in the regulation of phloem translocation. Key words: Calcium deficiency, phloem translocation, sieve element loading and unloading, X-ray microanalysis