Enhancement in Growth and Yield of Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) by Pre-sowing Chill Treatment to Grains

Pre-sowing chill treatments to grains of Wheat (Triticum aestivumL. cvs Kalyan sona and cv. 4530) induce enhancements in growth,tillering and yield. Further, levels of several biochemicalcomponents are also higher in the grains harvested from plantsgrown from chill-treated grains. This method applied in thelaboratory and on a farm scale, effective also in other plants,can be conveniently used for yield enhancement and improvementof seed quality. Triticum aestivumL., wheat, chill treatment     

Metabolic Changes Associated with the Prevention of Chlorosis by the Application of Elemental Sulphur and Foliar Sprays of Sequestrene 138-Fe in Pisum sativum L.

Metabolic changes associated with the prevention of chlorosisby the application of sulphur and iron have been studied inthe garden pea (Pisum sativum L.) grown on calcareous soil.The chlorophyll content and the activity of haematin enzymescatalase and peroxidase as well as that of the chloroplast enzymeribulose 1,5-disphosphate carboxylase were increased by bothtreatments. The rates of ribonucleic acid and protein synthesiswere also greater in non-chlorotic leaves.     

Pollen Presentation on Petal Combs in the Geof lorous Heath Acrotriche serrulata (Epacridaceae)

The urn-shaped flowers of Acrotriche serrulata R.Br. are unusualin two features: the mode of pollen presentation, and the corollatube which is filled with nectar at maturity, submerging thestyle and stigma. At the end of the corolla tube, the petallobes bear conspicuous subterminal hairs that usually containclumps of pollen embedded in viscous pollencoat materials. Developmentalstudies show that at anthesis, pollen from the dehisced anthersadheres to the petal hairs. When the corolla lobes reflex, thepollen is presented on the newly exposed hairs. The mature corollatube either abscises or may be removed by nectar-seeking non-flyingmarsupials, putative agents of pollination. Acrotriche serrulata, Epacridaceae, pollen presentation, pollination, geoflory, floral structure, nectar, stigma     

Paramagnetic Manganese and Associated Resonances in Isolated Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L. var. long green) Cotyledons in Light and Dark

Electron spin resonance spectra of cucumber cotyledons showthat paramagnetic manganese exists in three different formsin biological systems. Different resonances appear along withthe manganese signal. Resonances due to copper ions appear alongwith the third peak of the manganese signal from the low-fieldside of the spectrum. Some photo-induced signals appear superimposedover the fourth peak of the manganese sextet corresponding tom/2. The first peak, however, remains unaffected by any detectableresonance and line broadening effects. Since signal height istaken as a measure of manganese concentration, the height ofthe fourth peak or averaging the height of all the six peaksmay give false results in biological systems. Manganese feedinghas a general promotive effect on all the six peaks of Mn(II)and the first peak shows most marked changes. The height ofthe first peak, therefore, can safely be taken as a measureof manganese concentration in a tissue. The resonances causingbaseline drift of the sextet disappear with the growth of thecotyledons in light. The loss of their paramagnetic propertymay either be due to complex formation or change in their redoxstate.     

Nodulation in Sesbania aculeata as Affected by Some Pyrimidine Bases and Their Analogues

Effects of uracil, thymine and their analogues, 5-nitrouracil, 2-thiouracil, 6-azauracil, and 6-azathymine on nodulation in Sesbania aculeata have been studied. The seeds were dipped partially in a 15 ml solution of each of different concentrations. The experiments included treatments for 6 or 12 h with distilled water as control. The treated seeds were inoculated with a pure culture of Rhizobium leguminosarum and sown in sand cultures, weekly supplied with modified White's basic N-free solution. Nodulation in Sesbania aculeata was promoted by uracil, nitrouracil and thymine, but inhibited by analogues. Higher concentrations caused greater inhibition than lower ones. Nodulation was affected by changes in the nucleic acid and protein metabolisms.     

Chrysomyinae (Diptera: Calliphoridae) is monophyletic: a molecular systematic analysis

The subfamily Chrysomyinae includes blowflies of considerable ecological and applied importance. Previous extensive morphological investigations have affirmed chrysomyine monophyly, but did not support the monophyly of traditional chrysomyine tribes. Conversely, molecular systematic analyses suggested a para‐ or polyphyletic Chrysomyinae. Conflicting hypotheses have been proposed about the tribe‐level classification, and about the relationships of the obligate bird parasites Protocalliphora Hough and Trypocalliphora Peus. To understand chrysomyine evolution better, we reconstructed phylogenies of the Chrysomyinae based on 2285 bp of combined data from mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase c subunit 1 (COI) and nuclear carbamoylphosphate synthetase (CPS) genes. Maximum parsimony (MP), maximum likelihood (ML) and Bayesian analysis (BA) strongly supported the monophyly of Chrysomyinae and the paraphyly of the tribe Chrysomyini. BA and ML yielded a monophyletic tribe Phormiini, but this was unresolved by MP. A sister‐group relationship between Trypocalliphora and Protocalliphora indicates that obligate bird parasitism evolved once within the Calliphoridae. For the first time all Neotropical genera (Cochliomyia Townsend, Compsomyiops Townsend, Paralucilia Brauer and Bergenstamm, Hemilucilia Brauer and Chloroprocta Wulp) were found to comprise a single lineage, and Chrysomya Robineau‐Desvoidy, traditionally a member of Chrysomyini, was found to be closer to the Phormiini. Similarly, Hemilucilia + Chloroprocta was a monophyletic group. Every genus for which we examined more than one species was monophyletic.     

Larval survival of two species of forensically important blowflies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) after submergence in water

Survival of larvae of known ages after 2 to 6 h of submersion under water was assessed by observing pupation and adult emergence in the cases of two blowflies of forensic importance, Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius) and Chrysomya rufifacies (Macquart). Lowest survival occurred among 10‐h‐old larvae, which could not tolerate more than 2 h of submergence. Even with such a small period of submergence success of survival was only 33%. There were no survivors when 20‐ and 30‐h‐old larvae were submerged for more than 3 and 4 h, respectively. In the cases of 40‐, 50‐, 60‐ and 70‐h‐old larvae there were no survivors if submergence was more than 5 h. The results show that there is an inverse relationship between submergence period and survival rate: the longer the submergence period, the lesser is the survival rate. This study provides data that are potentially useful in estimating the minimum time since submergence (TSS) of a corpse during forensic investigations.