COMPETITION BETWEEN STAURASTRUM LUETKEMUELLERII (CHLOROPHYCEAE) AND MICROCYSTIS AERUGINOSA(CYANOPHYCEAE) UNDER VARYING MODES OF PHOSPHATE SUPPLY1

The desmid Staurastrum luetkemuellerii Donat et Ruttner and the cyanobacterium Microcystis aeruginosa Kütz. were grown in mixed cultures with various phosphate (P_i) additions. One pulse of P_i each day (semi-continuous cultures) favored M. aeruginosa whereas S. luetkemuellerii was favored when the same quantity of P_i was supplied continuously (chemostats). Both species coexisted under P limitation provided that the nutrient was supplied in an appropriate mode. The ability of each species to compete for P depended on their P_i uptake characteristics and their capability to retain the accumulated P_i. High affinity in uptake at low P_i concentrations contributed considerably to the growth eficiency of S. luetkemuellerii under continuous supply of P_iM. aeruginosa was, however, consistently superior to S. luetkemuellerii in accuniulatiug the newly added P, but had a high rate of P_i release. In both -types of cultures, a net high of P went from M. aeruginosa to S. luetkemuellerii. The kinetic characteristics of the two species were used to simulate the outcome of competition experiments. Simulations agreed with the experimental data f both uptake and P_i release were considered in the model. The zlariable P*(the concentration of P_i at which the net uptake is equal to μ·Q_P is a function of uptake and release of P_i but could not explain the chemostat results. S. luetkemuellerii was the winner in many experiments even if its P*was higher thou that of M. aeruginosa. Thus, in the present case P_c (the concentration at which the net uptake is zero) was a better predictor of the ability to compete for P_i under steady state as well as transient conditions in the P_i supply.     

A New Method for Finding Small Vertebrate Fossils: Ultraviolet Light At Night

Vertebrate fossils from many different formations fluoresce when exposed to ultraviolet (UV) light. In this paper field observations and controlled experiments in the Chadron Formation (White River Group, late Eocene) of Wyoming are used to assess the utility of searching for fossils at night using ultraviolet light. The results indicate that, especially for very small teeth and egg-shell fragments, searching with ultraviolet light at night can result in significantly more specimens than searching during daylight hours. This method has the potential to increase sample sizes for small vertebrate specimens that are often overlooked when using standard collecting techniques.     

Bacteria Associated with Cysts of the Soybean Cyst Nematode (Heterodera glycines)

The soybean cyst nematode (SCN), Heterodera glycines, causes economically significant damage to soybeans (Glycine max) in many parts of the world. The cysts of this nematode can remain quiescent in soils for many years as a reservoir of infection for future crops. To investigate bacterial communities associated with SCN cysts, cysts were obtained from eight SCN-infested farms in southern Ontario, Canada, and analyzed by culture-dependent and -independent means. Confocal laser scanning microscopy observations of cyst contents revealed a microbial flora located on the cyst exterior, within a polymer plug region and within the cyst. Microscopic counts using 5-(4,6-dichlorotriazine-2-yl)aminofluorescein staining and in situ hybridization (EUB 338) indicated that the cysts contained (2.6 ± 0.5) × 10⁵ bacteria (mean ± standard deviation) with various cellular morphologies. Filamentous fungi were also observed. Live-dead staining indicated that the majority of cyst bacteria were viable. The probe Nile red also bound to the interior polymer, indicating that it is lipid rich in nature. Bacterial community profiles determined by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis analysis were simple in composition. Bands shared by all eight samples included the actinobacterium genera Actinomadura and Streptomyces. A collection of 290 bacteria were obtained by plating macerated surface-sterilized cysts onto nutrient broth yeast extract agar or on actinomycete medium. These were clustered into groups of siblings by repetitive extragenic palindromic PCR fingerprinting, and representative isolates were tentatively identified on the basis of 16S rRNA gene sequence. Thirty phylotypes were detected, with the collection dominated by Lysobacter and Variovorax spp. This study has revealed the cysts of this important plant pathogen to be rich in a variety of bacteria, some of which could presumably play a role in the ecology of SCN or have potential as biocontrol agents.     

Use of Plant Strategy Ordination,DCA and ANOVA to elucidate relationships among habitats of Salix planifolia and Salix monticola

Abstract. Detrended Correspondence Analysis (DCA) was used on a data set of 112 species from 14 stands dominated by Salix planifolia and/or S. monticola. Environmental variables were determined which might be important to explain differences in stand vegetation composition, and willow stature (height), in willow carrs in the Rocky Mountain National Park. Correlation of environmental variables with DCA stand scores indicate that peat depth and soil redox potential are highly related to the primary DCA axis. Soils in stands of S. planifolia are more reduced in the early summer and have greater peat depths, than soils in stands of S. monticola. The second DCA axis is related to a water chemistry gradient of hydrogen ion, sulphate, and ammonium concentration. Four environmental variables selected by correlation analysis were regressed on stand scores from the first two DCA axes. Regression coefficients of August soil redox potential and soil water pH were significantly non-zero on the primary DCA axis. In addition to overall vegetation relationships elucidated by DCA, the relationships between willow stature and environmental variables were tested by simultaneous ANOVAs. ANOVA results and DCA ordinations indicate that S. planifolia and S. monticola plants achieve the greatest stature in the least reduced soils, and in shallow peat. Competitive, stress tolerant, and ruderal plant strategy theory applied to the vegetation data produced an arrangement of stands highly correlated to the DCA Axis 1 stand arrangement. These correlations indicate that the primary axis of vegetation structure can be extracted either by species composition, or species morphology/physiology relationships. Concurrent use of DCA and plant strategy theory is suggested as a tool for the prediction of community composition.     

Responses to iron deficiency in Arabidopsis thaliana: The Turbo iron reductase does not depend on the formation of root hairs and transfer cells

Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. Columbia wild type and a root hair-less mutant RM57 were grown on iron-containing and iron-deficient nutrient solutions. In both genotypes, ferric chelate reductase (FCR) of intact roots was induced upon iron deficiency and followed a Michaelis-Menten kinetic with a K _m of 45 and 54 M Fe^III-EDTA and a V _max of 42 and 33 nmol Fe²⁺·(g FW)^–1·min^–1 for the wild type and the mutant, respectively. The pH optimum for the reaction was around pH 5.5. The approximately four fold stimulation of FCR activity was independent of formation of root hairs and/or transfer cells induced by iron deficiency. Iron-deficiency-induced chlorosis and the development of a rigid root habit disappeared when ferric chelate was applied to the leaves, while FCR activity remained unchanged. The time course of the responses to iron deficiency showed that morphological and physiological responses were controlled separately.Abbreviations FCR ferric chelate reductase - FW fresh weight Thanks are due to Klaas Sjollema (Department of Electronmicroscopy, University of Groningen, The Netherlands) for help with the electron microscopy sample preparation and especially to Dr. Uwe Santore (Heinrich-Heine-University for electron microscopy. This work was supported by the SCIENCE programm of the European community; P.R.M.) and a Personal Research Grant by the Ministerium für Wissenschaft und Forschung of Nordrhein-Westfalen (P.R.M.) and last, not least by the productive discussions in ECOTRANS B.V.     

The control of respiration in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) leaves

The aim of this work was to discover whether the respiration of wheat (Triticum aestivum L. cv. Huntsman) leaves, transferred to darkness after 7 h photosynthesis, showed an initial period of wasteful respiration. For young and old leaves, CO₂ production and O₂ uptake after 7 h photosynthesis were up to 56% higher than at the end of an 8-h night. The maximum catalytic activities of citrate synthase (EC 4.1.3.7), aconitase (EC 4.2.1.3), fumarase (EC 4.2.1.2) and cytochrome-c oxidase (EC 1.9.3.1) at the end of the day did not differ from those at the end of the night. Changes in the contents of glucose 6-phosphate, fructose-1,6-bisphosphate, dihydroxyacetone phosphate, and -ketoglutarate did not as a group parallel the changes in the rate of respiration. The detailed distribution of label from [U-¹⁴C] sucrose supplied to leaves in the dark was similar at the end of the day and the end of the night. No correlation was observed between the rates of leaf respiration and extension growth. It is argued that the higher rate of respiration at the beginning of the night cannot be attributed to wasteful respiration.Abbreviation RQ respiratory quotient We thank Dr H. Thomas and Professor C.J. Pollock, Institute for Grassland and Environmental Research, Plas Gogerddan, Aberystwyth, UK for their generous help in measuring leaf extension. R.H.A. thanks the Science and Engineering Research Council for a studentship.     

Growth and shoot: root ratio of seedlings in relation to nutrient availability

The influence of mineral nutrient availability, light intensity and CO₂ on growth and shoot:root ratio in young plants is reviewed. Special emphasis in this evaluation is given to data from laboratory experiments with small Betula pendula plants, in which the concept of steady-state nutrition has been applied.Three distinctly different dry matter allocation patterns were observed when growth was limited by the availability of mineral nutrients: 1, Root growth was favoured when N, P or S were the major growth constraints. 2, The opposite pattern obtained when K, Mg and Mn restricted growth. 3, Shortage of Ca, Fe and Zn had almost no effect on the shoot:root ratio. The light regime had no effect on dry matter allocation except at very low photon flux densities (< 6.5 mol m^-2 day^-1), in which a small decrease in the root fraction was observed. Shortage of CO₂, on the other hand, strongly decreased root development, while an increase of the atmospheric CO₂ concentration had no influence on dry matter partitioning. An increased allocation of dry matter to below-ground parts was associated with an increased amount of starch in the tissues. Depletion of the carbohydrate stores occurred under all conditions in which root development was inhibited. It is concluded that the internal balance between labile nitrogen and carbon in the root and the shoot system determines how dry matter is being partitioned in the plant. The consistency of this statement with literature data and existing models for shoot:root regulation is examined.