Effects of nitrogen supply on the anatomy and chemical composition of leaves of four grass species belonging to the genus Poa, as determined by image-processing analysis and pyrolysis–mass spectrometry

Previous experiments have shown that the anatomy and chemical composition of leaves of inherently fast- and slow-growing grass species, grown at non-limiting nitrogen supply, differ systematically. The present experiment was carried out to investigate whether these differences persist when the plants are grown at an intermediate or a very low nitrogen supply. To this end, the inherently fast-growing Poa annua L. and Poa trivialis L., and the inherently slow-growing Poa compressa L. and Poa pratensis (L.) Schreb. were grown hydroponically at three levels of nitrate supply: at optimum (RGR_max) and at relative addition rates of 100 and 50 mmol N (mol N)^?1 d^?1 (RAR₁₀₀ and RAR₅₀), respectively. As expected, at the lowest N supply, the potentially fast-growing species grew at the same rate as the inherently slow-growing ones. Similarly, the differences in leaf area ratio (LAR, leaf area:total dry mass), specific leaf area (SLA, leaf arear:leaf dry mass) and leaf mass ratio (LMR, leaf dry mass:total dry mass) disappeared. Under optimal conditions, the fast-growing species differed from the slow-growing ones in that they had a higher N concentration. There were no significant differences in C concentration. With decreasing N supply, the total N concentration decreased and the differences between the species disappeared. The total C concentration increased for the fast-growing species and decreased for the slow-growing ones, i.e. the small, but insignificant, difference in C concentration between the species at RGR_max increased with decreasing N supply. The chemical composition of the leaves at low N supply, analysed in more detail by pyrolysis–mass spectrometry, showed an increase in the relative amounts of guaiacyl lignin, cellulose and hemicellulose, whereas those of syringyl lignin and protein decreased. The anatomy and morphology of the leaves of the four grass species differing in RGR_max were analysed by image-processing analysis. The proportion of the total volume occupied by mesophyll plus intercellular spaces and epidermis did not correlate with the amount of leaf mass per unit leaf area (specific leaf mass, SLM) at different N supply. The higher SLM at low N supply was caused partly by a high proportion of non-veinal sclerenchymatic cells per cross-section and partly by the smaller volume of epidermal cells. We conclude that the decrease in relative growth rate (and increase in SLM) at decreasing N supply is partly due to chemical and anatomical changes. The differences between the fast- and slow-growing grass species at an optimum nutrient supply diminished when plants were growing at a limiting nitrogen supply.     

Improved detection of iris severe mosaic virus in secondarily-infected iris bulbs

The influence of wounding and high-temperature treatment on the detection of iris severe mosaic virus (ISMV) in secondarily ISMV-infected iris bulbs was studied. Wounding of the bulbs just after lifting, followed by storage for 3 wk at 17°C or 20°C, increased the detectability of ISMV to 100% reliability. High-temperature treatment and consecutive storage at 17°C induced a similar improvement of detection. It is concluded that a certain degree of stress, such as wounding or high-temperature treatment, ultimately leads to an increase in viral antigens and thus to improvement of detection. It is hypothesised that the virus titre increases by the altered metabolism during the repair reactions as a response to stress applied to the bulbs.     

The Axenic Culture of Strains of the Various Syngens of Paramecium aurelia*

SYNOPSIS Strains of the various syngens of Paramecium aurelia respond differently to the culture media developed for Strain 299 of syngen 8. Not only is there a variety of response between the syngens, but strains belonging to the same syngen respond differently to the 3 growth media.