Analytical study of phenotypic and biochemical attributes of onion cultivars in relation to infestation of onion thrips,Thrips tabaci

Onion thrips is a major threat to onion crop throughout the world. It is a potential vector of Iris yellow spot virus and causes significant economic damage to bulb production. Phenotypic and biochemical traits of onion cultivars were assessed against Thrips tabaci. Onion Gawran LR-241 (OG) cultivar was tolerant against the infestation of T. tabaci whereas Onion White (OW) was susceptible. Number and size of stomata, cuticle thickness, cell wall thickness and surface wax of onion leaves were studied with the help of scanning electron microscope and quantitative and qualitative analysis was carried out to estimate epicuticular wax and other bio-chemical components through GC/MS. Onion Gawran has thick cell wall, sharp and dense wax crystals, wider central angle and small sized stomata compared to other cultivars. Epicuticular wax components of OG cultivar were heptacosane (5.2%), octacosanol-1 (9.2%), 2-methyl octacosane (4.2%), heptadecanol-1 (5.2%), hexacosanol-1 (4.2%), azulene, 1,4-dimethyl-7-(1-methylethyl) (36.9%), hexadecanoic acid (1.95%), heptadecane (4.2%), triacontanol-1 (5.8%) and hentriacontanone-16 (23.40%). Azulene, 1, 4-dimethy-l-7-(1-methy-l-ethyl) was only found 36.9% in OG but absent in other three cultivars. 2-methyl octacosane was absent in Poona Red Desi and OW cultivars. Hentriacontanone-16, 2-methyl octacosane, fatty alcohols (Octacosanol-1 and Triacontanol-1) and azulene, 1, 4-dimethy-l-7-(1-methy-l-ethyl) were effective in the formation of epicuticular wax in onion cultivars. It implies that phenotypic and biochemical characteristics of OG cultivar proved as resisting features to T. tabaci.     

中国主栽香菇品种SSR指纹图谱的构建

以商业栽培的25个香菇(Lentinula edodes)品种为材料,应用SSR分子标记技术进行区别性分析。本研究使用14对引物,引物的多态性为100%,每对引物产生的等位基因数为2～9个,平均5.0个,基因型数为2～12个,平均6.3个。预期杂合度为0.1151～0.8131,平均预期杂合度为0.6126;PIC值为0.1064～0.7736,平均PIC值为0.5541。25个品种中,除申香10号和申香12号不能区分外,对其他23个品种清晰鉴别,为构建香菇栽培品种的SSR分子指纹图谱提供了依据和方法。本方法获得的数据可以成为重复性良好、实验室间可比对的香菇栽培品种标准指纹图谱,在品种特异性鉴定中不再需要已有所有品种做参照,较RAPD、ISSR、SRAP等鉴定方法工作量大大减少。     

Is the predatory mite <Emphasis Type="Italic">Kampimodromus aberrans</Emphasis> a candidate for the control of phytophagous mites in European apple orchards?

The most important biocontrol agents of phytophagous mites (mainly Tetranychidae) in European apple orchards are the predatory mites Amblyseius andersoni, Typhlodromus pyri and Euseius finlandicus (Phytoseiidae). A similar situation is found in Trentino (north-eastern Italy), an important apple production area in Europe. Another phytoseiid mite, Kampimodromus aberrans, can be dominant in neglected fruit orchards but is rare in commercial orchards because of its susceptibility to pesticides. However, pesticide resistant strains of K. aberrans have recently been found in vineyards. In the late 1990s, one of these resistant strains was successfully released on an experimental farm in Trentino. Kampimodromus aberrans spread to an apple orchard, despite the fact that it was colonized by T. pyri, A. andersoni and E. finlandicus, and became the dominant species. Since K. aberrans’ colonization appeared to be affected by apple cultivars, experiments were conducted on potted plants of three selected apple cultivars (Golden Delicious, Red Chief, Reinette du Canada). The results stressed the effect of cultivars on apple colonization by K. aberrans and suggested the role of leaf morphology in influencing this phenomenon. Field releases of K. aberrans were successfully performed in four commercial apple orchards. The incidence of K. aberrans in the total phytoseiid population increased over time and the predator became dominant in the season following its release in two orchards. Kampimodromus aberrans persists in these orchards as the dominant species. The adaptation of K. aberrans to varying environmental conditions, its tolerance to pesticides, and its competitiveness towards other phytoseiid species suggest a potential role of this species in the biological control of phytophagous mites in European apple orchards. Handling editor: Eric Lucas.     

Glucans from the alkaline extract of an edible mushroom, Pleurotus florida, cv Assam Florida: isolation, purification, and characterization

Three different glucans (PS-I, PS-II, and PS-III) were isolated from the alkaline extract of the fruiting bodies of an edible mushroom Pleurotus florida, cultivar Assam Florida. On the basis of total acid hydrolysis, methylation analysis, periodate oxidation, Smith degradation, and NMR experiments (¹H, ¹³C, DEPT-135, DQF-COSY, TOCSY, NOESY, ROESY, HMQC, and HMBC), the structure of the repeating unit of these polysaccharides was established as follows:     

Response of two tomato cultivars differing in salt tolerance to inoculation with mycorrhizal fungi under salt stress

Effects of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) and salt stress on nutrient acquisition and growth of two tomato cultivars exhibiting differences in salt tolerance were investigated. Plants were grown in a sterilized, low-P (silty clay) soil-sand mix. Salt was applied at saturation extract (EC_e) values of 1.4 (control), 4.9 (medium) and 7.1 dS m^–1 (high salt stress). Mycorrhizal colonization occurred irrespective of salt stress in both cultivars, but AMF colonization was higher under control than under saline soil conditions. The salt-tolerant cultivar Pello showed higher mycorrhizal colonization than the salt-sensitive cultivar Marriha. Shoot dry matter (DM) yield and leaf area were higher in mycorrhizal than nonmycorrhizal plants of both cultivars. Shoot DM and leaf area but not root DM were higher in Pello than Marriha. The enhancement in shoot DM due to AMF inoculation was 22% and 21% under control, 31% and 58% under medium, and 18% and 59% under high salinity for Pello and Marriha, respectively. For both cultivars, the contents of P, K, Zn, Cu, and Fe were higher in mycorrhizal than nonmycorrhizal plants under control and medium saline soil conditions. The enhancement in P, K, Zn, Cu, and Fe acquisition due to AMF inoculation was more pronounced in Marriha than in the Pello cultivar under saline conditions. The results suggest that Marriha benefited more from AMF colonization than Pello under saline soil conditions, despite the fact that Pello roots were highly infected with the AMF. Thus, it appears that Marriha is more dependent on AMF symbiosis than Pello. Accepted: 22 January 2001     

用ISSR标记技术分析山药品种遗传多样性

利用ISSR标记技术对28个山药品种的遗传多样性进行分析。结果表明,从44条ISSR引物中可筛选出7条能够扩增出清晰、稳定条带的引物;这7条ISSR引物对28个山药品种扩增条带间存在较大差异,多态性条带比率为83.01%,Shannon多样性指数为0.3191;构建的分子树状图将28个山药品种划分为4组:第一组含有日本白、花山药和日本园3个品种;第二组为小叶山药;第三组为嵩野1号;其余23个品种归入第四组。而且主成分分析结果支持上述的聚类分析结果。这为利用ISSR标记技术鉴定山药品种,为有效地利用山药种质资源提供了依据。     

我国玉米品种更替过程中根系时空分布特征的演变

采用土柱栽培与大田试验相结合的方法,研究了我国20世纪50年代以来生产中大面积推广应用的玉米品种根系时空分布特性。研究指出：玉根系的生长动态符合水蒸汽压力模型（Vppor Pressure Model),1990s品种根系干物质积累量随生育进程的推进增加迅速,直到成熟期仍维持较高水平,开花后根重持续时间长,且在深层土壤中的优势明显。在深40－100cm土层内根系重量1990s品种分别比1970s品种和1950s品种高出75％和1060％,当代品种根系在深层土壤中所占比率也明显增加;在距离植株0－10cm的水平范围内,当代玉米品种根系分布数量多、比率大。随玉米品种更替根系的空间分布呈“横向紧缩,纵向延伸”的特点。     

Microsatellite variability in apricots (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Prunus armeniaca</Emphasis> L.) reflects their geographic origin and breeding history

A collection of 133 apricot cultivars and three related species originating from different geographical regions were studied with 10 polymorphic microsatellite markers developed in apricot. Altogether, 133 alleles were identified in the set of accessions, with an average of 13.30 alleles per locus. Out of them, 32 alleles occurred only once in the investigated samples, especially in apricots originating from different eco-geographic groups or in different species. The observed heterozygosity for individual loci ranged from 0.8636 to 0.3182, with an average of 0.6281. An unweighted pair group method with arithmetic mean dendrogram based on Nei's genetic distance grouped the accessions according to their eco-geographical origin and/or their pedigree information. Central Asian cultivars have a distinct position on the dendrogram, which supports the assumption that most cultivars have an Asian ancestor. Most East European cultivars analysed cluster together, and the data even revealed a few synonyms. Results show that American cultivars have not only European germ plasm in their pedigree, but they have also been enriched with germ plasm of Asian origin. The implications of these data for the use of simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers as a tool for fingerprinting cultivars in breeders' rights protection and apricot breeding are discussed. In this paper, we demonstrate for the first time the variability of apricot SSRs in a large collection of apricot cultivars and closely related species.     

Molecular characterization and similarity relationships among apricot ( Prunus armeniaca L.) genotypes using simple sequence repeats

A collection of 48 apricot genotypes, originated from diverse geographic areas, have been screened with 37 SSR primer pairs developed in different species of Prunus in order to identify and characterize the genotypes and establish their genetic relations. Thirty one of those primer pairs resulted in correct amplifications and 20 produced polymorphic repeatable amplification patterns with the 48 genotypes studied. A total of 82 alleles were detected for the 20 loci. All the genotypes studied could be unequivocally distinguished with the combination of SSRs used. The results obtained evidence for the cross-species transportability of microsatellite sequences, allowing the discrimination among different genotypes of a given fruit-tree species with sequences developed in other species. UPGMA cluster analysis of the similarity data grouped the genotypes studied according to their geographic origin and/or their pedigree information. Received: 5 April 2001 / Accepted: 4 May 2001     

Distribution of the Predatory Mite Typhlodromus pyri (Acari: Phytoseiidae) on Different Apple Cultivars

The effect of apple cultivar on the distribution of the predatory mite Typhlodromus pyri was studied in an experimental orchard where spider mites occurred at negligible densities. Seven apple scab-resistant cultivars, showing some differences in their leaf morphology, were considered. In particular, their leaf blade was classified according to four levels of pubescence. The distribution of T. pyri along the shoots was also studied. In the first experimental year the colonization of different cultivars by T. pyri showed definite patterns, sometimes influenced by the occurrence of eriophyids. One year later, T. pyri abundance again showed some differences among cultivars in conditions of prey scarcity. In both years large phytoseiid populations were recorded on the cultivar N.Y. 18491, despite the low eriophyid occurrence, probably because of its highly pubescent leaf undersurfaces. In contrast, Prima and TSR 29T219, characterized by slightly pubescent leaf undersurfaces, supported low phytoseiid densities independently of prey availability.