Diel changes in the CO2 exchange rates of reproductive organs of the tropical tree Durio zibethinus

The daily variations in the in situ CO₂ exchange of the reproductive organs of Durio zibethinus trees, growing in an experimental field at University Putra Malaysia (UPM), were examined at different growth stages. Reproductive organs emerged on the leafless portions of branches inside the crown. The photon flux densities (PFD) in the chambers used for the measurements were less than 100 mol m^–2 s^–1 and were 40% of the PFD outside of the crown. The daytime net respiration rate and the nighttime dark respiration rate were higher at the time of flower initiation and during the mixed stages, when flower buds, flowers, and fruit coexist, than at the flower bud stage. The net respiration rate was lower than the daytime dark respiration rate at given temperatures, especially at the flower bud and fruit stages. Conversely, the net respiration rate was similar to the daytime dark respiration rate at the mixed stage. Photosynthetic CO₂ refixation reduced the daily respiratory loss by 17, 5, 0.3, and 24% at the flower bud, flower initiation, mixed, and fruit stages, respectively.     

魁蚶幼贝对筒柱藻滤食效应的初步研究

采用实验生态学方法和"捕食者-猎物"的捕食模型,研究了黑暗条件下魁蚶(Anadara broughtonii)幼贝对筒柱藻(Cylindrotheca fusiformis)的滤食效应,测定了5种藻液浓度(30×107~150×107cells/L)及4个温度梯度(10℃、15℃、20℃和25℃)下魁蚶对饵料生物的滤食能力、功能反应类型和滤藻效应特征,并分别建立Holling圆盘方程。同时研究了水温20℃时魁蚶个体间的滤食干扰反应,建立了藻液浓度和魁蚶自身密度的联合反应方程。实验发现,水温20℃条件下,魁蚶幼贝对筒柱藻的平均滤食速率随着藻液浓度的增加而显著增大(P0.05),且0~4 h时段内的滤食速率显著高于其他时段。魁蚶滤食筒柱藻的功能反应属Holling-Ⅱ型,拟合圆盘方程为Na=1.0195N_0/1+0.002039N_0滤食功能系数为1.019 5,极限法推出壳长30~35 mm的魁蚶对筒柱藻的日均最大滤食量约为500×107 cells/L;10~25℃条件下,魁蚶的平均滤食速率和滤食功能反应系数随温度升高呈现先升高后下降的变化趋势,并于20℃时达到最大值,推测20℃是其最佳摄食温度。魁蚶的滤食效应存在较强的个体间干扰反应,平均滤食量和滤食作用率均随幼贝密度的增加而下降,且魁蚶滤食筒柱藻的功能反应与幼贝密度的关系可用幂函数方程E=0.730 8P﹣1.068表示,由此建立了魁蚶幼贝密度与筒柱藻藻液浓度之间的联合反应方程N_a=0.7451P~(-0.0684)N_0/1+0.0020N0。结果表明,水温20℃时,魁蚶幼贝具有较强的潜在滤食能力,其平均滤食量和滤食作用率与幼贝密度间存在明显的"负密度效应"特征。     

过表达VHA-c4和VHA-c5基因对拟南芥根长的影响

为研究液泡H+-ATPase c亚基VHA-c4和VHA-c5基因在植物生长发育过程中的作用,本研究构建了拟南芥VHA-c4和VHA-c5过表达载体并转化野生型拟南芥,分别获得9个和7个T2代转基因纯合体株系。采用半定量RT-PCR方法对过表达VHA-c4和VHA-c5的转基因纯合体进行阳性鉴定,发现其mRNA表达量均高于对照。对转基因纯合体进行暗培养和正常光照培养,结果显示,黑暗条件下,所有VHA-c4转基因株系的主根变短,而在正常光照下,所有VHA-c5转基因株系的主根变短,推测VHA-c4和VHA-c5分别在黑暗和光照条件下影响植物根的生长。用ABA和糖(葡萄糖和蔗糖)处理转基因纯合体,结果显示它们与野生型的表型无明显差异,表明VHA-c4和VHA-c5基因的过表达没有影响拟南芥对ABA和糖的响应。     

Photosynthetic light acclimation in two rainforest Piper species with different ecological amplitudes

Summary Piper auritum (H.B. & K.), a pioneer tree restricted to open sites and Piper hispidum (Swartz), a shrub common in sites ranging from recent clearings to shaded understory, both adjust photosynthetic characteristics in response to light availability during growth. The sensitivity of photosynthetic capacity to light availability during growth was indistinguishable for the two species growing in their natural habitat. Photosynthetic capacity was strongly correlated with leaf nitrogen in both species, and the relationship was similar between species. Dark respiration and leaf specific mass were more sensitive to light during growth in P. hispidum, the species with the broad habitat ange, than in P. auritum. In general, similarities between the species were more striking than differences between them. The differences in dark respiration could have important implications for carbon balance. The difference in the responsiveness of leaf specific mass to light indicates that the broad-ranging species maintains access to modes of response little utilized by the open-site specialist. We did not and, in the gas exchange characteristics, any evidence that the open site specialist is better suited than the generalist to high-light sites.This CIW DPB publication number 962     

Internode length in Pisum. Comparison of genotypes in the light and dark

There is a strong relationship across the full range of gibberellin deficient, internode length genotypes ( le, lh, is, na ) between internode length in the dark and in red or white light. Further, the new, more severe allele at the le locus. Ie ^d, is shown to influence growth in the dark as well as in the light. These results suggest that darkeness does not specifically overcome any of the steps blocked by the gibberellin (GA) synthesis genes contrasting with the conclusions drawn by other workers. Supporting this conclusion in relation to the Ie gene are results which show that, at least at certain dosage rates, dark-grown Ie na plants respond better to GA₁ than to GA₂₀ similar to the response previously reported in light grown plants.
The greater response by plants of the nana line NGB1766 ( na ) to GA₁ in the dark than in the light suggests that light may influence internode length by altering GA-sensitivity. These results are discussed in relation to previous views on the control of stem elongation by light.     

Nitrate reduction and compartmentation in tomato leaves. II. Nitrate loss by leaf sections in a gaseous atmosphere and the size of the metabolic nitrate pool

Nitrate disappearance in tomato ( (ycopersicon esculentum Mill. cv. Azes) leaf sections kept under a stream of gas (nitrogen or air) has been studied, using leaf sections from plants supplied with low (7.5 mM) or high (17.5 mM) nitrate levels in their nutrient solution. Cessation of nitrate loss occurred in leaf sections taken from plants irrigated with low (7.5 mM) nitrate-containing nutrient solution. Resumption of nitrate disappearance occurred upon addition of exogenous nitrate by vacuum infiltration to leaf sections, suggesting that cessation of nitrate loss was due to exhaustion of the metabolic pool. We estimated that 53% of the total nitrate in leaf sections from low nitrate plants was located in a storage pool, probably the vacuole. The remainder was located in a pool, readily available for reduction (the metabolic pool). This pool is composed of nitrate in the free space as well as in the cytoplasm which was estimated to contain about 20% of the total nitrate.
Either under air or nitrogen, less nitrite was accumulated than nitrate assimilated suggesting that nitrite accumulation was not an adequate parameter for the estimation of nitrate utilization. Anaerobic conditions inhibited nitrite reduction whereas nitrate assimilation was not blocked. Nitrate loss from endogenous pool in leaf sections placed under aerobic conditions is suggested as an adequate method for the estimation of the metabolic pool of nitrate.     

Competition between inoculum and native rhizobia for nodulation of cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L) Walp): Use of a dark-nodule strain

Summary Cowpea rhizobia strains were examined with indigenous populations in nodulating cowpea (Vigna unguiculata (L) Walp) cv. Laura B. strain IRC256 formed dark nodules on cowpea, and were used as the standard against orthodox pink-nodule strains in evaluating nodulating competitiveness. The dark nodule phenotype and intrinsic antibiotic resistance pattern were used to identify the strains in the nodules. Our results showed the usefulness of the dark-nodule strain in evaluating nodulating competitiveness of cowpea rhizobia in soils where dark-nodule strains were not indigenous.     

The contribution of mitochondria to energetic metabolism in photosynthetic cells

Mitochondria fulfill important functions in photosynthetic cells not only in darkness but also in light. Mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation is probably the main mechanism to supply ATP for extrachloroplastic functions in both conditions. Furthermore, during photosynthesis mitochondrial electron transport is important for regulation of the redox balance in the cell. This makes mitochondrial function an integral part of a flexible metabolic system in the photosynthetic cell. This flexibility is probably very important in order to allow the metabolism to override disturbances caused by the changing environment which plants are adapted to.     

Responses of fungal root colonization,plant cover and leaf nutrients to long‐term exposure to elevated atmospheric CO2 and warming in a subarctic birch forest understory

Responses of the mycorrhizal fungal community in terrestrial ecosystems to global change factors are not well understood. However, virtually all land plants form symbiotic associations with mycorrhizal fungi, with approximately 20% of the plants' net primary production transported down to the fungal symbionts. In this study, we investigated how ericoid mycorrhiza (ErM), fine endophytes (FE) and dark septate endophytes (DSE) in roots responded to elevated atmospheric CO₂ concentrations and warming in the dwarf shrub understory of a birch forest in the subarctic region of northern Sweden. To place the belowground results into an ecosystem context we also investigated how plant cover and nutrient concentrations in leaves responded to elevated atmospheric CO₂ concentrations and warming. The ErM colonization in ericaceous dwarf shrubs increased under elevated atmospheric CO₂ concentrations, but did not respond to warming following 6 years of treatment. This suggests that the higher ErM colonization under elevated CO₂ might be due to increased transport of carbon belowground to acquire limiting resources such as N, which was diluted in leaves of ericaceous plants under enhanced CO₂. The elevated CO₂ did not affect total plant cover but the plant cover was increased under warming, which might be due to increased N availability in soil. FE colonization in grass roots decreased under enhanced CO₂ and under warming, which might be due to increased root growth, to which the FE fungi could not keep up, resulting in proportionally lower colonization. However, no responses in aboveground cover of Deschampsia flexuosa were seen. DSE hyphal colonization in grass roots significantly increased under warmer conditions, but did not respond to elevated CO₂. This complex set of responses by mycorrhizal and other root‐associated fungi to global change factors of all the fungal types studied could have broad implications for plant community structure and biogeochemistry of subarctic ecosystems.