Ultrastructure ofCatharanthus roseus cells culturedin vitro and exposed to conditions for alkaloid accumulation

Summary Periwinkle (Catharanthus roseus) cells cultured in 1-B 5 medium display the ultrastructure of parenchyma cells. The parenchyma character remained unchanged when cells were exposed to any one of three different conditions effecting alkaloid accumulation. Transfer of cells to alkaloid production medium for 2 weeks (condition 1) accorded two special features,i.e., unusually big lipid droplets in the cytoplasm and, upon fixation, one or several electron-dense droplets of spongy precipitate in vacuoles. Among hormone-autotrophic cultures (condition 2) some cells showed a fine electron-dense vacuolar precipitate. Addition ofPhythium homogenate (fungal elicitor) to cells cultured in 1-B 5-medium for 10 days (condition 3), cells showed a frequent appearance of singular big lipid droplets in the cytoplasm, whereas vacuoles remained devoid of precipitate. The appearance of big lipid droplets and of vacuolar precipitate is interpreted as progressing cytodifferentiation, but is coincidental with alkaloid accumulation.NRCC no. 24524.     

Inheritance of resistance to potato y viruses in Phaseolus vulgaris L

Summary Resistance to watermelon mosaic virus-2 in Phaseolus vulgaris L. is conferred by two distinct dominant alleles at independent loci. Based on segregation data one locus is designated Wmv, the other, Hsw. The dominant allele Wmv from cv. Great Northern 1140 prevents systemic spread of the virus but viral replication occurs in inoculated tissue. In contrast, Hsw confers both local and systemic resistance to WMV-2 below 30C. At higher temperatures, plants that carry this allele in the absence of modifying or epistatic factors develop systemic veinal necrosis upon inoculation with the virus that results in rapid death. Patho-type specificity has not been demonstrated for either allele; both factors confer resistance to every isolate tested. A temperature-sensitive shift in epistasis is apparent between dominant alleles at these loci. Because Hsw is very tightly linked if not identical to the following genes for hypersensitivity to potyviruses I, (bean common mosaic virus), Bcm, (blackeye cowpea mosaic virus), Cam, (cowpea aphid-borne mosaic virus) and Hss (soybean mosaic virus), parental, reciprocal dihybrid F₁ populations, and selected F₃ families were inoculated with each of these viruses and held at 35 C. F₁ populations developed vascular necrosis completely or primarily limited to inoculated tissue, while F₃ families from WMV-2-susceptible segregates were uniformly susceptible to these viruses. The relationship between Hsw, Wmv and other genes for potyvirus resistance suggest patterns in the evolution of resistance and viral pathogenicity. Characterization of the resistance spectrum associated with each factor provides an additional criterion to distinguish genes for plant virus resistance.     

Environmental factors influencing the vertical migration of planktonic rotifers in a hypereutrophic tarn

The diel vertical migration of planktonic rotifers in a small, hypereutrophic tarn was investigated on four occasions in 1983. When the tarn was isothermal the rotifers were distributed throughout the water column. After stratification, the rotifers were confined to the top 1–2 m of oxygenated water. On all four dates the rotifers were aggregated at specific depths in the water column. On some occasions, the pattern of aggregation changed as the animals performed distinct diurnal migrations. Keratella cochlearis, K. quadrata and Polyarthra vulgaris usually followed the reverse migrations of the phytoplankton. In contrast, the movements of Anuraeopsis fissa were less pronounced and were associated with variations in the depth of the oxycline.     

Breeding system ofDaphniopsis ephemeralis: adaptations to a transient environment

Populations of the vernal cladoceranDaphniopsis ephemeralis are found in woodland ponds throughout southern Ontario. The species reproduces by cyclic parthenogenesis, and genotype frequencies at allozyme loci are ordinarily in good agreement with Hardy-Weinberg expectations. Occasional heterozygote deficiencies are apparently the consequence of admixture of ephippial hatchlings produced in temporally separated bouts of sexual reproduction. Considerable heterogeneity in genotypic frequencies exists among local populations in southwestern Ontario, indicating that gene flow among populations is restricted. Inbreeding coefficients suggest that populations receive an average of 0.3 migrants per generation. The completion of a sexual life cycle is made possible despite the brief persistence of populations by the emergence of males from ephippial eggs and by the production of equal numbers of male and female progeny in the first parthenogenetic brood.     

Daphnia size structure,vertical migration,and phosphorus redistribution

The timing and magnitude of diel migration in two daphnid assemblages were determined from a series of vertical profiles of daphnid size distribution. Animals were collected concurrently for gut fullness determination. Only large daphnids (> 1.4 mm) migrated, but these animals could account for substantial vertical and diel differences in phosphorus excretion rate. Gut fullness measurements and time courses of diel vertical migration suggested that large Daphnia can cause a net downward flux of phosphorus during summer in thermally stratified lakes.     

On the origin ofVeronica persica (Scrophulariaceae)—a contribution to the history of a neophytic weed

A character analysis reveals a clearly intermediate position of the tetraploidV. persica (2n = 28) between the two diploid speciesV. polita andV. ceratocarpa (both 2n = 14) which are morphologically rather different and have been placed by several authors in different sections of the genus.V. ceratocarpa is native to subhumid deciduous forests of the Caucasus and of the Elburz mountains (N. Iran);V. polita has its centre of variation in the Elburz range where it grows in therophyte habitats. Three other closely related species,V. bungei, V. siaretensis, andV. francispetae, are endemic to the Elburz range which is the main centre of diversity and variability of theV. agrestis group. This comprises all the above mentioned species and also two more European weeds:V. agrestis andV. opaca. Veronica polita, was probably originally native to open places in deciduous mountain forests, before becoming a weed in neolithic times and migrating to Europe; nowadays it has an almost world-wide distribution. The allotetraploidV. persica combines the ecological characters of its parents, the slightly xerophyticV. polita and the more mesophyticV. ceratocarpa, thus being preadapted to become a highly successful weed with a large ecological range. It has spread rapidly almost all over the world since the early 19th century.Dedicated to Hofrat Univ.-Prof. DrKarl Heinz Rechinger on the occasion of the 80th anniversary of his birthday.     

芦苇胚性愈伤组织的形成及植株的再生

以芦苇种子为外植体,其愈伤组织的诱导率最高。叶鞘和叶片不发生脱分化。培养基中最合适的蔗糖浓度为4%。维生素 B 类、肌醇对愈伤组织的生长起促进作用。而酵母提取物对愈伤组织的诱导和生长具有明显的抑制作用。这种抑制效应,将随酵母提取物浓度的提高而增大。愈伤组织的继代培养,随培养基中2,4-D 浓度的提高,其平均鲜重明显降低。脱分化培养基中2,4-D 浓度对胚性愈伤组织的诱导形成具有一定的相关性。胚性愈伤组织经30代继代培养依然具有90%的分化频率,只是每块愈伤组织的分化苗数减少。反之,非胚性愈伤组织则完全丧失形态发生的能力。对两类愈伤组织进行扫描电镜的观察,发现其表面结构有很大差异。其过氧化物酶、酯酶同工酶谱以及可溶性蛋白的含量均有明显的差别。     

水翁花蕾和水翁叶精油的化学成分研究

水翁的花营和鲜叶经水蒸汽蒸馏得到一种淡黄色的精油,前者出油率为0.18％。后者为0.08％。我们应用毛细管气相色谱,气相色谱/质谱联用,红外光谱和紫外光谱等方法,对两种精油进行化学分成分析,分别鉴定出35个和27个已知化学成分。两者相同的化学成分有:β-罗勒烯(Z)、β-罗勒烯(E)、α-蒎烯、β-蒎烯、月桂烯、小茴香烯、香叶醇、顺式-丁香烯、橙花叔醇等23个化学成分,分别占花营精油全油的90％和叶精油95％以上。     

光质对一品红叶离体培养中形态发生及生化变化的影响

本文讨论了将光质应用于一品红(Euphorbia pulcherrima)大规模细胞繁殖及形态发生调控的可行性,并测定了一些形态及生化指标作为这种调控的参数。 以一品红试管苗的叶片作为外植体,置于MS培养基中并分别培养于白(W)、红(R)、黄(Y)、蓝(B)、绿(G)色光及黑暗(D)下,一个月后进行测定。蓝光和黄光明显促进出苗。而愈伤组织形成的情况则正相反,红光利于愈伤组织的形成,黄光效果最差。过氧化物酶、过氧化氢酶活力及蛋白质、RNA、碳水化合物的含量与愈伤组织形成有较为一致的关系,但与分化不直接相关。 实验中还测定了叶绿素a、叶绿素b及类胡萝卜素的含量。白光与蓝光均能促进叶绿素及类胡萝卜素的合成,但蓝光中chl b/chl a的比率较高。此外,本文尚涉及暗处理中的晶质化现象(vitrification)及其成因。     

How important is seed predation to recruitment in stable populations of long-lived perennials?

Summary The many evolutionary modifications to seed biology in response to seed predation do not necessarily imply that seed predators have an important impact on population recruitment. This is because competition between individual plants for rare safe sites can cause an oversupply of seeds so far as a population is concerned. The importance of seed losses to population recruitment at any point in time is related to the abundance of safe sites (Fig. 1): it is zero when safe sites are absent, negligible when safe sites are rare, and greatest when safe sites are numerous enough for recruitment to be limited by seed supply. Here I interpret the impact of severe seed losses on population recruitment in four species of long-lived perennials (Eucalyptus baxteri, Leptospermum juniperinum, Casuarina pusilla and L. myrsinoides) by considering these losses in terms of the overall seed dynamics of the populations. I focus on seed supply and seedling survival, as a measure of the current abundance of safe sites, and the maintenance of seed banks, as a measure of the ability of populations to exploit any future changes in safe site abundance. Insect seed predators destroyed about 95% of total seeds in each case. However, these losses do not necessarily have an important impact on population recruitment, because: (i) in most years recruitment appears to be limited by a rarity of safe sites, and not by seed supply (which was as high as 43 germinable seeds/m²/yr); and (ii) the losses did not prevent the establishment of large seed banks (ranging from >30 to >1000 viable seeds/m²) potentially capable of exploiting temporary conditions favourable for recruitment. In contrast to the situation with many annual plants, patterns of recruitment in stable populations of long-lived perennials are often extremely complex, and the significance of seed losses therefore difficult to determine.