Nuclear magnetic resonance studies of the location and function of plant nutrients in vivo

The cytoplasmic and vacuolar pools of ammonium, inorganic phosphate and potassium can be studied non-invasively in plant tissues using high resolution nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The techniques that allow these pools to be discriminated in vivo are described and their application to plants is reviewed with reference to the phosphorus, nitrogen and potassium nutrition of root tissues.     

Fitness costs associated with Cry1F resistance in the European corn borer

Crops producing insecticidal toxins derived from the bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) are widely planted to manage insect pests. Bt crops can provide an effective tool for pest management; however, the evolution of Bt resistance can diminish this benefit. The European corn borer, Ostrinia nubilalis Hübner, is a significant pest of maize and is widely managed with Bt maize in the Midwest of the United States. When Bt crops are grown in conjunction with non‐Bt refuges, fitness costs of Bt resistance can delay the evolution of resistance. Importantly, fitness costs often vary with ecological factors, including host‐plant genotype and diapause. In this study, we examined fitness costs associated with Cry1F resistance in O. nubilalis when insects were reared on three maize lines. Fitness costs were tested in two experiments. One experiment assessed the fitness costs when Cry1F‐resistant and Cry1F‐susceptible insects were reared on plants as larvae and experienced diapause. The second experiment tested resistant, susceptible and F1 heterozygotes that were reared on plants but did not experience diapause. Despite some evidence of greater adult longevity for Cry1F‐resistant insects, these insects produced fewer fertile eggs than Cry1F‐susceptible insects, and this occurred independent of diapause. Reduced fecundity was not detected among heterozygous individuals, which indicated that this fitness cost was recessive. Additionally, maize lines did not affect the magnitude of this fitness cost. The lower fitness of Cry1F‐resistant O. nubilalis may contribute to the maintenance of Cry1F susceptibility in field populations more than a decade after Cry1F maize was commercialized.     

基于地理和气象要素的春玉米生育期栅格化方法

本文以黄河流域春玉米生育期和气象站点气象数据为主要数据源,采用多元逐步回归法分析了各生育期和经度、纬度、海拔高度、降水、年均温、≥10℃积温和日照时数等影响因子的关系,建立逐步回归方程,对各生育期空间栅格化方法进行了探讨,结果表明：（1）生育期空间拟合插值的统计检验说明春玉米“播种期”、“抽雄期”和“收获期”三个时期模拟效果最好,“拔节期”效果精度相对较好;（2）播种期基本满足从西南到东北延后的变化趋势,而拔节期、抽雄期和收获期基本上表现了从南北向中部、中部向东西两侧延后的现象。本研究得到的生育期与地理和气象要素之间的逐步回归方程,可为气候条件变化下作物生育期栅格化模拟试验以及农业生产应该采取的适应机制研究提供一定的依据。     

Response of Three Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi to Simulated Acid Rain and Aluminium Stress

Simulated acid rain (SAR) combined with higher concentration of aluminium (SAR+Al) influenced the ecophysiology of three arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) in both the germination and symbiotic phases of their life cycle. Acaulospora tuberculata, an isolate from the soil with low pH, exhibited a higher tolerance to environmental stress as compared to Glomus mosseae and G. fistulosum. This higher tolerance may be related to the edaphic conditions of soil of the isolate origin. The histochemical staining of the alkaline phosphatase and NADH-diaphorase activities in the extraradical mycelium (ERM) of the AMF proved to be more sensitive indication of negative effects of the SAR or SAR+Al stress compared to commonly measured parameters of the AMF such as mycorrhizal colonisation or growth of the ERM. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Studies on mobilization of chromium with reference to its plant availability – Role of organic acids

Metal-organic acid interactions with special reference to their plant availability have been studied. The role of organic acids in the mobilization of Cr by converting it into labile organically bound form, enhancing its availability, is highlighted. Pot experiments are conducted to investigate the effect of various organic acids on the uptake and translocation of root absorbed trivalent and hexavalent chromium by maize (z. mays) plants grown in sand and soil culture. Statistically significant increases in chromium accumulation from CrIII-treated plants in the presence of increasing concentrations of organic acid suggest the existence of CrIII – organic acid interactions in the soil plant system. In order to support the above mentioned hypothesis of formation of organically bound CrIII in the presence of various organic acids (carboxylic and amino acids), separate experiments have been performed to synthesize and estimate its respective organically bound forms. Amendments with organic acids, however, do not appear to markedly affect chromium accumulation from CrVI treatment. The results are discussed on the basis of the potential of organic acids to form complexes with CrIII.     

Identification of a calmodulin-stimulated (Ca2++ Mg2+)-ATPase in a plasma membrane fraction isolated from maize (Zea mays) leaves

Plasma membranes were isolated from light-grown, 14-day-old maize leaves ( Zea mays L . cv. Golden Cross Bantam) using aqueous two-phase partitioning. The plasma membrane (PM) fraction contained < 0.3% of the total chlorophyll, < 0.2% of the mitochondrial marker enzyme activity, minimal contamination by endomembranes and 34% of the total PM.
A calmodulin-stimulated (Ca2++ Mg2+)-ATPase was identified in the PM-enriched fraction. The Ca2++ calmodulin stimulation was dependent on Mg2+, saturated at ca 25 μM total Ca2+, had a pH maximum at 7.2 and was maximally stimulated by 600 n M bovine brain calmodulin. The stimulation was not greatly affected by the anion present and showed a divalent cation specificity of Ca2+ > Sr+2 ± Mn+2 > Co2+± Cu2+ > Ba2+. The napthalenesulfonamide W7, an antagonist of calmodulin action, completely inhibited the calmodulin stimulation at 175 μM , while the less active analogue W5 was ineffective at this concentration. La3+, an inhibitor of PM Ca2+ transport, showed a 50% inhibition of calmodulin-stimulated ATPase activity at ca 200 μM . Taken as a whole, these data demonstrate the presence of a calmodulinstimulated, (Ca2++ Mg2+)-ATPase on the cytoplasmic surface of the plasma membrane of maize leaf cells.     

Temporal changes in allele frequencies in two European F2 flint maize populations under modified recurrent full-sib selection

Selection and random genetic drift are the two main forces affecting the selection response of recurrent selection (RS) programs by changes in allele frequencies. Therefore, detailed knowledge on allele frequency changes attributable to these forces is of fundamental importance for assessing RS programs. The objectives of our study were to (1) estimate the number, position, and genetic effect of quantitative trait loci (QTL) for selection index and its components in the base populations, (2) determine changes in allele frequencies of QTL regions due to the effects of random genetic drift and selection, and (3) predict allele frequency changes by using QTL results and compare these predictions with observed values. We performed QTL analyses, based on restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs) and simple sequence repeats (SSRs), in 274 F_2:3 lines of cross KW1265 × D146 (A × B) and 133 F_3:4 lines of cross D145 × KW1292 (C × D) originating from two European flint maize populations. Four (A × B) and seven (C × D) cycles of RS were analyzed with SSRs for significant allele frequency changes due to selection. Several QTL regions for selection index were detected with simple and composite interval mapping. In some of them, flanking markers showed a significant allele frequency change after the first and the final selection cycles. The correlation between observed and predicted allele frequencies was significant only in A × B. We attribute these observations mainly to (1) the high dependence of the power of QTL detection on the population size and (2) the occurrence of undetectable QTL in repulsion phase. Assessment of allele frequency changes in RS programs can be used to detect marker alleles linked to QTL regions under selection pressure. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Biodiversity of Fusarium species in Mexico associated with ear rot in maize, and their identification using a phylogenetic approach

Fusarium proliferatum, F. subglutinans, and F. verticillioides are known causes of ear and kernel rot in maize worldwide. In Mexico, only F. verticillioides and F. subglutinans, have been reported previously as causal agents of this disease. However, Fusarium isolates with different morphological characteristics to the species that are known to cause this disease were obtained in the Highland-Valley region of this country from symptomatic and symptomless ears of native and commercial maize genotypes. Moreover, while the morphological studies were not sufficient to identify the correct taxonomic position at the species level, analyses based in the Internal Transcribed Spacer region and the Nuclear Large Subunit Ribosomal partial sequences allowed for the identification of F. subglutinans, F. solani, and F. verticillioides, as well as four species (F. chlamydosporum, F. napiforme, F. poae, and F. pseudonygamai) that had not previously been reported to be associated with ear rot. In addition, F. napiforme and F. solani were absent from symptomless kernels. Phylogenetic analysis showed genetic changes in F. napiforme, and F. pseudonygamai isolates because they were not true clones, and probably constitute separate sibling species. The results of this study suggest that the biodiversity of Fusarium species involved in ear rot in Mexico is greater than that reported previously in other places in the world. This new knowledge will permit a better understanding of the relationship between all the species involved in ear rot disease and their relationship with maize.