Molecular Characterization of a Barley Gene Induced by Cold Treatment

A cDNA library was made from low positive temperature (6 ?C/2?C) grown barley shoot meristems. Several genes which are differentiallyexpressed, as measured by mRNA abundance, were selected fromthe library using a differential screen. This paper reportsan analysis of in vivo expression in several cultivars, theDNA sequence, copy number and chromosomal location of one gene(BLT14). In addition, genomic restriction fragment length polymorphismfor this gene in the 10 most widely UK-grown spring and 9 mostwidely UK-grown winter barley cultivars is analysed. Key words: Hordeum vulgare, low temperature, RFLP, differential expression, cDNA sequence     

The Production of Leaves and Stolon Branches on Established White Clover Cuttings in Relation to Temperature and Soil Moisture in the Field

Successive sets of cuttings of three white clover genotypeswere raised in a 15 °C growth room and transferred to thefield at 14 d intervals over the course of a year. Rates ofleaf appearance (leaves per stolon growing point per unit time)were found to be closely correlated with 10 cm soil temperatures.Petiole lengths, and weights of the lamina+petiole increasedin May and decreased towards the end of August, but also exhibiteda marked response to a mid-season water deficit. In the conditionsof the experiment (i.e. in the absence of competition from neighbouringplants) the vast majority of axillary buds developed into visiblebranches at all times of the year. There was, however, an increasein the nodal age at which bud development was first observedin winter. Deferred bud development was also observed, particularlyin one genotype, during periods characterized by dry soil surfaceconditions. The results are discussed in relation to observedpatterns of stolon branching in sward conditions. White clover, Trifolium repens, axillary bud development, branching, growing points, leaf appearance rate, petiole length, soil moisture, soil temperature     

Male-like females, mimicry and transvestism in butterflies (Lepidoptera: Papilionidae)

Abstract. When a butterfly species has a polymorphic female, with one of the forms closely resembling the male, it is customary to suppose that this form is ancestral, and that the ‘odd’ forms have arisen later. R. I. Vane-Wright, on the other hand, has suggested that in some species the male-like form may be a ‘transvestite’ female, the ancestral form of the female having been strikingly unlike the male. As later-derived forms are usually, but not always, genetically dominant to ancestral forms, we can make some choice between these hypotheses by discovering the dominance relations of the male-like and the ‘odd’ forms of the female. In the mimetic Papilio aegeus the male-like form is shown to be recessive to the ‘odd’ (mimetic) form, as has essentially been the case in all other butterflies so far investigated. Papilio phorcas is now shown to be the exception: the ‘odd’ (non-mimetic) form is recessive to the male-like form. We conclude that usually the male-like form is ancestral, but that P.phorcas may be an authentic example of ‘transvestism’, or the ‘transfer’ of male epigamic colour to the female of the species. The yellow, male-like pattern of the mimetic Papilio dardanus may be dominant or recessive to the mimetic forms according to the genetic background: largely recessive in Madagascar, and southern and western Africa, dominant to most forms in Ethiopia, and probably dominant to one mimetic form but recessive to the others in Kenya. All female dardanus patterns, both mimetic and yellow, are strongly dominant to both female phorcas patterns in P. dardanus × P. phorcas hybrids (P. ‘nandina’). The simplest explanation of this situation is that the male-like pattern of dardanus is ancestral, and that dominance has become locally reversed in Ethiopia. The dominance relations, and the sex- or autosomal-linkage of two forms can be determined without pedigree-breeding, simply by observing a few offspring each from a large number of wild-caught females.     

A proposed framework for determining the environmental impact of replacing agricultural grassland with Miscanthus in Ireland

Energy crops offer an opportunity to substantially increase bioenergy resources which can replace rapidly depleting fossil fuel reserves and mitigate the effect of climate change. Energy crops are typically established within traditional agricultural systems such as tillage land or grassland. Associated land use conversion has environmental implications. The aim of this paper is to propose a framework to examine how such environmental implications can be assessed, based on (a) a Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) approach which considers potential impacts at different stages of a plan across a wide range of environmental receptors and (b) a literature review. The example we used was that of Miscanthus replacing grassland farming. This scenario is particularly relevant to Ireland, where over 90% of the agricultural land is permanent pasture, but is also applicable to grassland conversion throughout Europe and the United States. Two consecutive phases of land‐use change were identified for assessment, each with a distinct set of environmental impacts. The first was a transition phase, lasting from initial livestock clearance and grassland ploughing until the Miscanthus crop became established (2–3 years). The second phase was the mature crop phase, lasting up to 25 years. Miscanthus cultivation was more likely to impact negatively on the environment during the transition phase than the mature phase, primarily due to abrupt disturbance and the time required for a new equilibrium to establish. However, a literature review of the impact on the environmental receptors revealed that replacing Irish agricultural grassland with Miscanthus had the potential to improve biodiversity, water, air and soil quality, and climatic factors once the crop became established and reached maturity. In order to confirm these findings an appropriate monitoring programme involving objectives and indicators associated with each environmental receptor would need to be developed.