The potential for the Rapid Screening of Potato Cultivars (Solanum tuberosum) for Resistance to Powdery Scab (Spongospora subterranea) using a Laboratory Bioassay

Powdery scab of potato, once established in a field, is difficult to control because of the longevity of the resting spores (cystosori) of the causal organism, Spongospora subterranea f.sp. subterranea. Host resistance is likely to be the most efficient in a long-term control strategy for preventing build-up of field inoculum and spread of the disease. Resistance screening of potato cultivars is mostly done in laborious field trials where disease development is likely to be unpredictable. A bioassay with potato tissue cultured plantlets and cystosori as inoculum is described and was tested for its potential to screen potato cultivars at an early stage for their relative susceptibility to powdery scab by comparing the lab results with field data. With cystosori inoculum of Swiss origin, the laboratory test showed clear differences between the potato cultivars in the severity of zoosporangial root infection which correlated better with ranked tuber infection data, compared to root galling. There are apparent differences in the relative trends in susceptibility between roots and tubers of five selected cultivars when using naturally infested soil instead of prepared cystosori as inoculum in the lab bioassay. Furthermore, differences in the severity of zoosporangial root infection of two selected cultivars were found when cystosori from different countries where used as inoculum. A possible host genotype × pathogen interaction is discussed. The bioassay has the potential to screen and select for resistant material at an early breeding stage thus making field trials not unnecessary but more economical. It will allow the use of a standard set of pathogen collections and facilitate testing for inoculum virulence in infested soils.     

Resistance to Botrytis cinerea in Solanum lycopersicoides is Dominant in Hybrids with Tomato, and Involves induced Hyphal Death

Botrytis cinerea causes gray mold disease and affects hundreds of plant species, including tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum). The wild nightshade, Solanum lycopersicoides, is cross compatible with tomato and is more resistant to B. cinerea, thus representing a potential source for crop improvement. Tests involving droplet inoculation of detached leaves and spray inoculation of entire seedlings demonstrated that resistance to B. cinerea varies among S. lycopersicoides accessions, with S. lycopersicoides LA2951 being the most resistant accession tested. Expression of resistance in the intergeneric hybrid (L. esculentum cv. 'VF36' × S. lycopersicoides LA2951) suggested that resistance is at least partially dominant in tomato. A green fluorescent protein-tagged B. cinerea strain was used for confocal microscopic comparison of infection in leaves of S. lycopersicoides and tomato. Even though S. lycopersicoides supported spore germination, there was evidence for hyphal lysis and death 3 days after inoculation, at a time when lesions were expanding on susceptible tomato plants. The reduced frequency of B. cinerea lesion spread on S. lycopersicoides explains why this fungus produced fewer spores in this wild nightshade than in tomato.     

The salicylic acid-dependent defence pathway is effective against different pathogens in tomato and tobacco

The role of salicylic acid (SA) was investigated in basal defence and induced resistance to powdery mildew ( Oidium neolycopersici ) and grey mould ( Botrytis cinerea ) in tomato ( Lycopersicon esculentum ) and tobacco ( Nicotiana tabacum ). A comparison of NahG transgenic tomato and tobacco (unable to accumulate SA) to their respective wild types revealed that in tomato, SA was not involved in basal defence against O. neolycopersici but NahG tobacco showed an enhanced susceptibility to O. neolycopersici infection, the effect becoming more obvious as the plants grew older. In contrast, SA played no role in the basal defence of tobacco against B. cinerea , but seemed to contribute to basal defence of tomato against B. cinerea. Activation of the SA-dependent defence pathway via benzothiadiazole (BTH) resulted in induced resistance against O. neolycopersici in tobacco but not in tomato. Microscopic analysis revealed that BTH treatment could prevent penetration of the Oidium germ tube through tobacco leaves, whereas penetration was successful on tomato leaves irrespective of BTH treatment. In contrast, soil or leaf treatment with BTH induced resistance against B. cinerea in tomato but not in tobacco. It is concluded that the SA-dependent defence pathway is effective against different pathogens in tomato and tobacco.     

植物空间诱变育种及其在牧草上的应用

近年来,空间诱变育种已成为空间生命科学研究方面的重要内容之一,即经过卫星搭载,生物在高真空、微重力、强辐射及其他因素的综合作用下产生变异,经过地面选育、筛选和固定变异,培育新品种.在植物方面,国内外已利用该技术培育了粮食作物、经济作物、花卉及菌类等高产、优质新品种(系).空间诱变育种技术开创了育种的又一新途径,其在牧草育种的应用还不多,但前景广阔.     

植物育种的物理学方法

介绍了草原生态恢复中选育优良牧草种子的一些物理学方法,包括电场、磁场、物理辐射、激光、离子束和交变应力等在植物的生物学效应、诱变育种和转基因技术中的应用.     

狗牙根辐射诱变后代外部性状变异分析

对1997-2002年经过辐射诱变得到的狗牙根诱变后代的6个坪用性状指标的统计分析结果表明,1)不同的辐射诱变剂量处理的后代间坪用性状有显著差异,尤其在节间直径和密度上,6 800 rads处理的后代节间都比9 000 rads处理的后代粗,而密度是前者低于后者,2种剂量处理都可以显著降低草层高度;2)不同辐射诱变代数的后代间存在着差异,原始种源进行多代的辐射诱变,可以使得叶片显著变窄,草层高度显著降低,节间变细变长; 3)同一材料在相同辐射剂量诱变处理后匍匐茎不同节之间也存在显著的差异.     

ob基因及其表达产物的生物学效应

ob基因自从被克隆后,围绕其表达产物的作用机理和生物学效应进行了大量的研究,最近研究证明Leptin对小鼠大脑发育有重要功能,标志着Leptin的研究进入了一个新的阶段,今后将从单一的营养调控研究转向兼顾神经生物学的研究,更深入研究Leptin作用机理。同时国内外学者从分子领域探究ob基因在畜禽育种上的作用,做了很多的工作,也取得了重要的成果。本文总结了ob基因的重要生物学效应,为理解ob基因的作用机制和进一步研究人类肥胖治疗和提高动物生长繁殖性状水平提供必要的支持。     

优质肉鸡繁育体系的效益评估

近十多年来，我国优质肉鸡的生产方兴未艾，许多育种公司和科研院所不断推出新品系。为充分发挥新品系的遗传潜力，探求优质肉鸡最佳的繁育生产模式具有重要意义。由于不同的品系及其杂种后代在不同的性状上各有优缺点，很难用生产性能进行直接比较，而适合用育种规划的方法通过经济学指标进行评价。系统分析通过把生产系统抽象概念化并用数学手段模型化的方法，     

中国牧草育种研究进展

综述了我国牧草种质资源、生物技术、新品种培育、良种繁育等方面的研究进展,分析了我国牧草育种研究中存在的优异牧草种质资源匮乏、育种方法较为落后、良繁体系不健全等问题,并提出了加强基础研究、完善国家牧草种质资源、牧草遗传育种及良繁体系建设的建议。     

隐性白肉鸡羽速自别雌雄系的选育(1)

本研究根据现代遗传学基因测交理论,共用32只表型慢羽公鸡与245只快羽母鸡组成测交试验.结果表明,所测的32只公鸡无一只为纯合慢羽基因型.但发现测交后代的快慢羽分布比例与孟德尔遗传上的分离定律完全吻合.同时通过混合精液输精,实施扩群繁育,其中选留慢羽种母雏1460只,表型慢羽种公雏150只,从而为建立隐性白鸡慢羽系奠定了基础.