Age-related changes in ecosystem structure and function and effects on water and carbon exchange in ponderosa pine

As forests age, their structure and productivity change, yet in some cases, annual rates of water loss remain unchanged. To identify mechanisms that might explain such observations, and to determine if widely different age classes of forests differ functionally, we examined young (Y, approximately 25 years), mature (M, approximately 90 years) and old (O, approximately 250 years) ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa Dougl. ex P. Laws.) stands growing in a drought-prone region of central Oregon. Although the stands differed in tree leaf area index (LAIT) (Y = 0.9, M = 2.8, O = 2.1), cumulative tree transpiration measured by sap flow did not differ substantially during the growing season (100-112 mm). Yet when water was readily available, transpiration per unit leaf area of the youngest trees was about three times that of M trees and five times that of O trees. These patterns resulted from a nearly sixfold difference in leaf specific conductance (KL) between the youngest and oldest trees. At the time of maximum transpiration in the Y stand in May-June, gross carbon uptake (gross ecosystem production, GEP) was similar for Y and O stands despite an almost twofold difference in stand leaf area index (LAIS). However, the higher rate of water use by Y trees was not sustainable in the drought-prone environment, and between spring and late summer, KL of Y trees declined fivefold compared with a nearly twofold decline for M trees and a < 30% reduction in O trees. Because the Y stand contained a significant shrub understory and more exposed soil, there was no appreciable difference in mean daily latent energy fluxes between the Y stand and the older stands as measured by the eddy-covariance technique. These patterns resulted in 60 to 85% higher seasonal GEP and 55 to 65% higher water-use efficiency at the M and O stands compared with the Y stand.     

Identification of resistance to Aspergillus flavus infection in cotton germplasm

Natural resistance in cottonseed to Aspergillus flavus infection has not been explored to date. A green fluorescent protein (GFP) expressing A. flavus strain was used to assess the resistance of seed from 35 cotton varieties from Gossypium arboreum, G. barbadense, and G. hirsutum. Mature cotyledons devoid of seed coat were wounded, inoculated, and assessed for innate resistance to A. flavus infection. Of the initial 35 varieties tested, we observed a range of resistance to infection in representatives of all three species. A subset of 15 representatives was further analyzed. Within this group, G. arboreum cultivar A2 186 and G. hirsutum cultivar SA 1582 were most resistant to fungal infection. The most susceptible cultivar in this group was G. hirsutum SA 1595. The remaining 12 representatives tested in the secondary screen (3 G. arboreum, 3 G. barbadense, and 6 G. hirsutum lines) exhibited intermediate resistance. We did not observe any relationship between species and resistance. Within each species, there was a range of responses to fungal infection. Future studies using this methodology to screen additional diploid and tetraploid cotton lines may enable us to identify naturally resistant germplasm that can be used to develop cotton with enhanced resistance to fungal infection.     

Genetic analysis of flowering and maturity time in high latitude spring wheat

Due to the short growing season in the high northern latitudes, the development of early maturing spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars is important to avoid frost damage which can lower production and quality. We investigated earliness of flowering and maturity, and some associated agronomic traits, using a set of randomly selected high northern latitude adapted spring wheat cultivars (differing in maturity) and their F₁ and F₂ crosses made in a one-way diallel mating design. The parents, and their F₁ and F₂ crosses were evaluated under field conditions over 2 years. Anthesis and maturity times were controlled by both vernalization response and earliness per se genes, mainly acting additively. Non-additive genetic effects were more important in controlling grain fill duration, grain yield and plant height. Additive × additive epistatic effects were detected for all traits studied except time to anthesis. Segregation analyses of the F₂ populations for time to anthesis indicated the presence of different vernalization response genes. Molecular genetic analyses revealed the presence of Vrn-A1 and Vrn-B1 genes in the parental cultivars. Narrow-sense heritability was medium to high (60–86%) for anthesis and maturity times but low to medium (13–55%) for grain fill duration, plant height and grain yield. Selection for early flowering/maturity in early segregating generations would be expected to result in genetic improvement towards earliness in high latitude spring wheats. Incorporation of the vernalization responsive gene Vrn-B1 in combination with vernalization non-responsive gene Vrn-A1 into spring wheats would aid in the development of early maturing cultivars with high grain yield potential for the high latitude wheat growing regions of the northern hemisphere.     

Conservation of marker synteny during evolution

Summary An aspect of cereal science that is becoming increasingly important is comparative genetics. Establishment of the relationship between genomes within polyploids, between species within tribes and between species within families will allow not only the integration of genetic maps but also the knowledge acquired of each of the species. Using a set of homoeologous probes, workers found the relationship between the three wheat genomes to be precisely collinear, after taking a few major translocation events into account. Transfer of the wheat map to rye led to the elucidation of similar relationships between the three wheat genomes and that of rye. Genome collinearity, however, extends even beyond tribes. In a comparison of the genomes of wheat, rice and maize, it was shown that despite the separation of these genomes for possibly 50 million years, gene order was still highly conserved. This collinearity between genomes can be exploited in a number of ways.     

Virulence characteristics of a new race of the parasitic angiosperm,Striga gesnerioides,from southern Benin on cowpea (Vigna unguiculata)

An in vitro growth system was used to determine the virulence of two samples of Striga gesnerioides from Zakpota in southern Benin. Cowpea variety B301, previously considered resistant to all races of S. gesnerioides, was susceptible to both samples of the parasite. Two other cowpea varieties, 58–57 and IT81D-994, were totally resistant. Resistance in 58–57 was associated with a hypersensitive necrosis of infected roots, whilst IT81D-994 supported production of small S. gesnerioides tubercles with stems which failed to develop. Striga gesnerioides from southern Benin is the fourth race of the parasite to be identified, and the first with virulence on variety B301. The implications for breeding cowpeas with resistance to S. gesnerioides are discussed.Abbreviations IITA International Institute of Tropical Agriculture - LARS Long Ashton Research Station - SAFGRAD Semi-Arid Food Grain Research and Development     

Comparison of the α-amylase inhibitor-1 from common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) varieties and transgenic expression in other legumes--post-translational modifications and immunogenicity

The seeds of peas (Pisum sativum) and chickpeas (Cicer arietinum) expressing a gene for α-amylase inhibitor-1 (αAI) from the common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) are protected from damage by old world bruchids (pea and cowpea weevils). Here, we used electrospray ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry to compare the post-translational modifications of αAI from transgenic sources with the processed forms of the protein from several bean varieties. All sources showed microheterogeneity with differences in the relative abundance of particular variants due to differences in the frequency of addition of glycans, variable processing of glycans, and differences of C-terminal exopeptidase activity. The structural variation among the transgenics was generally within the range of the bean varieties. Previously, mice showed allergic reactions following ingestion of transgenic pea αAI but not bean αAI. Here, only minor differences were observed following intraperitoneal sensitization. Both of the transgenic pea and bean forms of αAI elicited Th1 and Th2 antibody isotype responses, suggesting that both proteins are immunogenic and could potentially be allergenic.     

Characterisation of endobacterial communities in ectomycorrhizas by DNA- and RNA-based molecular methods

The diversity of endobacteria associated with ectomycorrhizas of Suillus variegatus and Tomentellopsis submollis, in two Corsican pine (Pinus nigra) stands was analysed by cultivation-dependent and cultivation-independent molecular methods. Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) analysis revealed the cultivable endobacterial communities associated with S. variegatus were similar within the same stand. The most abundant cultivable bacterial species belonged to the genera Pseudomonas and Burkholderia. Cultivation-independent molecular analysis indicated that the structure of the endobacterial communities in ectomycorrhizas was consistent across all samples regardless of ECM fungal species or the pine stand from which the samples were collected. However, comparison between rDNA- and rRNA-derived DGGE gels showed that metabolically active endobacterial species were not always detected in rDNA-based profiles. Clone libraries constructed from rRNA molecules indicated that Pseudomonas and Burkholderia spp. were metabolically active bacteria. As some of the most abundant cultivable bacteria, including Bacillus/Paenibacillus spp., were not detected in cultivation-independent DGGE profiles, a combination of cultivation-dependent and -independent approaches provided a more complete assessment of the diversity of endobacteria associated with ectomycorrhizas.     

Effects of postharvest treatment and heat stress on availability of wheat antioxidants

This research evaluated the effects of postharvest treatment and heat stress on the availability of wheat antioxidants using Ankor and Trego wheat varieties. The grain, bran, and 40-mesh bran samples of both Ankor and Trego wheat were kept at 25, 60, and 100 degrees C for 9 days. Samples taken at day 0, 1, 2, 3, 5, and 9 were extracted with pure ethanol and examined for antioxidant properties including the scavenging activity against peroxyl (ORAC), cation ABTS, and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryhydrazyl (DPPH.) radicals, as well as total phenolic content (TPC) and phenolic acid composition. Both heat stress and postharvest treatment significantly altered the antioxidant properties of wheat grain fractions. The ORAC values of Ankor bran and corresponding 40-mesh bran samples kept at 100 degrees C for 9 days reduced to 61 and 40% of that at day 0 on a per dry weight basis, respectively, while the ORAC values of the grain samples showed no significant change. The overall loss of DPPH. scavenging capacity was 38 and 100% for the bran and 40-mesh Ankor bran samples, respectively, and was 47 and 60% in the bran and 40-mesh Trego bran samples, respectively, whereas no reduction was detected in the grain samples under the same heat stress. Heat stress and postharvest treatment had similar effects on ABTS.+ scavenging capacities and TPC values of grain and fractions of both varieties. These data suggest that whole grain as opposed to its fractions is a preferred form of long-term storage for better preserving natural antioxidants and that the reduction of the particle size may accelerate the loss of natural antioxidants in wheat bran during storage and thermal processing but may enhance the releasable amount of wheat antioxidants from bran.