Insecticides applied to soil of transplant plugs for Bagrada hilaris (Burmeister) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) management in broccoli

Chemical control with insecticides, typically applied as foliar sprays or chemigation, is the primary tactic used to manage Bagrada hilaris (Burmeister) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae). We evaluated the efficacy of 14 insecticides, including both systemic and non-systemic insecticides, against B. hilaris applied as a seedling tray drench. Experiments were conducted in both greenhouse and field settings. In all experiments, we used the maximum label rate of insecticides and calculated dose per seedling based on this rate and standard plant density per hectare. Each seedling in the tray received 2-mL insecticide solution, and the seedlings were then exposed to B. hilaris adults after transplanting in cages for greenhouse experiments or natural B. hilaris populations in the field experiments. A scale system (0–4) was used to evaluate the severity of B. hilaris feeding injury on leaves where 0 = no injury and 4 = >75% of the leaf margins with B. hilaris feeding injury. We evaluated damage using the rating system, percentage of damaged leaves, number of feeding injury sites, as well as plant height, leaf width, and fresh and dry weight. In the greenhouse experiment, percentage of injured leaves, number of injury sites, and damage rating were significantly lower for transplants treated with acetamiprid, clothianidin, dinotefuran, imidacloprid, and thiamethoxam, and cyclaniliprole compared with the untreated. There was a relationship between feeding injury sites and plant height, leaf width, fresh and dry weight (R² > 0.5) in both 2015 field experiments. Similarly, the transplants treated with acetamiprid, clothianidin, dinotefuran, imidacloprid, thiamethoxam, thiamethoxam + chlorantraniliprole, imidacloprid + β-cyfluthrin and cyclaniliprole had significantly lower damage ratings than those treated with chlorpyrifos, bifenthrin, tolfenpyrad, flonicamid, cyantraniliprole, spinetoram and the untreated control. For transplanted broccoli, treatment of transplant plugs with neonicotinoid insecticides prior to planting can be an effective method for controlling B. hilaris.     

Variation in floral scent compounds recognized by honeybees in Brassicaceae crop species

Floral scent attracts pollinators. We investigated the floral scent compounds recognized by pollinators in six Brassica crop species, including allogamous species with different genomes and autogamous species with two parental genomes and radish (Raphanus sativus). Biologically active compounds recognized by honeybees were screened from all floral compounds by combined gas chromatography–electroantennogram analysis and their profiles were determined by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. Fourteen of the 52 compounds were active. All accessions had more than two active compounds, but the compounds greatly differed between the two genera. On the basis of similarities in whether active compounds were presence or absence, their amount and their composition ratio, we divided the Brassica accessions into three to five groups by cluster analyses. Most groups were composed of a mixture of allogamous and autogamous species sharing same genome, indicating that the variation depended on genome, not species. These results suggest that all species require pollinator visits for reproduction, despite their different reproductive systems. However, the inter-genus and intra-specific variations shown by the multiple groups within a species might cause different visitation frequencies by pollinators between genera and among accessions within a species, resulting in insufficient seed production in some accessions or species.     

Incidence of cabbage maggot (Diptera: Anthomyiidae) infestation and plant damage in seeded Brassica fields in California's central coast

The temporal incidence of cabbage maggot, Delia radicum L. was investigated using three exclusion cage experiments, one each during spring, summer and fall, in broccoli fields as well as two surveys, one each in three broccoli fields, and sixteen turnip plantings in central coast of California. In the cage experiments, sets of broccoli plants were exposed to natural populations of D. radicum flies for ∼14-d periods after plant emergence throughout the growing season. For the surveys, soil, root samples, and yellow sticky traps were collected every week from broccoli fields to determine number of eggs, maggots, feeding-injury and adults. Only roots were sampled from turnip plantings to determine feeding-injury. In all three cage experiments, feeding injury from D. radicum maggot was less during the first 14-d than ∼15–28 d after plant emergence (DAE). In the summer and fall, feeding injury by D. radicum was less during 29–42 and 43–56 DAE than it was 15–28 DAE. In the survey of broccoli fields, a greater number of D. radicum eggs were detected starting the fourth week after planting (WAP). Similarly, an increase in number of D. radicum maggots and feeding injury was observed at fifth and sixth WAP, respectively. However, adults were abundant throughout the growing period. In the turnip survey, increase in injury from D. radicum feeding did not appear until the fifth WAP. Overall, these studies indicate that increased incidence of D. radicum was delayed by about two to three weeks after plant emergence. The implications of these results for timing of insecticide application for D. radicum in the central coast of California are discussed.     

What can we learn from clubroots: alterations in host roots and hormone homeostasis caused by <Emphasis Type="Italic">Plasmodiophora brassicae</Emphasis>

The clubroot disease of cruciferous crops is caused by an obligate biotrophic protist, Plasmodiophora brassicae. The disease is characterized by the development of large root galls accompanied by changes in source-sink relations and the hormonal balance within the plant. Since the disease is difficult to control, it is of high economic interest to understand the events leading to gall formation. In this review we will give an overview on the current knowledge of changes brought about in the host root by this obligate biotrophic pathogen. Emphasis will be on the regulation of changes in plant hormone homeostasis, mainly auxins and cytokinins; the possible role of secondary metabolites, especially indole glucosinolates, in gall formation and auxin homeostasis will be discussed. Also, results from mutant analysis and microarrays using the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana are presented.     

Suppression of the clubroot pathogen Plasmodiophora brassicae by plant growth promoting formulations in roots of two Brassica species

In this study, the ability of two organic plant growth stimulants, mainly based on algal extracts, amino acids and phosphonate, to reduce clubroot formation in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana and two economically important Brassica species, Brassia rapa (Chinese cabbage) and Brassica napus (oilseed rape) was investigated. A commercial liquid (Frutogard^®) and a granulate (PlasmaSoil^®) formulation were used to find optimum conditions for both control of the pathogen and plant growth. Both formulations were able to significantly reduce gall formation after Plasmodiophora brassicae infection on Chinese cabbage, but PlasmaSoil^® gave better effects, possibly as a result of the continuous supply of the components to the soil. Individual components did not have the same effect. Clubroots on oilseed rape could also be reduced. In contrast, club formation was not reduced in the model plant Arabidopsis thaliana. This points to interesting differences in the induction of resistance in the different species. Cross‐sections of infected and treated roots stained for different macromolecules (callose, lignin, suberin) indicated differences in anatomy as a result of the two formulations. The results indicate an application for the granulate formulation PlasmaSoil^® in clubroot control.     

十字花科植物PIN3基因调控元件及表达分析

为探明十字花科不同物种PIN3基因的表达调控差异,从拟南芥(Arabidopsis thaliala)、红花荠菜(Capsella rubella)、白菜(Brassica rapa)、油菜(Brassica napus)和甘蓝(Brassica oleracea)等17个已完成基因组测序的十字花科物种基因组数据库中鉴定出18个PIN3同源基因。对这18个同源基因编码序列上游1 500bp启动子区域顺式作用元件进行预测及比对分析,结果发现,光响应、多种激素响应及胁迫响应等相关元件呈现出较大差异,其中生长素以及向地性响应相关元件具有较高的保守性。克隆普通荠菜PIN3同源基因(CbPIN3)并构建普通荠菜PIN3基因启动子的GUS报告系统CbPIN3pro::GUS转化拟南芥。与拟南芥基因表达数据库比较,荠菜启动子表达与拟南芥PIN3具有基本一致的组织表达模式,但也存在一定的组织差异,说明植株形态建成中生长素极性转运调控的差异。拟南芥和荠菜PIN3的表达差异是十字花科物种适应性进化模式的缩影。     

Sexual hybridization between Capsella bursa‐pastoris (L.) Medik (♀) and Camelina sativa (L.) Crantz (♂) (Brassicaceae)

The development of transgenic oilseed Camelina sativa (2n = 40) and the potential for hybridization with its weedy relative Capsella bursa‐pastoris (2n = 36) necessitates a careful evaluation of the reproductive compatibility between the species. Here, we conducted over 1800 crosses (emasculation and manual pollination) to examine the ability of 10 Canadian C. bursa‐pastoris (♀) accessions to hybridize with five accessions of C. sativa (♂). Seven hybrids were confirmed among 586 putative hybrids screened with species‐specific markers, indicating a hybridization rate of 1.5 hybrids per 10 000 ovules pollinated. All seven hybrids had intermediate DNA content compared to their parents, were morphologically distinct, had low (1.9%) pollen fertility and failed to produce selfed or backcrossed seed. Given the abundance of C. bursa‐pastoris along field margins, hybrids will likely be generated in the wild, but they will be unable to establish lineages unless fertility is restored. The large number of crosses and the diversity captured by the use of multiple accessions resulted in strong statistical power and a high degree of confidence in the estimated hybridization rate.     

A phylogenetically distinct lineage of Pyrenopeziza brassicae associated with chlorotic leaf spot of Brassicaceae in North America

Light leaf spot, caused by the ascomycete Pyrenopeziza brassicae, is an established disease of Brassicaceae in the United Kingdom (UK), continental Europe, and Oceania (OC, including New Zealand and Australia). The disease was reported in North America (NA) for the first time in 2014 on Brassica spp. in the Willamette Valley of western Oregon, followed by detection in Brassica juncea cover crops and on Brassica rapa weeds in northwestern Washington in 2016. Preliminary DNA sequence data and field observations suggest that isolates of the pathogen present in NA might be distinct from those in the UK, continental Europe, and OC. Comparisons of isolates from these regions using genetic (multilocus sequence analysis, MAT gene sequences, and rep-PCR DNA fingerprinting), pathogenic (B. rapa inoculation studies), biological (sexual compatibility), and morphological (colony and conidial morphology) analyses demonstrated two genetically distinct evolutionary lineages. Lineage 1 comprised isolates from the UK, continental Europe, and OC, and included the P. brassicae type specimen. Lineage 2 contained the NA isolates associated with recent disease outbreaks in the Pacific Northwest region of the USA. Symptoms caused by isolates of the two lineages on B. rapa and B. juncea differed, and therefore “chlorotic leaf spot” is proposed for the disease caused by Lineage 2 isolates of P. brassicae. Isolates of the two lineages differed in genetic diversity as well as sensitivity to the fungicides carbendazim and prothioconazole.     

8种十字花科短命植物的物候及其对荒漠环境的适应

对8种广泛分布于新疆北部荒漠的十字花科早春短命植物物候特征及其对荒漠环境的适应进行了观测与分析。结果表明，8种植物的种子均在3月中、下旬萌发，5月下旬至6月上旬果实成熟，生活周期均在54～79d，其营养生长期约占整个生活周期的1／3，而生殖生长期约占2／3。植株的生长发育与温度及降水存在密切的联系，说明8种植物均属于典型的避旱型早春短命植物，其短的生活周期是逃避准噶尔荒漠夏季干热气候的一种适应对策。     

新疆十字花科区系地理成分分析

新疆地处欧亚大陆腹地，十字花科植物有76属，180余种，从垂直分布的情况来看，主要分布于阿尔泰山和天山的亚高山草甸和森林草甸带、昆仑山的高寒荒漠和荒漠草原及帕米尔高原的高山草甸带。从水平分布来看，有5个分布较集中的区域：阿尔泰山地、准噶尔西部山地、天山中西部山地、天山东部山地、昆仑山和帕米尔高原，其它地区零散分布。其区系地理组成分中76个属归入7个分布区类型和9个变型。其中以地中海区、西亚至中亚分布型、北温带和中亚分布型为主，单种属、寡种属比例偏高，其种类又以新疆北疆偏多。可认定该区是十字花科的分布中心。与邻区的比较发现，新疆与周边植物区系关系密切，物种交流的机会较多，尤其是东西方向是植物区系交流的重要通道。新疆十字花科分布规律在一定程度上反映了新疆植物区系的特点。