Effect of cytoplasmic male-sterility in sorghum on host plant interaction with sorghum midge,Contarinia sorghicola

Summary Sorghum midge, Contarinia sorghicola Coq. (Diptera: Cecidomyiidae) is one of the most important pests of grain sorghum worldwide. We studied the reaction of midge-resistant and midge-susceptible genic-cytoplasmic male-sterile (A-lines) and their maintainers (B-lines), and the effect of resistant and susceptible restorers on sorghum midge. Midge damage and adult emergence were significantly lower on the B-lines of midge-resistant genotypes (PM 7061 and PM 7068) than their corresponding A-lines, while the reverse was true for the midge-susceptible genotypes (296A and ICSA 42). Differences in midge damage and the number of midges emerged were not significant between the midge-resistant and midge-susceptible A-lines when infested without pollination (except midge emergence on PM 7061A). Pollination with a midge-resistant restorer (DJ6541) reduced midge emergence significantly in one of two seasons. Source of pollen did not influence midge emergence on the highly-resistant A-line, PM 7061A. The implications of these observations in the development of midge-resistant hybrids were discussed.     

Relevance of sexual polyploidization for crop improvement – A review

Colchicine induced polyploids have not directly contributed for crop improvement in the past. On the other hand, the so-called natural polyploids, derived from the functioning of numerically unreduced(2n) gametes have been shown to be more relevant for crop improvement in many cases. Different types of cytological abnormalities during meiosis can give rise to 2n gametes and the genetic composition of these gametes is variable. Depending on the type meiotic abnormalities, various types of 2ngametes, such as first division restitution(FDR), second division restitution (SDR),indeterminate meiotic restitution (IMR) and post meiotic restitution (PMR) gametes,among others, have been described in recent years. For the improvement of autopolyploids such as potato, alfalfa,Vaccinium spp., and some of the fodder grasses, FDR gametes have been proved to be highly useful. However, the use of 2n gametes for the improvement of allopolyploid crops has received much less attention so far. Some of the investigations on allopolyploids, derived from Festuca-Lolium, Alstroemeria and Lilium species hybrids, have revealed that 2ngametes can be most useful for the introgression of alien genes and chromosomes into cultivars. An important feature of using sexual polyploidization in the case of allopolyploids is that introgression can be achieved through recombination due to genetic crossing-over between alien chromosomes as well as addition of alien chromosomes, which is extremely difficult or impossible to achieve in the case of colchicine induced allopolyploids. Because of the recent developments in the field of plant molecular biology, methods have become available for the analysis of 2ngametes and sexual polyploid progenies more accurately and to develop systematic breeding approaches. The methods include DNA in situ hybridization (GISH and FISH)and molecular mapping (AFLP, RFLP, RAPDs).In addition to providing basic information on the genetic and genome composition of the polyploid progenies, these methods can be potentially useful for a more efficient creation of desirable breeding material and cultivars. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

关于畜牧生产系统稳定机制的探讨

畜牧生产系统实质上是开放的人工生态系统。建立高效、整体功能良好的畜牧生产系统是现代畜牧业的主要目标。探讨畜牧生产系统的稳定机制对于畜牧业的发展具有重要的理论指导意义。畜牧生产系统的稳定机制包括内源稳定机制和外源调控机制两个方面。其中内源稳定机制由系统的整合性、多样性、替代性以及生态位均质性构成，外源调控机制主要指等衡调控机制。     

悬挂农具对电液悬挂系统拖拉机振动的影响

悬挂农具设备的拖拉机在行驶过程中的振动会加剧,有时甚至产生很大的俯仰运动。为了研究悬挂农具的存在对拖拉机振动特性的影响,该文在对拖拉机进行运动学和动力学分析的同时,首次详细分析了悬挂机构的运动及受力情况,从而建立了带有悬挂农具的大功率拖拉机整机振动数学模型;用Matlab仿真了拖拉机受到条形水泥障碍激励时的振动情况。研究表明:农具的存在使拖拉机前轮动载系数由O.26增大到0.55;空载拖拉机垂直振动频率为3 Hz,带农具的拖拉机垂直振动频率为2.5 Hz;农具的存在使得拖拉机的俯仰振动显著增加,频率为4.8 Hz;由于悬挂系统的运动与拖拉机机体振动的非线性耦合,一定条件下会表现出频率为10~15 Hz的第3振型的振动;农具的振动使得电液悬挂系统下拉杆铰接点处的力发生相应变化,其垂直分量的大小与农具质心垂直加速度之间存在较好的线性关系。仿真结果与试验结果相吻合,验证了所建数学模型的正确性。所得到的上述结论为拖拉机主动减振控制提供了理论依据。     

氧化还原条件对土壤磷素固定与释放的影响

为探讨水稻土由氧化环境转为还原条件时对土壤磷素固定与释放的影响,选择18种水稻土样品进行室内模拟实验,通过测定不同条件下磷的等温吸附曲线和采用氧化铁试纸测定法进行多次提取以对比淹水前后土壤磷的累计解吸量,发现大部分供试样品的固磷能力在淹水条件下有了显著的提高,全部样品在淹水后磷的释放量都有不同程度的减少。进一步的研究表明淹水条件下土壤对磷的固定与释放的变化主要与淹水后土壤Eh的降低和pH的升高而导致的大量无定形铁的形成有关。     

蛋白质合成抑制剂对萌发玉米超弱光子辐射的影响

为了揭示种子萌发过程中超弱光子辐射机理,分别采用蛋白质合成的转录抑制剂放线菌素D(actinomyin D,AMD)和翻译抑制剂环己亚胺酮(cycloheximide,CHM)处理萌发玉米种子,研究了玉米萌发过程中鲜质量的变化以及自发光子辐射和外界光诱导的延迟光子辐射的变化。结果表明,50μg/m L的AMD部分抑制了萌发玉米鲜质量的增长,100μg/m L的CHM完全抑制了萌发玉米鲜质量的增长,萌发玉米自发光子辐射强度的增长与种子鲜质量的增长呈现正相关(相关系数r分别为0.95492、0.93218和0.96235)。研究还发现,在玉米萌发过程中,AMD和CHM对延迟光子辐射的增长有不同的抑制作用,CHM部分抑制了延迟光子辐射的初始光子数、相干时间和积分强度的增大,AMD则使初始光子数、相干时间和积分强度不再增加。研究结果为揭示种子萌发过程中超弱光子辐射的机理及其技术开发提供参考。     

Physiological changes and defense mechanisms induced by cadmium stress in maize

Heavy metals such as cadmium (Cd) enter the ecosystem chiefly as the result of human activities. Nowadays the heavy‐metal pollution of the soil is causing ever greater problems, exacerbated by the fact that the heavy metals accumulated in plants may, either directly or indirectly, find their way into animals and human beings. Maize is one of the world's most important crops, ranking third after wheat and rice, so the changes induced by one of the most toxic heavy metals, Cd, in maize plants is a cause of some concern. This review discusses not only the toxic symptoms caused by Cd stress, but also the tolerance mechanisms activated in the plants. Cadmium induces a number of physiological changes, such as growth inhibition, changes in the water and ion metabolism, the inhibition of photosynthesis, changes in enzyme activities, and the formation of free radicals. The synthesis and compartmentalization of phytochelatins is induced shortly after the initiation of Cd stress, while other defense mechanisms also play an important role.     

植物次生代谢物的自毒作用及其与连作障碍的关系

连作障碍问题的发现已有上千年的历史,但对其发生机理和克服措施还没有取得突破。本文分析了植物次生代谢物的种类及其产生机理、次生代谢物的自毒作用、植物对自产的次生代谢有毒物质的抗性机制及其形成时序等,认为次生代谢物对新生植物的自毒作用是连作障碍发生的关键因素之一,并在此基础上提出了克服连作障碍的几种途径。     

A quick and efficient screen for resistance to iron toxicity in lowland rice

Iron (Fe) toxicity is a major stress to rice in many lowland environments worldwide. Due to excessive uptake of Fe²⁺ by the roots and its acropetal translocation into the leaves, toxic oxygen radicals may form and damage cell structural components, thus impairing physiological processes. The typical visual symptom is the “bronzing” of the rice leaves, leading to substantial yield losses, particularly when toxicity occurs during early vegetative growth stages. The problem is best addressed through genotype improvement, i.e., tolerant cultivars. However, the time of occurrence and the severity of symptoms and yield responses vary widely among soil types, years, seasons, and genotypes. Cultivars resistant in one system may fail when transferred to another. Better targeting of varietal improvement requires selection tools improving our understanding of the resistance mechanisms and strategies of rice in the presence of excess iron. A phytotron study was conducted to develop a screen for seedling resistance to Fe toxicity based on individual plants subjected to varying levels of Fe (0–3000 mg L^–1 Fe supplied as Fe(II)SO₄), stress duration (1–5 d of exposure), vapor‐pressure deficit (VPD; 1.1 and 1.8 kPa), and seedling age (14 and 28 d). Genotypes were evaluated based on leaf‐bronzing score and tissue Fe concentrations. A clear segregation of the genotypic tolerance spectrum was obtained when scoring 28 d old seedlings after 3 d of exposure to 2000 mg L^–1 Fe in a high‐VPD environment. In most cases, leaf‐bronzing scores were highly correlated with tissue Fe concentration (visual differentiation in includer and excluder types). The combination of these two parameters also identified genotypes tolerating high levels of Fe in the tissue while showing only few leaf symptoms (tolerant includers). The screen allows selecting genotypes with low leaf‐bronzing score as resistant to Fe toxicity, and additional analyses of the tissue Fe concentration of those can identify the general adaptation strategy to be utilized in breeding programs.     

Phosphatase activity does not limit the microbial use of low molecular weight organic-P substrates in soil

Plant roots and soil microorganisms contain significant quantities of low molecular weight (MW) phosphorylated nucleosides and sugars. Consequently, upon death these can represent a significant input of organic-P to the soil. Some of these organic-P substrates must first be dephosphorylated by phosphatases before being assimilated by the soil microbial community while others can be taken up directly from soil solution. To determine whether sorption or phosphatase activity was limiting the bioavailability of low MW organic-P in soil we compared the microbial uptake and C mineralization of a range of ¹⁴C-labeled organic-P substrates [glucose-6-phosphate, adenosine monophosphate (AMP), adenosine diphosphate (ADP) and adenosine triphosphate (ATP)] to that of the parent compounds (adenosine and glucose). In a fertile grassland soil we showed that at low organic-P substrate concentrations (<0.5 mM) phosphatase activity did not limit microbial uptake or mineralization in comparison to their non-phosphorylated counterparts. However, at high substrate concentrations (1-10 mM) the mineralization of the organic-P compounds was significantly lower than that of the non-phosphorylated compounds suggesting that phosphatase activity or microbial transporter capacity limited bioavailability. Sorption to the solid phase followed the series glucose<adenosine<G-6-P<AMP<ADP=ATP. However, sorption of the organic-P compounds to the solid phase did not appear to greatly affect bioavailability. The high adenosine mineralization capacity of the microbial biomass suggests that nucleosides may represent a significant source of C and N to the soil microbial biomass. We conclude that at low organic-P substrate concentrations typical of those in soil, neither phosphatase activity nor sorption greatly limits their bioavailability.