Multilocus sequence analysis supports a low genetic diversity among ‘<Emphasis Type="Italic">Candidatus</Emphasis> Phytoplasma australasia’ related strains infecting vegetable crops and periwinkle in Egypt

‘Candidatus Phytoplasma australasia’ causes important damages to the Egyptian vegetable crop production. A prerequisite for controlling the different diseases it causes to eggplant, tomato and squash, is to trace its propagation pathways. To allow the differentiation of ‘Ca. P. australasia’ strains, a multilocus sequence analysis protocol was developed. Four conserved phytoplama genes namely tuf, secY, dnaK and dppA, were selected among the CDS of a ‘Ca. P. aurantifolia’ genome draft. The corresponding genes were PCR amplified from tomato, eggplant and squash collected in 2010 from the governorates Sharkia, Elmynia and Beni sueif, as well as from Catharanthus roseus periwinkles collected in 2013 from Kafrelsheikh governorate. Sequence comparisons showed no diversity among the Egyptian isolates of ‘Ca. P. australasia’ that also constitute a distinct cluster within the 16SrII-D taxonomic subgroup. This low diversity supports a common epidemiology for the different diseases affecting vegetable crops and periwinkle in Egypt and suggests that future investigations on insect vector should focus on polyphagous leafhoppers.     

Effect of pH on Potentially Toxic Trace Elements (Cd,Cu, Ni,and Zn) Solubility in Two Native and Spiked Calcareous Soils: Experimental and Modeling

The effect of soil pH on solubility of the potentially toxic trace elements (PTEs) [cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), nickel (Ni), zinc (Zn)] was assessed using two native and spiked calcareous soils. Multiple PTEs solutions were added to soils and equilibrated (aged) for 40 days. Then, PTEs solubility was measured at different pH level (1–3 units below and above the pH of native soils). In native soils, all PTEs displayed a V-shaped pH-dependent solubility pattern with important releases at pH 4 and 10 (native soil 1) and 5 and 11 (native soil 2). In spiked soils, the general tendency for the pH where solubility started was in the order Cd > Ni > Zn > Cu. Solubility of added trace elements increased with a decrease in pH. Solubility of PTEs occurred at a lower pH in the soil with a higher carbonate content than the other soil (both native and spiked). In order to predict the effect of soil pH on solubility of PTEs, surface complexation and ions exchange models of PHREEQC program were used. The model simulated the PTEs solubility in soils very well. Comparison of experimental and simulated data indicated that ions exchange and surface complexation were the main mechanisms for predicting PTEs solubility in soils. Environmental implications concerning PTEs mobility might be derived from these findings.     

An efficient in vitro shoot regeneration through direct organogenesis from seedling-derived petiole and leaf segments and acclimatization of Ficus religiosa

Prolific and rapid in vitro plant organogenesis via direct regeneration has been obtained from axenic seedling-derived petiole and leaf explants of Ficus religiosa in Murashige and Skoog(MS) medium containing different concentrations of cytokinins in combination with indole-3-butyric acid(IBA). MS medium with 1.5 mg/l 6-benzylaminopurine plus 0.15 mg/l IBA produced the highest shoot induction frequency with an average of 6.26 and 10.13 shoots per leaf and petiole explants, respectively.After 4 weeks, the highest root formation frequency(96.7%), root number(5.73), and root length(4.76 cm)were with MS medium containing 2.0 mg/l IBA plus 0.1 mg/l a-naphthalene acetic acid. In addition, the effect of four sodium nitroprusside(SNP) treatments on acclimatization was also studied. Highest morphological traits such as survival rates, fresh and dry root weights as well as antioxidant enzymatic activities such as superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, and catalase was achieved with 125 ppm SNP. The a-amino acid, proline, content was highest with this treatment while the highest H_2O_2(hydrogen peroxide) was in the controls. This study introduces a cost-effective, prolific, and efficient in vitro multiplication system to supply pharmaceutical and ornamental needs. It is the first report of an in vitro organogenesis protocol for F. religiosa by direct regeneration through axenic seedling-derived petiole and leaf explants, which can be efficiently employed for the utilization of active biomolecules.     

Evaluation of bermuda and paspalum grass types for urban landscapes under saline water irrigation

In the arid regions, turfgrass cover is an integral part of landscape to protect the soil from erosion, enhance the aesthetic value, and improve the microclimate. The salinity and the scarcity of fresh water of the arid region are the major challenging factors in turfgrass production. Therefore, the need for salt tolerant turfgrass with functional quality is necessary to improve the turf performance. The detrimental effects of salinity include growth suppression, and lowered osmotic potential ultimately leading to firing of the leaf blades. In this context, the study was undertaken to determine the relative salt tolerance and growth response of turfgrass genotypes in order to recommend turfgrass cultivars that can tolerate high salinity irrigation and maintain excellent visual and functional qualities under United Arab Emirates (UAE) condition. The paspalum cultivars maintained the highest succulence percentage compared to the bermudagrass cultivars under enhanced salinity levels. The shoots count, fresh weight (FW), and dry weight (DW) were found highest in paspalum types. The chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b and the total chlorophyll content was found higher in bermuda grass types under high salinity levels. The bermudagrass cultivars showed significantly higher carotenoids, anthocyanins and proline compared to the paspalum types under salt stress condition. In the case of princess 77 and Yukon, an inherently high amount of proline was recorded which confirmed an increase up to 10,000 ppm and drastically declined beyond this concentration. Sea Dwarf paspalum and Sea Isle 2000 maintained uniformity in the proline level at all levels of salinity without significant variation. These findings point to the fact that both paspalum and bermuda types exhibited varied responses to different physiological and biochemical parameters under the saline conditions. Paspalum types have an edge over the bermudagrass in terms of shoot density, which is a potential factor in determining the high-quality turfs. Bermudagrass types can be applied in lower salinity conditions based on the responses as evidenced from the present results.     

Effects of dietary myrcene administration on antioxidant gene responses in common carp (Cyprinus carpio), exposed to copper sulphate

In the present study, common carp (Cyprinus carpio) were fed with diet supplemented with 0% (M0) or 0.5% (M0.5) myrcene for 6 week and exposed to ambient copper (0.2 mg/L) for further 2 weeks. Gene expressions of superoxide dismutase (sod), catalase (cat), glutathione peroxidase (gpx), glutathione reductase (gr) and glutathione S‐transferase (gst) were assayed in the fish brain and kidney, and thiobarbituric reactive substance (TBARS) levels were determined in blood plasma. The results showed that there was no significant difference in TBARS levels between the M0 and M0.5 treatments, before the copper exposure; however, the M0 had significantly higher TBARS levels compared to the M0.5, after the copper exposure. The antioxidant genes showed different patterns in the fish brain and kidney. The genes were up‐regulated in the fish brain by dietary myrcene and copper exposure. However, in the fish kidney, the M0.5 treatment showed no change in sod, cat, gpx before and after the copper exposure. The results suggest that myrcene is capable to induce antioxidant enzymes that prepare the fish for a further oxidative condition (i.e. copper exposure). Dietary myrcene at 0.5% level is suggested for common carp before treatment with copper sulphate.     

Biofortification of onion bulb with selenium at different levels of sulfate

In this research experiment, two commercial onion cultivars (Allium cepa L., cvs. Dorrcheh and Cebolla Valenciana) were grown in sand culture and exposed to two levels of selenium (Se) (0 and 25?µM) and two levels of sulfate (1 and 3?mM). According to the results obtained, addition of 25?µM Se in combination with 3?mM sulfate was not only effective in significant increase of onion bulb yield, but it significantly increased Se concentration of bulb. By considering the average consumption of onion in central Iran, the daily intake of Se via consumption of Se-biofortified onion is estimated to be 68.4–77.2?µg in spring and summer and 72.6–117.1?µg in fall and winter. These amounts of daily intakes of Se is higher than the sufficient levels of Se recommended by world health organization (WHO) but less than the maximum tolerable level of Se (400?µg Se per day) for human.     

Effect of Soil Sample Size on Saturated Soil Hydraulic Conductivity

Saturated hydraulic conductivity (K_sat) is regarded as a key soil physical variable to determine soil infiltration rate, percolation depth and other hydrological processes. The purpose of this study was to determine the best soil sampling’s ring size for measuring K_sat. For this purpose, 25 rings with five different diameters (2, 3, 4, 5 and 6 inch) and with the same depth of 20 cm (five replicates) were hammered in close vicinity to each other into the ground of undisturbed loess deposits of a small farm to measure K_sat and bulk density. Hydraulic conductivity was measured at three constant loads of 22, 27 and 32 cm. The results showed that the ring with the internal diameter of 6 inches had the minimum variation coefficient and maximum K_sat for all the three hydraulic heads. In addition, the bulk density of this ring size was less than the other rings.     

Spatial variability of water retention parameters and saturated hydraulic conductivity in a calcareous Inceptisols (Khuzestan province of Iran) under sugarcane cropping

The objective of this study was to quantify inherent spatial variability and spatial cross-correlation of the van Genuchten retention parameters and saturated hydraulic conductivity (K_s) of surface and subsurface layers in a calcareous Inceptisols (Khuzestan province, Iran) under sugarcane cropping. Measurements were performed on 100-cm³ undisturbed soil cores collected at 94 locations along a 30-m-long transect with horizontal sampling distance intervals of 0.3 and 1 m at soil depths of 0–40 and 40–80 cm, respectively. Spatial variability was investigated using conventional statistics and geostatistical techniques. Coefficient of variation (CV) varied from 8.2% (for shape parameter, n at 40–80 cm depth) to 256.7% (for K_s at 0–40 cm depth). The n parameter and saturated water content, θ_s, showed a small-scale spatial heterogeneity with a maximum CV of 11.3% for the first depth and 9.2% for the second depth. Most of the hydraulic parameters at both depths showed a spatial structure and convex experimental semivariograms with dominant spherical models with the influence range of 3.2–41 m. In most cases, the extent of spatial correlation scales of cross-semivariograms for pairs of cross-correlated hydraulic variables was found to be different with reference to those relating to the direct semivariograms of correlated variables.     

Using kale (Brassica oleracea var. acephala) as a phytoremediation plant species for lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) removal in saline soils

Ornamental kale (Brassica oleracea var. Acephala) is usually planted from early autumn until late winter. Since most of the plants used for phytoremediation cannot be grown during this time, kale can be a suitable option for phytoremediation and utilized during autumn and winter in urban landscape, especially in metropolitan areas where high levels of cadmium (Cd) and lead (Pb) pollutions exist. Kale growth in saline soil at different growth stages (germination and vegetative growth stages) was studied in this investigation. A factorial experiment based on completely randomized design (CRD) with four replications was used in this study. Treatments included three levels of sodium chloride (NaCl) (0, 30, and 60 mg/kg), four levels of Cd (0, 4, 8, and 16 mg/kg), and four levels of Pb (0, 1, 5, and 10 mg/kg). Results indicated that increase in Cd and Pb concentrations in the soil decreased fresh and dry weights of the plants. The results of the various growth stages revealed that under salinity stress, kale plants were able to absorb more Pb than Cd and effectively remediate Pb in polluted and saline lands. Cd accumulation in control treatment was 6.2% more than that in the saline treatments, whereas, Pb accumulation in the highest NaCl level, 60 mg/kg salinity treatment was 7.64% more than that of the control condition. Also, proline content of the plants was significantly increased under Cd and Pb stress. From the results of this study, it was concluded that using kale plant is recommended for phytoremediation of saline soils with 10 and 16 mg/kg Pb and Cd contents, respectively.