Characterisation of Phytophthora infestans Isolates Collected from Potato and Tomato Crops in Tunisia During 2006–2008

Severe late blight epidemics in Tunisia in recent years prompted population studies on the pathogen responsible for this disease, Phythophthora infestans. Characterisation of 165 Tunisian P. infestans isolates collected from 2006 to 2008 was performed for the mating type and mt haplotype, while subsets were analysed for metalaxyl sensitivity (n?=?65), virulence on differential set of 11 R genes of Solanum demissum (n?=?31), aggressiveness on cv. Bintje (n?=?36) and measurement of the radial growth on agar medium at three temperatures (n?=?38). Most isolates from potato and all isolates from tomato had the A1 mating type. The A2 mating type was detected in the north-east and northern areas, but not in the north-west. All the A2 mating type isolates were metalaxyl resistant and seem to be part of a new generation of the P. infestans isolates which are more aggressive, with more complex races, and tolerant to higher temperatures. The increased severity of epidemics during 2006 to 2008 can be attributed to favourable weather conditions during growing seasons, adaptation of new genotypes, widespread phenylamide resistance in potato production regions and most probably incorrect spray programmes. In contrast to the presence of complex pathotypes in two major potato crop regions (north-east and northern areas), the P. infestans population detected in the other regions and in tomato crops was still relatively simple. Compared with the situation in Europe and the American continent, or even compared with neighbouring countries such as Algeria, the genetic changes in Tunisia are still comforting and require strict management decision on late blight control to avoid the spread of new P. infestans populations from Europe or neighbouring countries.     

Annual meeting,Potato Association of America December 6–7–8. Pittsburgh,Pennsylvania

American Journal of Potato Research -     

Potato Late Blight and Tuber Yield: Results from 30 Years of Field Trials

During 1983–2012, three field trials per year were performed in each of the three southernmost counties in Sweden to test different fungicide programmes aiming to control late blight, primarily in the very susceptible potato cultivar Bintje. A dataset with results from these field trials was used (i) to examine possible changes in the appearance and behaviour of late blight attack over the years, (ii) to investigate the relationship between late blight in foliage and tuber blight, (iii) to investigate the relationship between late blight and tuber yield and (iv) to identify any correlations between different variables in the dataset. Late blight reached epidemic proportions, i.e. 75% disease severity in the untreated control, in the majority of the field trials. The estimated first attack of late blight was earlier in many field trials after 1998. Differences between years and regions were great in terms of date of the first attack and how the attack developed during the season. For example, in 2002–2005 and 2007, the first attack occurred 40–55 days after planting (DAP), compared with 95–108 DAP in 1994 and 1996. In 1994, 2006 and 2009–2011, the attacks increased from first symptoms to 65% disease severity in the untreated control within 16–21 days, compared with 35–40 days in 1995, 1999 and 2002. The relationship between foliage late blight and tuber blight was weak with the best match found at high disease severity late in the growing season (r?=?0.33; p?<?0.001). The relationship between blight-free tuber yield and start of the first attack indicated a yield increase of 287 kg/day (R ²?=?0.27) for every day’s delay in first attack. Using the DAP for 65% disease severity in the untreated control improved the correlation (R ²?=?0.64) and indicated a yield increase of 534 kg/day for every day’s delay in first attack. The later the onset of attack, the higher the blight-free tuber yield in treated plots. In general, significant correlations were found between blight-free tuber yield, size fractions of tuber yield, date of first late blight attack, date of different degrees of disease severity, disease severity, date of treatment, treatment measures and maintenance.     

RP–HPLC and Capillary Electrophoresis of Subunits from Glutenin Isolated by SDS and Osborne Fractionation

The polypeptide subunits present in SDS-unextractable glutenin, the glutenin macropolymer (GMP) and the 70% (v/v) ethanol unextractable protein, the Osborne glutenin fraction, of various cultivars were separated by RP–HPLC and capillary electrophoresis (CE) under denaturing (urea and SDS, respectively) and reducing conditions. In addition, the SDS-extractable protein was separated by CE. HighM_rglutenin subunits were well separated by CE, while the separation of lowM_rglutenin subunits was better by RP–HPLC. HighM_rglutenin subunits separated by RP–HPLC were collected and separated by CE. The subunits were identified unequivocally using the combined information from these two techniques and from SDS–PAGE patterns using the cvs. Spring and Troy Spring. By both RP–HPLC and CE it could be demonstrated for flour from three wheat cvs. (Camp Remy, Obelisk and Rektor) and a blend of flour from two of those cvs. (Camp Remy/Obelisk) that the highM_rglutenin subunit content of the GMP was 29–31%. In contrast, the SDS-extractable protein consisted of 4–6% highM_rglutenin subunits, which accounted for 14–23% of the highM_rglutenin subunits in flour. Interestingly, the SDS-extractable highM_rglutenin subunits consisted mainly (90–96%) of x-type subunits whereas, in the GMP, only 70–75% of the highM_rsubunits were x-type subunits. Although the SDS extractable protein was not separated by RP–HPLC, results similar to those obtained by CE could be inferred from the subtraction of the contents of glutenin subunits of the GMP from the contents in the Osborne glutenin fraction. The results suggest that x- and y-type highM_rglutenin subunits may have a different role in the structure (size and composition) of glutenin polymers.     

Molecular weight,size distribution and conformation of Glutenin from different wheat cultivars by SEC–MALLS

Molecular weight and size distributions of two glutenin polymers were determined by a multi-angle laser light scattering (MALLS) photometer on-line to a size exclusion chromatography (SEC) system. Two glutenin polymers extracted, sonicated and purified from wheat flours of different cultivars, i.e. Cheyenne and Chinese Spring, were accurately fractionated by SEC using three buffers (pH 2.6, 4.0 and 6.9) and two column sets. Both molecular weight distribution (MWD) and radius of gyration distribution (RGD) could be used to differentiate the two cultivars. MWD of glutenin polymers is a complex mixture of high- and low-molecular weight fractions and the relative percentage was found to be very different. The two cultivars were found to be different; in particular, the Chinese Spring polymer showed more compact conformation than the Cheyenne polymer. The slope of the conformation plot for glutenin was about 0.37, close to the theoretical value for compact spheres. Determination of glutenin MWD and RGD was difficult and depended on the buffer used and the SEC columns.     

Properties of dry film lubricants prepared by spray application of aqueous starch–oil composites

Aqueous dispersions of starch–soybean oil (SBO) and starch–jojoba oil (JO) composites, prepared by excess steam jet cooking, form effective dry film lubricants when applied as thick coatings to metal surfaces by a doctor blade. This application method necessitates long drying times, is wasteful, requires the addition of sucrose to promote composite adhesion to the metal surface, and restricts the substrate geometry to planar surfaces. These issues represent important barriers to the commercialization of this aqueous biobased dry film lubricant technology. We now report an air-assisted spray method that uses readily available spray equipment to apply aqueous starch–oil composite dispersions as thin coatings (0.15–2.0 mg/cm²) to metal surfaces quickly and efficiently. Aqueous dispersions of waxy maize starch–oil composites containing either SBO, JO or hexadecane (HD), having 0.020–31.7 wt% oil relative to starch, were applied by air-assisted spraying and could be dried to the touch in approximately 30 s. Additionally, sucrose was found unnecessary for adhesion of the sprayed coatings. Tribological ball-on-flat testing of metal specimens spray coated with starch–SBO, –JO, and –HD composites showed the thin films of starch–SBO and –JO performed better at reducing the coefficient of friction (COF) than the starch–hexadecane composites. A low COF ranging between 0.027 and 0.044 was obtained for the starch–SBO and –JO composites containing 4–5 wt% oil relative to starch. Above 4–5 wt% oil loadings, no further COF reductions were realized. Further results revealed that micrometer-sized oil droplets embedded within the dried starch matrix of the composite film are delivered “on demand”. It appears that when pressure is applied to the dry film lubricant, the starch matrix ruptures and releases the entrained oil to the friction surface.     

Characterization of Agro-diversity by Seed Storage Protein Electrophoresis： Focus on Rice Germplasm from Uttarakhand Himalaya, India

The characteristics of 48 rice varieties from Uttarakhand Himalaya,India were detected by morphological and biochemical markers.The grains of the selected rice varieties varied in their morphological(grain length,grain width and grain weight)and biochemical characters(sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis,SDS-PAGE).Based on the presence of 70,65,60,57,37-39,22-23,13 and 10 kDa protein bands in the 48 rice varieties,seven types of profiles were identified.An unweighted pair group average ...     

The SRI (system of rice intensification) water management evaluation by SWAPP (SWAT–APEX Program) modeling in an agricultural watershed of South Korea

Paddy and Water Environment - In this study, a potential system for achieving rice intensification (SRI) water management in an agricultural watershed of South Korea was evaluated using the...     

Simple and Rapid Quality Control of Sulfated Glycans by a Fluorescence Sensor Assay—Exemplarily Developed for the Sulfated Polysaccharides from Red Algae Delesseria sanguinea

Sulfated polysaccharides (SP) from algae are of great interest due to their manifold biological activities. Obstacles to commercial (especially medical) application include considerable variability and complex chemical composition making the analysis and the quality control challenging. The aim of this study was to evaluate a simple microplate assay for screening the quality of SP. It is based on the fluorescence intensity (FI) increase of the sensor molecule Polymer-H by SP and was originally developed for direct quantification of SP. Exemplarily, 65 SP batches isolated from the red alga Delesseria sanguinea (D.s.-SP) and several other algae polysaccharides were investigated. Their FI increase in the Polymer-H assay was compared with other analytical parameters. By testing just one concentration of a D.s.-SP sample, quality deviations from the reference D.s.-SP and thus both batch-to-batch variability and stability can be detected. Further, structurally distinct SP showed to differ in their concentration-dependent FI profiles. By using corresponding reference compounds, the Polymer-H assay is therefore applicable as identification assay with high negative predictability. In conclusion, the Polymer-H assay showed to represent not only a simple method for quantification, but also for characterization identification and differentiation of SP of marine origin.     

Characterization of Amaranthus cruentus L. seed proteins by 2-DE and LC/MS–MS: Identification and cloning of a novel late embryogenesis-abundant protein

Amaranth is taking great attention as an important cereal crop that could fulfill food requirements for the growing population, especially in developing countries. However, the protein composition of these seeds is not well known yet. We have used the proteomics tools to characterize amaranth seed proteome. About 400 proteins spots were resolved on two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) and protein spots were analyzed by LC-MS/MS (liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry). Identified proteins were related to stress and defense responses, metabolic, respiratory, and oxide-reduction processes. One abundant spot was identified as a Late Embryogenesis Abundant (LEA) protein and the gene was cloned and characterized. The AcLEA cDNA contains a 418 bp open reading frame (ORF) encoding a polypeptide of 139 amino acids. Bioinformatics analysis showed that AcLEA belongs to LEAs Group 5. Proteomics is a powerful technique that could be used even in non-sequenced organisms such as amaranth. The obtained information reveals that amaranth seed, beyond the classical seed storage proteins, contains proteins related to protection against stress. The identification of these proteins opens the door to the application of new strategies to improve the quality of amaranth production.