Morphological characteristics of some accessions of grass pea (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Lathyrus sativus</Emphasis> L.) grown in Europe and nutritional traits of their seeds

Thirty-one European accessions of grass pea (Lathyrus sativus L.) originating from Italy, Spain, Northern France, Germany and Poland grown in the same soil-climatic conditions in Poland were investigated. The morphological traits as well as the seed morphology and nutrient contents were studied. Substantial differentiation in some morphological characteristics was noticed. The plants could be assigned to two groups: one group comprising the lines from the Mediterranean basin (Italy and Spain) and the other group containing the accessions from West-central Europe (Northern France, Germany and Poland). The grass pea plants produced from the seeds obtained from West-central Europe appeared to be about 10 cm taller than the Mediterranean accessions and had predominantly white flowers. Their seeds were more than two times smaller than seeds of the accessions of Italian or Spanish origin. There were not noted any considerable differences in nutrient contents or antinutritional factors in seeds between these two groups of Lathyrus accessions. A negative correlation between β-ODAP and tannin contents (r = −0.379, P ≤ 0.05) and a positive correlation (r = 0.843, P ≤ 0.01) between a tannin content and flower color intensity were found. A white or crème colour was associated with a low tannin level in the seeds, while the colourful blooming accessions had higher tannin contents.     

Diversity of seed globulins in Lathyrus sativus L. and some related species

Sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis of reduced seed globulins covered 141 accessions of Lathyrus sativus and the following related species: L. amphicarpos, L. blepharicarpus, L. cicera, L. gorgoni, L. marmoratus, L. pseudocicera and L. stenophyllus. In the total examined material 71 globulin polypeptide bands were distinguished. The number of polypeptide bands detected in particular species varied from 14 in L. amphicarpos to 29 in L. sativus; all the species under study showed intraspecific variation due to individual variation and/or differences among accessions. Electrophoretic data were subjected to statistical analysis using hierarchical UPGMA grouping. Frequency distribution of polypeptide bands in L. sativus showed some correlations with geographical origin and certain seed characteristics (seed coat colour, seed weight) of the studied accessions. As regards interspecific relationships, the studied species showed to be distantly related taxa except for the rather closely allied L. cicera and L. marmoratus. The obtained results are compared with the electrophoretic seed albumin data reported earlier for the same taxa.     

Diversity of seed albumins in some Lathyrus species related to L. sativus L.: An electrophoretic study

Electrophoretic analysis of seed albumins covered 66 Lathyrus accessions representing L. amphicarpos, L. blepharicarpus, L. cicera, L. gorgoni, L. marmoratus, L. pseudocicera and L. stenophyllus. The number of major albumin bands recorded in particular species varied from two in L. amphicarpos to eight in L. gorgoni. Apart from L. amphicarpos, all the species under study showed intraspecific variation. In total, 21 bands were distinguished. The results were compared with the corresponding data reported earlier for L. sativus. All the data were statistically analysed. The species examined in this study proved to be distantly related to L. sativus. Distinctness of particular Lathyrus species was quite marked except for L. cicera and L. marmoratus which produced similar electrophoretic seed albumin patterns.     

Variations in morphological and agronomic traits among Jerusalem artichoke (Helianthus tuberosus L.) accessions

Jerusalem artichoke is a diversely-utilized crop. Selection for high yield, inulin content and other economically important traits are useful for improving this crop. The objectives of the present study were to evaluate genetic variability for qualitative and quantitative traits among Jerusalem artichoke accessions and to identify different groups of accessions using morphological and agronomic traits. Seventy-nine accessions were evaluated in a randomized complete block design with two replications in the late rainy season 2008, the early rainy season 2009 and the late rainy season 2009 at Khon Kaen University agronomy farm, Thailand. Morphological and agronomic characteristics were evaluated for genetic variations. High variations were found among Jerusalem artichoke accessions for qualitative and quantitative characters, and selection for these characters is possible. High variations were observed for tuber width, number of tubers/plant, biomass, fresh tuber yield and tuber size. Correlation coefficient between fresh tuber yield and tuber size was positive and significant (0.58, P ≤ 0.01). Improvement of tuber size is a means to improve yield and tuber quality. Based on morphological and agronomic characteristics, Jerusalem artichoke accessions were clustered into four distinct groups (R² = 0.88). These groups may be used as parental material to generate progenies for further improvement of this crop. This information will enable breeders to make informed decisions about possible heterotic groups for their breeding programs and germplasm conservation.     

Genetic diversity and population structure analysis of Grass pea (Lathyrus sativus L.) accessions collected from North-Western Ethiopia using SSR markers

Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution - Grass pea (Lathyrus sativus L.) is a legume crop known to be an excellent source of protein, tolerant to drought, waterlogging, and salinity. The crop is used...     

Genetic variation in radish (Raphanus sativus L.) germplasm from Pakistan using morphological traits and RAPDs

Genetic diversity of 30 radish (Raphanus sativus L.) accessions was investigated at the phenotypic level with morphological characters and at the DNA level using the random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) technique. Thirty-six morpho-physiological traits were recorded from seedling stage to harvest. The 31 primers used generated 202 RAPD bands, of which 158 (78.2%) were polymorphic. Multivariate procedures were used to classify the germplasm on the basis of phenotypic traits and RAPD fragments. Dendrograms were generated for the Euclidean distance from the morphological data and the Nei's genetic distance from the RAPD markers. Phenotypically, all the accessions were classified into four major groups corresponding to the different forms of cultivated radish. The morphological diversity existing within each of these groups suggested that they should be discriminated into the three botanical convarieties, sativusT (large-rooted), caudatus (pod-type) and oleifer (oilseed-type). Clustering of the accessions did not show any pattern of association between the morphological characters and the collection sites. Instead, landrace groups were associated with their morphological similarities and horticultural uses. On the other hand, the intra-specific genetic relationships of several accessions based on RAPD analysis were related primarily to their collection sites rather than to their phenotypic affinities. The level of polymorphism exhibited by the various convarieties could be exploited in genetic mapping populations to tag economically important traits. These genotypes also could serve as a useful germplasm source for root, leaf, pod and seed. This preliminary study of traditional radish landraces from Pakistan provides useful information regarding their horticultural potential.     

Fermentation of seeds of Teff (Eragrostis teff), grass-pea (Lathyrus sativus), and their mixtures: aspects of nutrition and food safety

Fermentation of pure teff (Eragrostis teff), pure grass-pea (Lathyrus sativus), and their mixtures, 9:1 and 8:2 (teff/grass-pea) has been done at two temperatures (room temperature and 35 degrees C) in duplicate using the strains of Lactobacillus plantarum, for bacterial fermentation, and Aspergillus oryzae and Rhizopus oligosporus in succession for solid-state fungal fermentation as inocula. In addition, the natural or spontaneous and back-slopping methods of bacterial fermentation have been done on the above four substrate groups. The pH and essential amino acid profiles of the different fermentation processes were compared. The back-slopping in teff at a temperature of 35 degrees C gave the sharpest pH drop. All fermentations done at 35 degrees C showed a steeper slope in their pH versus time plot compared to their room temperature counterpart. Fungal fermentation gave an improved amino acid profile for the essential ones in all of the substrate groups, except in pure grass-pea. Fermented teff/grass-pea (8:2) in this fungal fermentation has been found to be quite comparable in essential amino acid profile to an ideal reference protein recommended for children of 2-5 years of age. None of the bacterial fermentations produced a net change in their essential amino acid profile in any of the substrate groups investigated. Solid state fungal fermentation on pure grass-pea using the fungal strains R. oligosporous and A. oryzae in succession has shown that the neurotoxin beta-N-oxalyl-alpha,beta-diaminopropionic acid (beta-ODAP) in grass-pea has been removed by 80% on average for the high-toxin variety and by up to 97% for the low-toxin variety as determined by an improved chromatographic method with bioelectrochemical detection coupled on-line with refractive index detection.     

Effects of salinity,drought, and priming treatments on seed germination and growth parameters of Lathyrus sativus L.

Germination of plants is one of the most important stages during their growth, which is often influenced by environmental stresses, especially drought and salinity. This study was conducted to investigate the effects of salinity and drought on seed germination and growth of Lathyrus sativus. The experiment was laid out in a completely randomized design with factorial arrangement in four replications. Salinity treatments were 0, 2, and 4 dS/m and drought treatments included 0, 0.4, 0.8, and 1.2 MPa. Salinity and drought treatments were prepared by using sodium chloride and polyethylene glycol 6000, respectively. The results showed that salinity and drought stresses decreased germination percentage, and root and radicle length.     

Effects of cadmium stress on seedlings of various rangeland plant species (Avena fatua L., Lathyrus sativus L., and Lolium temulentum L.): Growth,physiological traits,and cadmium accumulation

A pot culture experiment was performed to study the effect of cadmium stress (Cd stress) on seedling growth, physiological traits, and remediation potency of Avena fatua, Lathyrus sativus, and Lolium temulentum. The seedlings of these native rangeland plant species were treated with 0, 2, 4, and 6 mM cadmium nitrate concentrations. Based on the results of analysis of variance (p < 0.05), the shoot height, shoot dry weight, root length, root dry weight, root: shoot ratio, total chlorophyll content, soluble sugars, and protein contentof A. fatua, L. sativus, and L. temulentum significantly decreased with increased cadmium concentrations. Generally, translocation factor (TF) and tolerance index (TI) decreased significantly as the concentration of cadmium increased. The maximum TF and TI of studied plants in various concentrations of Cd were observed in L. temulentum followed by L. sativus and A. fatua. The root concentration factor (RCF) values of all studied plants were higher than 1 under different cadmium concentrations. Our results indicate that Lolium temulentum could be labeled as an accumulator of Cd asthe values of TF and RCF are greater than 1. A. fatua and L. sativus showed a potential to be used in the phytoremediation of Cd-contaminated soils.     

Genetic diversity analysis in Phaseolus vulgaris L. using morphological traits

Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) is an important export crop in Kyrgyzstan since the end of the twentieth century. Genetic diversity analysis of common bean populations is useful for breeding programs, as it helps to select genetic material to be used for further crossing. Twenty-seven common bean accessions were analyzed using 13 qualitative morphological traits. In some cases, obtained morphological data were combined with previously published results based on microsatellite markers. The similarity matrices generated from the molecular and morphological data were significantly correlated (r = 0.49, P < 0.01). Cluster analyses based on Dice’s similarity coefficient were constructed based on morphological data and the combined data set of morphology and microsatellite, and both grouped the 27 accessions according to their origin: 15 belonged to the Andean and 12 to the Mesoamerican gene pool. On average, the Andean accessions were less diverse than the Mesoamerican accessions. The average diversity based on the Shannon diversity index for the 13 qualitative morphological traits was 0.05. Overall, this study revealed that qualitative morphological markers are efficient in assigning modern cultivars to their gene pools of origin.     

Selection of reference genes for quantitative real-time PCR analysis in Lathyrus sativus L. under different development stages and drought stress

Genetic Resources and Crop Evolution - Grass pea (Lathyrus sativus L.) is a robust legume crop with high protein content and good stress tolerance. However, it needs genetic improvement due to the...     

Variability and selection on different <Emphasis Type="Italic">Argyrolobium roseum</Emphasis> accessions for morphological traits and yield

Variability studies were carried out among different accessions of Argyrolobium roseum for 12 metric traits under natural and cultivated conditions. Almost all characters showed higher values in cultivated than natural population. Leaf breadth recorded highest CV (30.59%). Highest percentage of vitexin and D-pinitol (0.208 and 0.773% dwb) was observed in RAR-7 and RAR-6, respectively, under cultivated conditions. Phenotypic coefficient was higher than genotypic coefficient of variation. The association analysis revealed that root yield had positive significant correlation with 100 seed weight (r=0.839) biomass yield (r=0.601), where biomass yield had a positive significant correlation with leaf length, single pod weight. High heritability (97.4–99.8%) coupled with moderate genetic advance ranged between (49–67%) as a percent of mean was observed for leaf breadth, pod length, total foliage biomass yield and total root yield/plant. This suggests that direct selection for these traits is suitable for the improvement of this crop.     

Phenotypic diversity of Ethiopian grass pea (Lathyrus sativus L.) in relation to geographical regions and altitudinal range

Fifty grass pea (Lathyrus sativus L.) populations collected from different administrative regions and altitude classes in Ethiopia, were evaluated for variations of five morphological traits. Shannon-Weaver diversity index was calculated for traits, populations and altitude classes. Monomorphism was recorded in flower color (blue) for most of the populations. Olive seed colour was dominantly distributed in all regions with mean frequency of 50% while black seed colour is rare with mean frequency of 4% in Ethiopia. Much variability was observed within populations. High diversity values for pattern of testa colour and leaflet size were recorded in populations of highland origin (>2550 m.a.s.l.). Shannon's diversity index is highest in Gondar (H = 0.65) followed by Tigray region (H = 0.64) even though there was no significant variation in H values between regions. These regions with high diversity are recommended for immediate in situ and ex situ conservation.     

Ecogeographic survey and gap analysis of Lathyrus L. species

The genetic diversity of the genus Lathyrus is of significant importance, particularly for its role in sustaining the livelihoods of local communities living under very harsh conditions and its potential to adapt to climate change. Grasspea (L. sativus) is the most widely used species and to a lesser extent L. cicera and L. ochrus, each is used for animal feed in many parts of the world and food in poorer regions, but human over-consumption of the seeds can lead to lathyrism, a disease caused by neurotoxins. This study has added substantial information and accuracy to the existing global Lathyrus database by combining diverse datasets and by adding information of major herbaria from Europe. This global Lathyrus database, available at ICARDA, was used to conduct gap analysis to guide future collecting missions and in situ conservation efforts for highest priority species originating from the Mediterranean Basin, and Caucasus, Central and West Asia region. The results showed the highest concentration of Lathyrus priority species are found in the Fertile Crescent countries, France, Italy and Greece. The area either side of the Lebanese/Syrian border near Tel Kalakh, Syria was identified as the hotspot and the overall priority location for establishing the first in situ genetic reserve. The gap analysis for ex situ conservation shows that only six species (representing 16.6 %) of the 36 priority species are adequately sampled. Only L. cicera has already been well sampled among the closely related species to cultivated species L. sativus, indicating further collecting of L. amphicarpos, L. belinensis, L. chrysanthus, L. hirticarpus, L. hirsutus and L. marmoratus is required. In addition, six secondary priority Lathyrus species have no ex situ collections (L. lentiformis, L. lycicus, L. phaselitanus, L. trachycarpus, L. tremolsianus and L. undulatus) and also require targeted collecting.     

Variability of certain chemotypes in three accessions of German chamomile (Matricaria chamomilla L.)

In 203 analyzed chamomile plants, several compounds appreciated for their medicinal value, were evaluated qualitatively and quantitatively. α-Bisabolol and its oxides A and B were measured by gas chromatography; matricine as a precursor of chamazulene, was assessed semi-quantitatively by matching visually thin layer chromatography bands with a concentration range of the pure substance and the flavonoids apigenin and apigenin-7-glycoside were quantified by high performance liquid chromatography. Mean values of all compounds were compared in the three chamomile accessions ‘Manzana’, ‘Lutea’ and ‘Hungarian 2’. Correlations between different substances over all data were calculated. Moreover, certain groups combining particular properties according to their desired purpose or specificity, were formed. Their incidence in the particular chamomile varieties was determined. ‘Manzana’, a tetraploid cultivar, exhibited the highest share of the valuable bisabolol–matricine-type and the lowest ratio of bisabolol-oxides to bisabolol. To develop ‘high-quality-populations’, defined individuals of this cultivar shall be selected for further breeding.     

二、四倍体萝卜光合特性比较研究

二、四倍体萝卜光合特性比较研究表明:四倍体叶片厚度、叶绿素含量和叶面积明显高于二倍体,且其气孔增大,密度减小.二倍体和四倍体的净光合速率(Pn)和气孔导度(Gs)均随光强增大而增加;而细胞间隙CO2浓度(Ci)随光强增强缓慢下降.二倍体的净光合速率、气孔导度和细胞间隙CO2浓度均高于四倍体.四倍体的光饱和点(LSP)为1 960 μmol · m-2 · s-1,光补偿点(LCP)为59.87 μmol · m-2 · s-1,均高于二倍体.     

Effect of vermicompost on some morphological,physiological and biochemical traits of bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) under salinity stress

Vermicompost can play an effective role in plant growth and development and also in reducing harmful effects of various environmental stresses on plants due to its porous structure, high water storage capacity, having hormone-like substances and plant growth regulators and also high levels of macro and micro nutrients. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of vermicompost and salinity interactions on some morphological and physiological features and concentration of mineral elements of bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L. cv. Light Red Kidney) cultivar. A factorial experimental with five different volumetric ratios of vermicompost and sand, including to: 0:100; 10:90; 25:75; 50:50 and 75:25 and four levels of salinity [20, 40, 60 and 80 mmol l^?1 sodium chloride (NaCl)], and control was conducted base on Randomized Complete Block Design with three replications. Bean seeds were sowed in plastic pots, the seedlings being sampled 42 days old (flowering stage).The results showed that vermicompost had significant effect on all studied traits under stress and non-stress (p ≤ 0.05).In this experiment, the vermicompost significantly increased the photosynthetic rate and concentrations of potassium (K⁺) and calcium (Ca²)⁺in leaf and root tissues. In salinity levels of 20, 40 and 60 mmol l^?1NaCl, all subjected ratios of vermicompost and in 80 mmol l^?1NaCl the ratios of 10% and 75% vermicompost, significantly ameliorated negative effects of salinity. In both stress and non-stress conditions, using 10% volume of vermicompost is recommended to improve the growth of bean plants.