Genetic diversity among elite Bulgarian barley varieties evaluated by RFLP and RAPD markers

Genetic variation among five elite winter barley cultivars (H. vulgare L.) currently grown in Bulgaria was assessed at the molecular level using restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) and randomly amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) markers. The present study sampled RFLPs in four well characterized multigene families in barley: the seed storage protein loci; the 18S, 5.8S and 26S ribosomal DNA loci; the loci coding for 5S ribosomal RNA and the loci coding subunit α of ATP-A complex in the mitochondrial genome. RFLPs were detected in three out of five investigated chromosomal loci in the barley cultivars studied. RAPD assay using arbitrary 10-base primers was applied to generate amplified length polymorphic markers in barley. Overall a total of 15 polymorphic phenotypes were found among the studied barley cultivars by using 11 out of 25 tested primers. All RAPDs were considered as dominant genetic markers except for two, where PCR and Southern blot analysis indicated the presence of codominant amplification products. Five RAPD polymorphisms in F₁ and F₂ progenies of the cross between Alpha and Obzor were inherited in Mendelian fashion. The determined values for the genetic variation proved a high genetic similarity among the tested cultivars. Genetic similarity (GS) calculated from RFLP and RAPD data ranged from 0.888 to 0.997 with a mean GS – 0.933. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Radical Scavenging Activity and Stability of Betalains from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Beta vulgaris</Emphasis> Hairy Root Culture in Simulated Conditions of Human Gastrointestinal Tract

Stability and radical scavenging activity of betalains, biosynthesized by Beta vulgaris hairy root culture were investigated at different pH values, bile salts concentration, as well as at the in vitro conditions of gastrointestinal tract. It was established that pH below 3 and concentrations of the bile salts up to 4% had no great influence on betalains stability. At the in vitro conditions of gastrointestinal tract betalains are relatively stable, as their radical scavenging activity decrease from 75% inhibition of 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH•) to about 38%.     

Antioxidant Activity and Phenolic Content of Betalain Extracts from Intact Plants and Hairy Root Cultures of the Red Beetroot Beta vulgaris cv. Detroit Dark Red

Betalains are water-soluble plant pigments that are widely used as food colorants, and have a wide range of desirable biological activities, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, hepatoprotective, anti-cancer properties. They can be produced from various plants, notably beetroot, but betalain products obtained in this way also have some undesirable properties and are difficult to standardize. A potentially attractive alternative is to use hairy root cultures. In the study reported here, we found that betalain extracts obtained from hairy root cultures of the red beetroot B. vulgaris cv. Detroit Dark Red also had higher antioxidant activity than extracts obtained from mature beetroots: six-fold higher 2,2-dyphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging ability (90.7% inhibition, EC₅₀ = 0.11 mg, vs 14.2% inhibition, EC₅₀ = 0.70 mg) and 3.28-fold higher oxygen radical absorbance capacity (4,100 μM TE/g dry extract, vs 1,250 μM TE/g dry extract). The high antioxidant activity of the hairy root extracts was associated with increased concentrations (more than 20-fold) of total phenolic concomitant compounds, which may have synergistic effects with betalains. The presence of 4-hydroxybenzoic acid, caffeic acid, catechin hydrate, and epicatechin were detected in both types of extract, but at different concentrations. Rutin was only present at high concentration (1.096 mg.g⁻¹ dry extract) in betalain extracts from the hairy root cultures, whereas chlorogenic acid was only detected at measurable concentrations in extracts from intact plants.     

A simple, flexible and efficient PCR-fusion/Gateway cloning procedure for gene fusion, site-directed mutagenesis, short sequence insertion and domain deletions and swaps

Background  

The progress and completion of various plant genome sequencing projects has paved the way for diverse functional genomic studies that involve cloning, modification and subsequent expression of target genes. This requires flexible and efficient procedures for generating binary vectors containing: gene fusions, variants from site-directed mutagenesis, addition of protein tags together with domain swaps and deletions. Furthermore, efficient cloning procedures, ideally high throughput, are essential for pyramiding of multiple gene constructs.     

保加利亚优良甜樱桃品种评价研究

樱桃是保加利亚主要栽培的果树树种,栽培面积近0．53万hm2。占全国果树总面积的16．5％。保加利亚农业研究所位于保加利亚著名的樱桃产区丘斯坦帝尔地区,一直从事于樱桃新品种的选育研究,樱桃主要育种目标是果个大、高产、晚花或抗花期霜冻害、自花结实,并通过杂交育种技术选育出一系列综合性状优良的甜樱桃新品种。现将甜樱桃新品种的主要性状总结如下。     

适合不套袋栽培的优良苹果品种筛选研究

研究不同苹果品种在套袋和不套袋情况下果实的外观和内在品质,认为‘红露’、‘瑞维纳’、‘新世界’、‘华金’、‘青香’5个品种在套袋和不套袋情况下果实表光较好,适宜作为不套袋栽培的苹果品种进行推广利用。同时,研究5个品种的植物学性状、生物学性状、抗逆性以及套袋和不套袋果实的外观和内在品质,不套袋果实的可溶性固形物含量、硬度、口感和风味均显著好于套袋果实。     

贴梗海棠主要果实营养成分分析

贴梗海棠是蔷薇科木瓜属植物,花梗极短,花朵紧贴在枝干上,鲜艳漂亮,是理想的园林绿化植物;果实作中药材使用时简称木瓜,富含Vc和丰富的蛋白质,有舒筋活络和化湿功能,具有极高的食用价值和药用价值。本试验重点测定了8个不同类型贴梗海棠果实的抗坏血酸维生素C、单宁酸和干物质等指标含量,以期筛选高营养和保健价值较高的     

Preparation and characterization of fibers of waste and fresh polyethylene terephtalate and mixtures of them

Textile fibers were obtained from secondary polyethylene terephtalate (PET) and its mixtures with primary PET at initial orientation of 18000–33000 %, rate of additional orientation drawing 3.5–6.5 times and temperature of thermal fixation 363–413 K. The fibers’ tensile strength was found to decrease and elongation at break to increase with the decrease of their linear density under the conditions of fibers formation. For the fibers based on polymer mixtures, the presence of oxidized fragments in the secondary PET limited the compatibility of the two polymers which resulted in deteriorated tensile properties. The linear density (4–16 dtex), tensile strength (30–50 cN/tex) and elongation at break (20–60 %) of the PET fibers obtained were close to these for the industrially produced polymer fibers. The values of the average diameter of the fibers formed and oriented under laboratory conditions allows classifying them between the fine and the coarse textile fibers which makes them suitable for the textile industry.