Root carbohydrate reserves, mineral nutrient concentrations and biomass in a healthy and a declining sugar maple (Acer saccharum) stand

Soil and root characteristics were contrasted between a "declining" and a "healthy" sugar maple (Acer saccharum Marsh.) stand in Vermont, USA. The declining stand had lower basal area increment and more crown dieback than the healthy stand. Soil pH and base cation content were lower and soil water content was higher at the site of the declining stand than at the site of the healthy stand, whereas soil temperature did not differ significantly between the sites. In live fine roots, concentrations of K and Ca were marginally (P < 0.07) lower in the declining than in the healthy stand, whereas concentrations of N, P, Mg, and Al were not significantly different (P = 0.13 to 0.87) between stands. Starch and soluble sugar concentrations of fine and coarse roots did not differ significantly between stands, indicating that crown dieback did not affect carbohydrate supply to the roots in the declining stand. Throughout the growing season, the standing live and dead root biomass were significantly higher in the declining stand than in the healthy stand, indicating that more carbon was allocated to roots and that root turnover was higher in the declining stand than in the healthy stand.     

南方地区杨树胶合板材定向培育技术的研究

随着工业技术的发展,工业生产对木材和其它林产品提出了更高、更新的要求,要求各类用材实行定向培育,这是世界人工林发展出现的战略变化１）。杨树具有生长快、成材早、产量高和易于更新的特点,为最适的短轮伐期工业用材林经营树种（方升佐等,１９９３）。所谓定向培育,是指按最终用途所确定的对木材原料的要求,采用集约经营等科学管理措施,生产出种类、质量、规格都大致相同,价格具竞争力的大批木材原料。本文简要总结了南方地区杨树胶合板材定向培育技术中关于无性系选择、立地控制、密度控制、栽植材料选择及优化栽培模式等研究…     

Potassium fertilization improves apple fruit (Malus domestica Borkh. Cv. Fuji) development by regulating trehalose metabolism

Potassium (K) fertilization and antioxidant enzymes both positively influence plant growth and development. However, it is not known whether K treatment improves fruit development via increasing soluble sugar. In this study, K-treated apple (Malus domestica Borkh.) fruit was harvested from 60 to 150 days after full bloom and was analyzed for ROS production and trehalose metabolism. The results show that K fertilization improved fruit firmness, increased growth according to several parameters, increased soluble sugar content, and decreased ROS production. The ascorbate metabolic pathway more effectively reduced ROS production than catalase and peroxidase (POD) did under K treatment. Trehalose-treated fruit also showed higher activity of ascorbate-related enzymes (DHAR, GR, and APX) compared with non-treated fruit. The changes of antioxidant enzyme activity in trehalose-treated fruit corresponded to those in K-treated fruit. Moreover, trehalase (TREH) activity in fruit was notably reduced by K treatment. This demonstrates that K influences ROS production via regulating trehalose content and TREH activity in fruit. This study provides new insight into the K mechanism which improves fruit development, including fruit firmness and size.     

Effects of formic acid and potassium diformate on the fermentation quality,chemical composition and aerobic stability of alfalfa silage

The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of potassium diformate (KDF) as a potential additive for alfalfa silage. Fresh alfalfa was untreated or treated with formic acid (4 g/kg fresh weight, FW) or three concentrations of KDF (4, 5.5 or 7 g/kg FW). After 60 days of ensiling, the addition of formic acid and greater levels of KDF (5.5 and 7 g/kg) effectively reduced silage pH and inhibited the undesirable bacteria, indicated by lower butyric acid, ethanol, ammonia N concentrations and microbial populations (including enterobacteria, yeasts, moulds and clostridia). Additives decreased the dry‐matter loss, and more water‐soluble carbohydrates were preserved in the silages with formic acid or potassium diformate than in the control. Alfalfa silages treated with formic acid at 4 g/kg FW or potassium diformate at 5.5 or 7 g/kg FW were classified as the highest quality silage based on the higher Flieg's point (above 70) and remained stable for more than 9 days during aerobic exposure. Potassium diformate is recommended as an effective additive for alfalfa silages at a level of 5.5 or 7 g/kg FW under the humid and hot conditions of southern China.     

Using unsupervised learning techniques to assess interactions among complex traits in soybeans

Soybean yield components and agronomic traits are connected through physiological pathways that impose tradeoffs through genetic and environmental constraints. Our primary aim is to assess the interdependence of soybean traits by using unsupervised machine learning techniques to divide phenotypic associations into environmental and genetic associations. This study was performed on large scale, jointly analyzing 14 quantitative traits in a large multi-parental population designed for genetic studies. We collected phenotypes from 2012 to 2015 from a soybean nested association panel with 40 families of approximately 140 individuals each. Pearson and Spearman correlations measured phenotypic associations. A multivariate mixed linear model provided genotypic and environmental correlations. To evaluate relationships among traits, the study used principal component and undirected graphical models from phenotypic, genotypic, and environmental correlation matrices. Results indicate that high phenotypic correlation occurs when traits display both genetic and environmental correlations. In genetic terms, length of reproductive period, node number, and canopy coverage play important roles in determining yield potential. Optimal grain yield production occurs when the growing environment favors faster canopy closure and extended reproductive length. Environmental associations found among yield components give insight into the nature of yield component compensation. The use of unsupervised learning methods provides a good framework for investigating interactions among various quantitative traits and defining target traits for breeding.     

QSA的mRNA在人和小鼠各组织中表达规律

从基因水平上检测精子中新基因QSA的表达规律及时空分布,并推测其可能的生物学作用.采用RT-PCR和原位杂交法检测QSA在人和小鼠多种组织中的表达.RT-PCR结果显示QSA在小鼠的睾丸、精子和受精卵中特异性表达,而在小鼠卵细胞、囊胚等组织中未检测到该基因的mRNA.原位杂交结果表明QSA在人的部分腺体组织(如:睾丸、...     

Molecular mimicry regulates ABA signaling by SnRK2 kinases and PP2C phosphatases

Abscisic acid (ABA) is an essential hormone for plants to survive environmental stresses. At the center of the ABA signaling network is a subfamily of type 2C protein phosphatases (PP2Cs), which form exclusive interactions with ABA receptors and subfamily 2 Snfl-related kinase (SnRK2s). Here, we report a SnRK2-PP2C complex structure, which reveals marked similarity in PP2C recognition by SnRK2 and ABA receptors. In the complex, the kinase activation loop docks into the active site of PP2C, while the conserved ABA-sensing tryptophan of PP2C inserts into the kinase catalytic cleft, thus mimicking receptor-PP2C interactions. These structural results provide a simple mechanism that directly couples ABA binding to SnRK2 kinase activation and highlight a new paradigm of kinase-phosphatase regulation through mutual packing of their catalytic sites.     

高吞吐量协作防火墙的双向去冗余方法

针对协作防火墙中冗余规则会降低其吞吐量的问题,提出一种基于双向去冗余的高吞吐量协作防火墙优化方法.该方法通过比对协作防火墙中双方的防火墙规则,双向去除域内防火墙之间的冗余规则,提高整个协作防火墙的数据包过滤能力.仿真实验结果表明,该方法的冗余率达到了22.7%,提高了8.2%吞吐量,明显优于已有协作防火墙优化方法.     

棉花优良品种中棉所27直接胚胎发生与植株再生

选用我国难培养基因型优良棉花品种中棉所27进行组织培养,研究了该品种体细胞胚胎发生与植株再生能力。该品种体细胞胚胎发生有2种情况:一是由外植体直接诱导获得胚性愈伤组织并形成不同发育时期的胚状体;二是先诱导获得非胚性愈伤组织,再经多次继代培养,获得胚胎发生。不同激素及其组合和浓度配比是影响中棉所27直接诱导获得胚性愈伤组织及体细胞胚胎发生的直接因素。另外,饥饿培养及继代周期对胚胎发生也有重要影响。0.1mg/LKT和0.1mg/LIAA组合、0.1mg/LKT和0.1mg/LZT组合、0.1mg/LZT单独使用,在饥饿条件下培养,均能直接高效诱导获得大量胚性愈伤组织,并有短期内形成不同发育时期的胚状体。胚状体在不含任何激素的MS B5培养基上培养有利于植株再生,并降低畸形苗形成率。另外,还发现不同培养基对中棉所27胚性愈伤组织增殖、体细胞胚形成和萌发的影响不同。     

Cloning and Sequence Analysis of Lipoxygenase Gene cDNA from Cucumber Fruit （Cucumis sativus L.）

Lipoxygenases are nonheme-iron-containing dioxygenases that catalyze the hydroperoxidation of unsatrated fatty acids containing a cis, cis-1,4-pentadiene structure producing hydroperoxy acids with conjugated dienes. LOX activity has been found in a wide range of plants. Typical substrates for LOX in plants are linoleic acid and linilenic acid fatty acids. The function of various LOXs in plants is unknown, but their participation in all stages of plant growth and development has been suggested （Hildebrand, 1989; Siedow, 1991）. Some of the physiological processes in whicn lipoxygenses have been implicated include wounding （Saravitz and Siedow, 1996）, pathogen attack （Melan et al., 1993）, seed germination （Kato et al., 1992）, fruit ripening （Ferrie et al., 1994）, plant senescence （Paliyath and Droillard, 1992）. The study on the role of lipoxygenase in ripening and senescence fruit focused on tomato and strawberry. Cloning LOX gene of cucumber fruit will make us further understand the molecularaction mode of this enzyme during fxuit ripening and senescence. In this paper we isolated the partial nucleotide sequences of cucumber fiuit lipoxygenase gene and discuss the characterization of it.