Screening of Urfa pepper landraces for resistance to Meloidogyne incognita

Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection - The root-knot nematodes (Meloidogyne spp.) are significant pathogens that affect the yield and fruit quality in pepper cultivars (Capsicum spp.)....     

Workshop report: The 2012 Antimicrobial Agents in Veterinary Medicine: exploring the consequences of antimicrobial drug use: a 3‐D approach

Antimicrobial resistance is a global challenge that impacts both human and veterinary health care. The resilience of microbes is reflected in their ability to adapt and survive in spite of our best efforts to constrain their infectious capabilities. As science advances, many of the mechanisms for microbial survival and resistance element transfer have been identified. During the 2012 meeting of Antimicrobial Agents in Veterinary Medicine (AAVM), experts provided insights on such issues as use vs. resistance, the available tools for supporting appropriate drug use, the importance of meeting the therapeutic needs within the domestic animal health care, and the requirements associated with food safety and food security. This report aims to provide a summary of the presentations and discussions occurring during the 2012 AAVM with the goal of stimulating future discussions and enhancing the opportunity to establish creative and sustainable solutions that will guarantee the availability of an effective therapeutic arsenal for veterinary species.     

The fat content of milk from dairy cattle infected with bovine leukosis virus

Two groups of cows infected with the bovine leukosis virus (BLV) were kept on two different diets and the fat content of their milk was assayed. The results were compared with those obtained from two comparable groups of BLV-free cows. The cows in each group were of similar ages, those in the groups on the poorer diet being 1–4 months post partum, while those on the richer diet were 5–7 months post partum. The mean percentage of fat in the milk from uninfected cows on the poorer diet was 2.94 while that from the similar infected cattle was 3.06. Uninfected cows on the richer diet produced milk containing 3.39% fat, while those that were infected produced milk containing 3.30% fat. No statistical differences in milk fat production were observed between the BLV seropositive and seronegative cows.     

The effect of nitrogen fertilization and shading on the incidence of “colour spots” in sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum) fruit

SUMMARY

“Colour spots” (CS) in pepper fruit is a physiological disorder characteristic of some sweet pepper cultivars. The symptoms are yellowish spots on the outer surface of affected fruits. We investigated the effects of shading and nitrogen supply on the susceptibility of three sweet pepper cvs (Maor, Lady Bell and 899) to CS. The most susceptible was ‘Maor’. The incidence of CS was promoted by high N and shading. The fruits of all cultivars had lower nitrogen concentrations than the leaves but there were no significant differences in fruit N content between Maor and the CS-insensitive cultivars. The CS-affected areas of the pericarp tissue had higher calcium concentrations than unaffected tissue. Differences in magnesium or potassium concentrations in these spots were less pronounced. Scanning electron microscopy revealed that the affected pericarp cells contained crystals, presumably of calcium oxalate. Only in ‘Maor’ fruits was the oxalate concentration elevated by approximately nine-fold when the nitrogen supply to shaded plants was increased. We suggest that in the fruits of the sensitive cultivar, oxalic acid production is enhanced under high-nitrogen + shading conditions and causes the CS damage, possibly be chelating intracellular calcium.     

Ethylene formation from ethyl moiety of ethionine

In plants, ethylene is formed in the presence of light and flavin mononucleotide from ethionine and S-ethylcysteine. The ethylene is formed from the ethyl moiety of ethionine.     

Pyrimidine nucleotide synthesis: regulatory control during transformation of lymphocytes in vitro

The incorporation of uridine into RNA in lymphocytes undergoing transformation induced by phytohemagglutinin parallels its incorporation into the intratcellular pool of acid-soluble nucleotides and coincides with a 20-fold increase in the specific activity of uridine kinase. This increase is dependent upon synthesis of both RNA and protein and is subject to both repression and end-product inhibition by cytidine.     

Indoleacetic acid oxidase activity of apoperoxidase

The conventional activity of electrophoretically purified horseradish peroxidase toward guaiacol, pyrogallol, 2,6-dimethoxyphenol, and benzidine is abolished by removal of the heme prosthetic group with a mixture of cold acetone and hydrogen chloride. The apoenzyme, though devoid of peroxidase activity, retains its activity as an indoleacetic acid oxidase when it is supplied with 10(-5) mole of manganous ion and 2,4-dachlorophenol per liter. This oxidase activity is cyanide-sensitive; azide also inhibits under specific conditions of both pH and cofactor concentration. Partial restoration of the peroxidase activity by recombination of apoprotein with heme produces no effect on the oxidase activity, except that cofactors are no longer absolutely required. Therefore, it appears that the activity of peroxidase as an indoleacetic acid oxidase need not directly involve the heme prosthetic group, or that manganous ions and dichlorophenol can substitute for the heme group in the reaction between indoleacetic acid and oxidase.     

A genetic study of growth characters and yield characters of oilseed rape

Summary Analysis of single plants in parental, F₁ and F₂ populations of three crosses of oilseed rape indicated cytoplasmic effects in F₁ or F₂ generations for most of the observed characters. There was evidence of dominance for early flowering and early maturity. Heterosis was exhibited for yield and yield components. The heritabilities for the characters under study were generally very low.     

Cre/loxP定位重组系统在植物雄不育和杂种优势中的利用研究

Cre—loxP是来源于噬菌体P1的一种位点特异性重组系统。目前，它已广泛应用于基因功能鉴定，动植物及微生物基因组的修饰以及基因的表达和调控。雄性不育系在杂种优势的利用中具有重要意义。本实验是以Cre—loxP系统调控细胞毒素基因barnase在植物雄性器官发育的特异时期在特异组织表达，从而达到控制植物育性的目的。1．在本实验中，通过PCR方法克隆了解淀粉芽孢杆菌Bacillus amyloliquefaciens的barnase基因，及其抑制因子barstar的DNA序列，同时，构建成功双元表达载体及基因枪转化载体，并已获得经分子险测呈阳性的小麦植株。2．osg6B是来源于水稻花药绒毡层的特异性的启动子，它在小孢子发育的四分体时期至单核花粉期在花药绒毡层中特异启动基因的表达，它具有较为严紧的时空特异性。以osg6B为启动子，构建了一组受控于Cre／loxP位点特异性重组系统的适用于基因枪法转化小麦的载体系统。其中，转不育基因(og6B—barnase)小麦植株生长正常，但开花后，花粉量明显减少，自交不能得到正常种子。进行花粉活力检测发现，转基因小麦大部分花粉表现为败育。花粉离体萌发试验表明，转不育基因小麦的花粉离体萌发率极低，几近败育。说明以osg6B驱动barnase在小麦花药中的表达可以导致雄性不育。3．以osg6B为启动子，构建了一组受控于Cre／loxP的用于控制双子叶植物育性的双元表达载体系统。以转cre基因的烟草作为受体，以含阻断序列的质粒农杆菌进行二次转化。二次转化株营养生长正常，但开花期花器官表现异常。具体表现为花瓣异常开裂或不开裂，花丝变短或粘连，花药提早萎蔫或异常开裂。推测这种现象的出现与启动子的组织特异性或barnase的渗露表达有关。4．二次转化株花粉染色因不同株系出现全部败育、部分不育和多数可育的情况。花粉离体萌发实验也得到了相似的结果。这说明通过筛选，利用Cre／loxP得到完全不育的植物株系是完全可行的。5．获得了9个barnase的突变体，初步推测第十四位氨基酸及第八十位氨基酸与核糖核酸酶活性有关。同时，发现barnase的第316位核苷酸序列为易突变位点，自然发生的突变多插入一个C，从而产生终止位点的改变。这或许会为今后barnase的克隆与利用提供一些参考。