Ex vivo tissue discrimination by visible and near-infrared spectra with chemometrics

The risk of infections from zoonotic pathogens of tissues and/or tissue-derived products has been increasing. One preventive approach in reducing infection risk is tissue decontamination, where selection and screening of highly infectious tissues are strictly followed. Therefore, the development of reliable analytical methods for rapid tissue discrimination is essentially important. In the present study, a procedure has been developed for intact tissue discrimination on the basis of multivariate analysis of visible and near-infrared (Vis-NIR) spectra of certain tissues such as brain, liver, kidney and testis of mice without any pretreatment. Transmittance spectra in the 600- to 1000-nm regions were subjected to a principal component analysis (PCA), and leave-out cross-validation was employed to develop multivariate models for tissue discrimination. The plot of PCA scores against Vis-NIR spectra of brains, kidneys, livers and testes from 11 mice portrayed reliable tissue discrimination. This result suggests that Vis-NIR spectroscopy combined with chemometrics analysis may provide a potentially useful approach for rapid non-destructive discrimination of tissues.     

Distribution of the wheat–rye translocation 1RS.1BL among bread wheat varieties of Bulgaria

The distribution of the wheat–rye translocation 1RS.1BL was studied in 31 winter wheat varieties from Bulgaria. The presence of the translocation was verified in 17 varieties using chromosome N‐banding analysis, PAGE‐analysis of grain storage proteins and DNA‐marker analysis. The 1RS.1BL has been transmitted in 54% of varieties with a known source of the translocation in their pedigree.     

Nicotiana tabacum L. as a source of cytoplasmic male sterility in interspecific cross with N. alata Link & Otto

A new source of cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) in tobacco with interspecific origin is reported. In traditional selection wild tobacco species have been used as donors of cytoplasm. In the present study the cultivated species Nicotiana tabacum L. (n = 24) is a source of CMS. It was used as female parent and N. alata (n = 9) was involved as a pollinator. The F1 hybrid of this cross was completely sterile. Tissue culture method was applied to restore the female fertility. Regenerants obtained from the 5th passage were successfully pollinated with N. tabacum and seed-containing capsules were formed. All BC1P1 plants were male sterile. They possessed normally developed corollas, three-loculed or deformed pistils, and 1–2 stamens modified into secondary pistils. In some plants stamenless flowers were observed. Male sterility of BC1P1 was preserved in BC2P1–BC7P1 progenies confirming its cytoplasmic nature. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Cytoplasmic male sterility in Nicotiana tabacum L. obtained through interspecific hybridization

Three new sources of cytoplasmic male sterility in tobacco with interspecific origin are reported. The wild species Nicotiana excelcior Black (n = 19), N. amplexicaulis Burbidge (n = 18) and N. rustica L. (n = 24) are used as donor of cytoplasm. Nuclear donor is N. tabacum L. (n = 24). The genetic effects of cytoplasmic-nuclear interactions of the studied species are discussed. Our experiments prove that N. excelcior, N. amplexicaulis and N. rustica are carriers of cytoplasmic genes for male sterility that express in combination with nuclear genes of N. tabacum. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.