Silicon-mediated genotoxic alterations in Brassica juncea under arsenic stress: A comparative study of biochemical and molecular markers

Arsenic (As), one of the most harmful toxicant at the global level, severely affects plant metabolism when taken up. Interestingly, the presence of silicon (Si) as a fertilizer in As-contaminated soil is an effective strategy to decrease As accumulation in plants. Brassica juncea (var. Varuna) were grown hydroponically to investigate the role of Si at biochemical and molecular levels under arsenite (As³⁺) stress. Seedlings of B. juncea were exposed to As³⁺, Si, and a combination of both elements. Our data demonstrated that seedlings exposed to As³⁺ showed an inhibition in shoot length, chlorophyll, carotenoid, and protein, while co-application of Si improved these growth parameters. Silicon supplementation reduced As accumulation in shoot. Increase/decrease was observed in stress-related parameters (cysteine and proline), antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase, ascorbate peroxidase, and catalase), and oxidative stress markers (malondialdehyde and H₂O₂), which were improved upon co-application of Si as compared to As³⁺ alone treatment. Random amplified polymorphic DNA (RAPD) is a suitable biomarker assay for plants for assessing the genotoxicity. Seven RAPD primers produced a total of 39 and 48 bands in the leaves of the untreated and treated seedlings, respectively. The RAPD band-profiles and genomic template stability were consistent with other growth and physiological parameters. In conclusion, the genotoxic alterations along with the biochemical parameters indicate that the exposure to Si mitigates As³⁺-induced oxidative stress by improving the stress-related parameters and antioxidant system in B. juncea.     

小麦品种的耐盐性变化：甜菜碱和乙烯的作用

Four wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) cultivars 711, PBW343, 3765 and WH542 were screened for studying variations in glycinebetaine (GB) content and plant dry mass under 100 mmol L-1 NaCl stress. A tolerance index was calculated using plant dry mass data to select salt-tolerant and salt-sensitive types and find association between tolerance index and GB content. Tolerance index has been used as a good criterion to select the tolerant types under high salinity stress. Further, physiological differences in salt-tolerant cultivar 711 and salt-sensitive cultivar WH542 were examined. The salt-tolerant cultivar exhibited greater GB content, which was found correlative with ethylene. The cultivar also showed higher nitrogen (N) content and nitrate reductase activity, reduced glutathione and higher redox state resulting in maximal protection of plant dry mass than the salt-sensitive type. Thus, the content of GB may be considered as important physiological criteria for selecting salt-tolerant wheat types.     

Effects of simulated acid rain and root-knot nematode on tomato

Effects were examined of simulated acid rain and of root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne incognita race 1, on plant growth, yield, photosynthetic pigments and leaf epidermal characters of tomato ( Lycopersicon esculentum cv. Pusa Ruby). Sequential inoculation exposures (pre-, post-, and concomitant with nematode inoculation) were carried out in a greenhouse. Intermittent treatments of simulated acid rain at pH 3.2 caused white-to-tan irregular lesions on both the upper and lower surfaces of tomato leaves. The foliar symptoms were more pronounced on nematode-infected plants. Simulated acid rain (pH 3.2) and/or nematode infection suppressed plant growth, yield and pigment synthesis, the effects being greatest in post-inoculation treatments compared with simulated acid rain at pH 6.8. The total weight of fruits per plant was greatly suppressed owing to simulated acid rain or nematode infection. Chlorophyll a was found to be more sensitive to simulated acid rain or nematode infection than other leaf pigments. Root penetration, galling, egg mass production, and fecundity (number of eggs per egg mass) of M. incognita were enhanced at pH 5.6 and suppressed at pH 3.2 compared with pH 6.8. Nematode infection or simulated acid rain at pH 3.2 suppressed stomata and trichome development (number and size). Simulated acid rain treatments at pH 5.6 had a positive effect on number and size of trichomes, but a negative effect on stomata. The apertures of stomata were wider on tomato leaves exposed to simulated acid rain, especially at pH 3.2, than at pH 6.8.     

Nitrogen management improves lodging resistance and production in maize (Zea mays L.) at a high plant density

Lodging in maize leads to yield losses worldwide. In this study, we determined the effects of traditional and optimized nitrogen management strategies on culm morphological characteristics, culm mechanical strength, lignin content,root growth, lodging percentage and production in maize at a high plant density. We compared a traditional nitrogen(N) application rate of 300 kg ha–1(R) and an optimized N application rate of 225 kg ha^–1(O) under four N application modes: 50% of N applied a...     

Expression profiling of transgenes (Cry1Ac and Cry2A) in cotton genotypes under different genetic backgrounds

Transgenic cotton carrying the CrylAc gene has revolutionized insect pest control since its adoption,although the development of resistance in insect pests has reduced its efficacy.After 10 years of cultivating Bacillus thuringiensis(Bt) cotton with a single Cry1 Ac gene,growers are on the verge of adopting Bt cotton that carries the double gene(Cry1 Ac+Cry2 A) due to its better effectiveness against insect pests.Thus,the current study was designed to evaluate the role of each gene in the effect...     

Synthesis of bacterial cellulose from labeled precursor

The isolation and purification of an immediate precursor of bacterial cellulose was confirmed with glucose randomly labeled with carbon-14. The glucose appears to be bound within the cell to a lipid, is carried across the bacterial cell wall, and is incorporated enzymatically into cellulose extracellularly.     

RNAi-mediated knockdown of INHBB increases apoptosis and inhibits steroidogenesis in mouse granulosa cells

Inhibins are members of the TGFβ superfamily and act as suppressors of follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) secretion from pituitary glands via a negative feedback mechanism to regulate folliculogenesis. In this study, the INHBB gene was knocked down by three RNAi-Ready pSIREN-RetroQ-ZsGreen vector- mediated recombinant plasmids to explore the effects of INHBB silencing on granulosa cell (GC) cell cycle, apoptosis and steroid production in vitro. Quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction, Western blot, flow cytometry and ELISA were performed to evaluate the role of INHBB in the mouse GC cell cycle, apoptosis and steroid production in vitro. The results showed that the relative mRNA and protein expression of INHBB in mouse GCs can be significantly reduced by RNAi with pshRNA-B1, pshRNA-B2 and pshRNA-B3 plasmids, with pshRNA-B3 having the best knockdown efficiency. Downregulation of the expression of INHBB significantly arrests cells in the G1 phase of the cell cycle and increases the apoptosis rate in GCs. This was further confirmed by downregulation of the protein expressions of Cyclin D1, Cyclin E and Bcl2, while the protein expression of Bax was upregulated. In addition, specific downregulation of INHBB markedly decreased the concentration of estradiol and progesterone, which was further validated by the decrease in the mRNA levels of CYP19A1and CYP11A1. These findings suggest that inhibin βB is important in the regulation of apoptosis and cell cycle progression in granulosa cells. Furthermore, the inhibin βB subunit has a role in the regulation of steroid hormone biosynthesis. Evidence is accumulating to support the concept that inhibin βB is physiologically essential for early folliculogenesis in the mouse.     

黄土塬边坡植被类型对土壤孔隙的影响

黄土塬边坡植被建设以固坡为目的,不同植被的土壤孔隙结构有利于增加降水入渗,从而减少坡面产流的水蚀危害。本研究以长武塬黄土塬边坡的侧柏(Platycladus orientalis)林地、沙棘(Hippophae rhamnoides)灌丛、草地和农地4种植被为研究对象,采集0–30 cm的原状土柱,利用CT扫描和图像处理技术,对其土壤孔隙度、孔隙数目、孔隙成圆率和孔隙分形维数进行定量分析,结合土层样品的理化性质,研究影响土壤孔隙结构的主要因素。结果表明,农地、侧柏孔隙的孔径大小分异不大,而草地、沙棘自身根系互动穿插生成的根孔扩展了孔径分布范围,不仅增加了孔隙度和大孔隙数目,也降低了孔隙成圆率。草地、沙棘有利于降水入渗,是固坡的优先选择。土壤有机质、粘粒含量等性质与孔隙参数之间具有极显著(P <0.001)或显著(P <0.05)相关关系,它们的改变对土壤孔隙特征变化和提高蓄水保土能力具有重要影响。     

Apparent digestibility coefficients for common feed ingredients in formulated diets for tropical catfish, Mystus nemurus (Cuvier & Valenciennes)

Abstract Apparent digestibility coefficients were determined for six feedstuffs, subsequent to their processing into pelleted feed for tropical freshwater catfish, Mystus nemurus (Cuvier & Valenciennes), using a reference diet and test diets composed of 70% reference diet and 30% test ingredient. It was found that most ingredients were fairly well digested except maize and chicken viscera. Digestibility coefficient for protein (P), dry matter (DM) and energy (E) were: (1) fish meal: 97·8% P,97% DM. 77·88% E: (2) soybean meal: 86% P,95·55% DM, 67·89% E: (3) rice bran: 81% P,85·81% DM, 67·93% E: (4) copra meal: 79·90% P, 86% DM, 71·89% E: (5) maize: 51·93% P, 49·0% DM, 63·40% E and (6) chicken viscera: 37% P,29% DM, 52% E. Digestibility coefficients for feedstuffs indicated that animal protein product, such as fish meal and grain by-product, such as rice bran were more digestible than starchy and fibrous feed, e.g. maize. Chicken viscera was poorly digested largely due to inefficient processing. As most feedstuffs were well digested, ingredient selection should, therefore, be based primarily on their protein content, amino acid composition and palatability.