Production protocol development for greenhouse cut Linaria, Lupinus, and Papaver flowers

Linaria maroccana Hook. f. Ann., ‘Lace Violet’, Lupinus hartwegii ssp. cruikshankii Lindl. ‘Sunrise’ and Papaver nudicaule L. ‘Meadow Pastels’ seeds were directly sown into 105 cell plug trays and received either ambient light or supplemental high intensity discharge (HID) lighting. For each species, a 2 × 3 × 3 factorial was used with two light intensities during propagation, three transplant stages, and three night temperatures. Seedlings were transplanted at the appearance of 2–3, 5–6, or 8–9 true leaves. Transplanted Linaria and Papaver seedlings were placed at 5/11, 10/16, or 15/21 ± 1 °C night/day temperatures and Lupinus seedlings were placed at 15/24, 18/25, or 20/26 ± 2 °C night/day temperatures. For this study, the optimum production temperature for Linaria was 10/16 °C as the cut stems produced at 15/21 °C were unmarketable and production time was excessively long at 5/11 °C. At 10/16 °C, Linaria seedlings should be transplanted at the 2–3 leaf stage to maximize stem number, stem length and profitability. For Lupinus the optimum temperature was 15/24 °C due to long stems and high profitability per plant. Lupinus seedlings should be transplanted at the 2–3 leaf stage when grown at 15/24 °C to obtain the longest and thickest stems; however, $/m² week was higher for plants transplanted at the 8–9 leaf stage due to less time in finishing production space. For Papaver, the 15/21 °C temperature was optimal as that temperature produced the longest stems in the shortest duration, resulting in the highest $/m² week. At 15/21 °C Papaver plants should be transplanted at the 2–3 leaf stage. Supplemental HID lighting had no effect on any of the species.     

Multiple resistance of Papaver rhoeas L. to 2,4‐D and acetolactate synthase inhibitors in four European countries

The issue of cross‐ or multiple resistance to acetolactate synthase (ALS) inhibitors and the auxinic herbicide 2,4‐D was investigated in Papaver rhoeas L., a common and troublesome weed in winter cereals, in a broad‐scale study across four European countries. A combination of herbicide sensitivity bioassays and molecular assays targeting mutations involved in resistance was conducted on 27 populations of P. rhoeas originating from Greece (9), Italy (5), France (10) and Spain (3). Plants resistant to the field rate of 2,4‐D were observed in 25 of the 27 populations assayed, in frequencies ranging from 5% to 85%. Plants resistant to ALS‐inhibiting herbicides (sulfonylureas) were present in 24 of the 27 populations, in frequencies ranging from 4% to 100%. Plants resistant to 2,4‐D co‐occurred with plants resistant to sulfonylureas in 23 populations. In four of these, the probability of presence of plants with cross‐ or multiple resistance to 2,4‐D and sulfonylureas was higher than 0.5. ALS genotyping of plants from the field populations or of their progenies, identified ALS alleles carrying a mutation at codon Pro197 or Trp574 in 2,4‐D‐sensitive and in 2,4‐D‐resistant plants. The latter case confirmed multiple resistance to 2,4‐D and ALS inhibitors at the level of individual plants in all four countries investigated. This study is the first to identify individual plants with multiple resistance in P. rhoeas, an attribute rarely assessed in other weed species, but one with significant implications in designing chemical control strategies.     

Alkaloid accumulation in capsules of the selfed and cross-pollinated poppy

In harmony with international regulations the creation of poppy cultivars with high alkaloid content as well as free of alkaloids is in progress. In the course of selection procedures, five poppy cultivars of high chemical diversity, ‘Kheops’, ‘AT, ‘Tebona’, ‘Kék Gemona’ and ‘Przemko’, were selfed and crossed in two successive years (2000‐01). After full ripening, both the biomass production and the alkaloid content of capsules of selfed and crossed plants were determined. When the castrated alkaloid‐free cultivar ‘Przemko’ (accumulating only 0.01 mg/100 g morphine in capsules) was pollinated with cultivars rich in alkaloids, the morphine content of its capsules increased to 0.9‐7.5 mg/100 g‐values. Based on the well‐known biosynthetic background of poppy alkaloids, this can be explained by promotion of (S)‐norcoclaurine synthesis, which seems to be suppressed in alkaloid‐free plants; but tissues of the developing hybrid seeds, which contain a combined gene pool of both alkaloid‐free cultivar and that of the pollen donor plants, release this suppression. The chemical metaxenia also manifested itself in other combinations. In particular, the appearance of narcotine (0.1‐1.1 mg/100 g) in the narcotine‐free cultivars ‘Kheops’, ‘A1’ and ‘Przemko’ can be explained biochemically. If the narcotine‐type plants ‘Kék Gemona’ (accumulating 11.3 mg/g narcotine) were used for pollination, the developing seed tissue, which contains the gene pool of narcotine biosynthesis, might contribute to the suppression of the activity of 1,2‐dehydroreticuline reductase, which leads to the accumulation of narcotine at the cost of morphinanes.     

A shattering-resistant mutant of Papaver bracteatum Lindl.: characterisation and inheritance

Summary Papaver bracteatum is a potential crop for the codeine industry. Seed shattering prevailing in the species is a major problem which reduces the seed yields. A spontaneous mutant with capsules having no pores of dehiscence was isolated in an experimental field. The seed yields of this shattering-resistant mutant are lower than in plants with normal capsules but the thebaine content of the capsules from the mutant is higher. The mutation is monogenic dominant; it can be used for breeding cultivars for dual purpose-thebaine and seeds.     

Development of EST‐SSR markers for diversity and breeding studies in opium poppy

All publicly available opium poppy expressed sequence tag (EST) sequences, totalling 20 885, were assembled into unigenes and examined for simple sequence repeats (SSRs). Nearly 19% of the 14 957 unigenes contained SSRs with 4% harbouring more than one SSR. Average density of the SSRs was 1 SSR per 3.6 kb of non‐redundant EST sequence. Trinucleotide SSRs were most frequently identified (39%), and many of the most prevalent motifs were AT‐rich. Flanking primers were designed for 86% of the SSRs and 67 primer pairs were tested on 37 opium poppy accessions and seven related species. All markers were transferable to the related species. Polymorphism information content (PIC) values for the markers were intermediate for comparisons within opium poppy (average of 0.27) and slightly higher for comparisons across species (average of 0.29). The markers were found to be useful for diversity analysis as they successfully distinguished among Turkish opium poppy accessions and land races.     

Variation in the seed and oil yields and oil quality in the Indian germplasm of opium poppy Papaver somniferum

The variation in the seed shape, colour and yield, and content, yield and fatty acid composition of seed oil of 109 accessions of opium poppy Papaver somniferum, (majority of them Indian land races), was investigated. The seeds were white, pale yellow or light brown in colour, reniform or round in shape and varied in size up to three fold. The oil content, seed and the oil yield varied between 26 to 52%, 1.0 to 7.4 g/plant and 0.4 to 2.7 g/plant, respectively. The % content of palmitic, oleic and linoleic acid in the seed oil ranged between 9.3 to 40.0%, 7.5 to 58.4% and 0.7 to 72.7%, respectively. On average basis, the levels of major fatty acids in the seed oil were: oleic (37.1%) > palmitic (27.3%) > linoleic acid (17.2%). The palmitoleic, stearic and linolenic acids were present in the oils of only some of the accessions. Two of the accessions yielded linoleic acid rich seed oil of about the same quality as soybean and maize oils, and in four accessions, the proportion of palmitic, oleic and linoleic acids was roughly equal. The palmitic acid was relatively less and linoleic acid more in the seed oil from accessions rich in oil content. The oil that contained higher amount of oleic acid also contained higher amount of palmitic acid and relatively lower amount of linoleic acid. The correlation analyses revealed a strong positive relationship between seed yield and oil yield (r = +0.81), oil yield and oil content (r = +0.54) and oleic acid and palmitic acid content in the seed oil (r = +0.49), and a weak positive relationship between oil content and linoleic acid content of oil (r = +0.24), and a negative correlation was observed between oil content and palmitic acid content (r = –0.32), palmitic acid and linoleic acid (r = –0.55) and oleic acid and linoleic acid contents of oil (r = –0.68). The observations have permitted selection of accessions that are high seed and oil yielding and/or rich in linoleic, palmitic and oleic acids or containing palmitic, oleic and linoleic acids in about equal amounts.     

锌胁迫对虞美人种子萌发的影响

[目的]研究水培条件下重金属锌胁迫对虞美人种子萌发的影响。[方法]用浓度为05、01、00、1502、002、50、3003、50、400 mg/L的硫酸锌溶液对虞美人种子进行胁迫处理,测定锌胁迫对虞美人种子的发芽势、发芽率、发芽指数等发芽指标的影响。[结果]在锌胁迫条件下,虞美人种子的发芽指标随着锌浓度的增加均表现出先升高后降低的变化趋势。发芽势、发芽率、发芽指数均在锌浓度为200 mg/L时达到最大;种子活力指数在锌浓度为150 mg/L时达到最大。[结论]浓度为200 mg/L的锌可以更好地促进虞美人种子的萌发。     

野罂粟和秃疮花花粉生活力的测定

为野罂粟和秃疮花的杂交育种研究提供参考依据,以野罂粟(Papaver nudicarule)花粉和秃疮花(Dicranostigma leptopodum)花粉为试验材料,采用离体萌发法测定2种花粉的生活力,从而研究不同浓度的蔗糖、硼酸、氯化钙培养液对野罂粟和秃疮花花粉萌发率的影响。结果表明:离体萌发法测定野罂粟花粉生活力的最佳观测时间为5h,最佳培养液组合为蔗糖80g/L+硼酸40mg/L+氯化钙40mg/L,该培养组合萌发率为33.7%;离体萌发法测定秃疮花花粉生活力的最佳观测时间为5h,最佳培养液组合为蔗糖70g/L+硼酸30mg/L+氯化钙30mg/L,该培养组合萌发率为33.1%。     

野罂粟花粉管通道法转双价抗真菌病基因方法研究

以野罂粟开放花蕾为受体,以载有几丁质酶和β-1,3-葡聚糖酶基因双价植物表达载体pBLGC的质粒为供体,在11％浓度的蔗糖溶液中,加入花粉和含有目的基因的质粒DNA．得到药粉处理液。然后辅以人工授粉的方法将花粉处理液滴注野罂粟柱头上获得种子,将种子经卡那霉素筛选和PCR检测。有目的基因特异带出现。实践证明：在野罂粟上,利用花粉管通道法进行几丁质酶和β-1,3-葡聚糖酶基因转化方法可行,为特殊中药材转基因技术提供一个新方法。     

野罂粟产量构成要素研究

[目的]研究野罂粟的产量构成要素。[方法]调查承德坝上野生野罂粟及人工种植一年生、二年生野罂粟的单株鲜重、干重,测定植株不同部位的总生物碱和野罂粟碱含量,总结出野罂粟的产量构成要素。[结果]野生野罂粟的单株干重差异较大,干重产量为1650.0 kg/hm2。一年生、二年生野罂粟的鲜重产量分别为9354.0、11638.5 kg/hm2,干重产量分别为1402.5、2034.0 kg/hm2。总生物碱和野罂粟碱在野罂粟植株各部位的分布顺序均为壳>种子>花>叶>莛>根,但各部位的含量有明显差异。7月下旬至9月上旬是野罂粟植株中总生物碱和野罂粟碱含量最高的时期。[结论]野罂粟产量的直接构成要素是单株产量、单位面积植株数,间接构成要素是不同的采收时期和采收部位。