Anatomical identification and diagnostic characteristics of Tragopogon pratensis (Asteraceae) within the flora of Azerbaijan

The aim of this study is to identify the specific anatomical diagnostic features and structural adaptations of Convallaria majalis in accordance with its ecological group, based on anatomical investigations of its vegetative organs. For the first time in the flora of Azerbaijan, a comprehensive anatomical study has been conducted on C. majalis , providing fundamental information on its diagnostic characteristics and structural variability associated with its shade-loving (sciophytic) nature. These findings contribute significantly to the fields of biodiversity, systematics, ecology, phytogeography, and applied botany. Vegetative organs of C. majalis were collected and fixed for dehydration and subsequently subjected to anatomical, microscopic, histochemical, and biometric analyses. Micropreparations prepared using modern digital optical microscopes allowed tissue- and cellular-level examination, structural clarification, and acquisition of micrometric measurements. The presence of aerenchyma, a tissue associated with hypoxic regulation, was identified in the vegetative organs of C. majalis . As an indicator of its sciophytic character, the localization of photosynthetic compounds within the leaf mesophyll was observed. A significant scientific novelty in plant anatomy was the identification, for the first time, of a structure belonging to the “endoaerenchymal stomatal-epidermal complex” located in the pith of the stem of C. majalis . The theoretical and practical data obtained in this study enable the anatomical-level identification of the species by highlighting its specific features. The anatomical characteristics of C. majalis provide a basis for distinguishing it from closely related taxonomic groups, serving as a biomarker for the clarification of species diversity within biosystems. The identified anatomical traits reflect functional diversity within the biosystem, clearly demonstrating the role of C. majalis in ecosystem services. Additio n ally, micrographic visualizations were conducted to determine which organs show higher localization of metabolic products. These organs may be considered more effective sources of raw materials for phytotherapeutic applications in the pharmaceutical industry.

Aim of study: The present study aimed to examine the anatomy of vegetative and generative organs of two Caucasian endemic medicinal plants, Vincetoxicum albovianum and V. coskuncelebiana, for the first time, to contribute to their identification. Area of study: Plant samples of V. albovianum were collected from Batumi (Georgia) and V. coskuncelebiana from Ardahan (Türkiye). Material and method: Anatomical examinations were performed on cross and longitudinal sections taken from the root, stem, petiole, leaf blade and pericarp, and on surface sections from leaves of plant samples stored in 70% ethanol. All sections were photographed from permanent slides, and anatomical traits were measured or scored, using a light microscope. Main results: The examined taxa were characterised with bicollateral vascular bundles, laticifers and druse crystals in vegetative and generative organs, specific to Apocynaceae. Cross and superficial sections revealed the presence of collenchyma cells and scattered sclerenchyma cell groups in the stem and mesocarp, and paracytic, anomocytic and anisocytic stomata on the abaxial side of bifacial and hypostomatic leaves. Research highlights: The most distinguishing features between the two species examined were the dimensions of anatomical tissues in vegetative and generative organs, and the distribution and density of epidermis and stomata cells in leaves.

Quantitative relationship between leaves and primary roots was investigated on the main stems of field grown millets, i.e. Setaria italica. Sorghum bicolor, Pennisetum typhoideum, Panicum miliaceum, Echinochloa frumentacea, Eleusine coracana, and Coix lacryma-jobi. 1. The values of 'total leaf area/total cross sectional area of primary roots' at the maturing stage are nearly identical among the millets examined, except Eleusine coracana (Table 2). This means a common quantitative relationship exists on the main stem between total leaf area and total cross sectional area of primary roots. In the early growing stage, the total leaf area increased more rapidly than the total cross sectional area of primary roots. In later growing stage, the increase of total cross sectional area of the primary roots considerably surpassed that of the total leaf area (Fig. 1). Relationship between these two areas throughout plant growth varied quantitatively among species. In the early growing stage Setaria and Sorghum showed high values and Coix and Echinochloa showed low values of 'total leaf area/total cross sectional area of primary roots'. 2. The value of 'total cross sectional area of. vascular bundles at the base of leaf blades/total cross sectional area of steles at the base of primary roots' differed only slightly among species (Table 2). Total cross sectional area of steles in primary roots increased more rapidly than the total cross sectional area of vascular bundles in leaves (Fig. 2). This means that conductive tissue formation of primary roots gains increasing predominance over that of leaves. 3. The implications of quantitative relationship between roots and leaves was discussed from the view point of safety from environmental stresses.

Seagrasses are monocotyledonous angiosperms, and as with terrestrial angiosperms, they have vegetative organs (roots, rhizomes and shoots with leaf sheaths and leaf blades), and reproductive organs (flowers, fruits and seeds). They have adapted to a marine environment in a saline medium, and have rather simple tissues and cell types such as a thin cuticle and epidermal cells with concentrated chloroplasts but lack stomata in the leaves. Within the vascular bundles, the cell walls of vascular bundle sheath cells are either lignified, suberized or have wall ingrowths. The number and size of xylem elements are much reduced in seagrasses. Phloem cells have thin or nacreous wall and/or thick walled sieve elements. Whether these structural variations are significant in solute translocation remains to be determined. Seagrass rhizomes are usually herbaceous, but some become woody. They are either monopodially or sympodially branched, with adventitious roots. Roots may be branched and bear roots hairs, depending on the substratum. Air lacunae are continuous within all vegetative and reproductive organs, with regular septa interrupting the air lacunae. Unusual apoplastic fungal hyphae grow in the intercellular spaces of living leaf tissue of the subtidal Zostera muelleri . Seagrasses are monoecious or dioecious plants with hydrophilous pollination. They have unusual filamentous pollen or pollen grains that form long chains. Fruits and seeds have either a period of dormancy or germinate as they are being released. Unlike seeds of other seagrasses, the embryos of Amphibolis and Thalassodendron do not store starch but instead obtain nutrients required for the prolonged development phase of the viviparous seedlings directly from the parent plant through ‘transfer cells’. Morphological and anatomical organization of both vegetative and reproductive organs vary among Australian seagrass taxonomic groups, reflecting their different evolutionary origins, as well as providing a means of indentifying genera and species with classical taxonomy.

本試驗以高雄3號(Kaohsiung No.3)與十石(Shih-Shih)二大豆品種爲材料，測定重要生育期值株各部位（葉片、葉柄、莖桿、根、莢果壁與種子）非構造性碳水化合物(TNC)與氮素濃度，探討春(1982)、夏(1981)作大豆由於比他重要營養要素濃度之變化所代表之生理意義及與產量之關係。試驗結果顯示春作大豆營養器官於種子迅速充實期前均有較高的TNC濃度，而於種子迅速充實後大幅下降，成熟時各部位TNC濃度反較夏作低，顯示春作大豆對營養器官所貯存TNC的依賴程度較大，可能是因爲春作大豆葉片較早老化、脫落而導致現階段光合生產不足，TNC之供給成爲產量的限制因子。 除葉柄外，春作各營養器官亦有較高N濃度，尤以營養生長期之差異較大。與TNC相同，各營養器官N濃度在種子充實期有大幅下降及N素再轉移現象存在。對老化即將脫落的葉片進行分析發現，夏作N素濃度皆在2.5%以上，春作更高達3.5%，顯示葉片內大量的N素無法充分轉移至種子，而此時TNC濃度己低於5%，無助於維持葉片生理活性，因而首先提出假說，認爲除TNC外，可能尚有其他未知因子誘使葉片提早老化，並阻礙N素之轉移而降低種子產量。同一期作二品種之TNC及N素濃度變化頗一爲致，而期作間差異則大，顯示兩項營養要素之累積與分佈易受環境因子之影響。

Ubiquitin-mediated protein modification plays a key role in many cellular signal transduction pathways. The Arabidopsis gene XBAT32 encodes a protein containing an ankyrin repeat domain at the N-terminal half and a RING finger motif. The XBAT32 protein is capable of ubiquitinating itself. Mutation in XBAT32 causes a number of phenotypes including severe defects in lateral root production and in the expression of the cell division marker CYCB1;1::GUS. The XBAT32 gene is expressed abundantly in the vascular system of the primary root, but not in newly formed lateral root primordia. Treatment with auxin increases the expression of XBAT32 in the primary root and partially rescues the lateral root defect in xbat32-1 mutant plants. Thus, XBAT32 is a novel ubiquitin ligase required for lateral root initiation.

The results of a morphological and anatomical study of the obligate halophyte of the coastal habitats Tripolium pannonicum (Jacq.) Dobrocz are presented in order to assess its life strategy in unstable conditions of the littoral. The study was carried out on the Pomorsky coast of the western coast of the White Sea, in the vicinity of the Rastnavolok (Belomorsky District, Republic of Karelia) during the vegetation seasons of 2021–2023. Plants were analyzed within a model transect laid from the water's edge to formed terrestrial vegetation. T. pannonicum occurs sparsely in the form of freestanding vegetative and generative individuals: vegetative rosettes, generative shoots and individuals formed by generative and vegetative shoots. Differences in the main morphological and anatomical features of vegetative organs along the gradient of littoral conditions (from the first to the third zone) have been revealed. In the third zone, both vegetative and generative individuals are larger than at the first one. The analyzed plants of T. pannonicum are perennial, as evidenced by the presence of an orthotropic rhizome. Adaptive features to the conditions of littoral biotopes have been identified. The etiolated areas of the shoot are an adaptation to the conditions of soil mobility. The buds, which overwinter on the rhizome and are buried under a layer of soil, give rise to young plants that are brought to the surface of the substrate by stretching the first internodes. Vegetative annual aboveground organs and perennial underground organs have well-developed aerenchyma – adaptation to conditions of flooding with water, and during full tide, immersion in the water column. The 5 well-developed integumentary tissue of vegetative organs and the cuticle layer of the peduncle provide protection of internal tissue from abiotic environmental factors in conditions of their dynamics: movement of water masses, changes in illumination, temperature, salinity, etc. The stability of coenopopulations and the ecological strategy of T. pannonicum as a stress-tolerant (S-strategy) is supported in littoral conditions by a set of identified morpho-anatomical features

The study’s aim was to investigate the distribution of calcium oxalate (CaOx) in vegetative organs of “green” morphotype wild taro Colocasia esculenta (L.) Schott. An anatomical study was conducted on the vegetative organs (root, corm, leaf blade, and petiole) of the “green” morphotype wild taro at different developing stages. The transverse sections were double-stained with carmine alum laque–iodin green dye to investigate the density and distribution of CaOx crystals. The four forms of CaOx crystals found in vegetative organs were druse, free needle-liked, raphide bundle, and prism crystals. Prismatic crystals were observed in the root only once. Biforine or biforine-liked cell, an unusual form of raphide bundle, was detected. These crystals were revealed in specialized cells such as epidermis, parenchyma, palisade mesophyll, and spongy mesophyll. The density, size, shape, and distribution of crystals in the vegetative organs varied depending on the type and developmental stage of the organs. The diameter of the druses and the width of the raphide bundles were both increased in the developing leaves compared to that of the young leaves. The width of the raphide bundles of the old leaves was reduced compared to that of the developing leaves. The minimum and maximum sizes of all CaOx crystals varied greatly. The density and distribution of CaOx in the vegetative organs made it facility to protect plants against herbivores. The presence of CaOx in the vegetative organs created a warning signal when used as a source of green vegetables or traditional medicine.

Prophylactively parking sodium in the plant

Sonneratia caseolaris is a pioneer species in mangrove. It can naturally grow in both saltwater and freshwater. The study was aimed at investigating and comparing the anatomical character of the S. caseolaris plants growing in different conditions and how they coped with salinity. The anatomical characteristics of roots, stems, petioles and leaf blade were investigated. The plant samples were prepared into permanent slides using a paraffin method, while the wood samples were made into permanent slides using a sliding microtome technique. Tissue clearing of leaf blade and scanning electron microscopic analysis of wood were performed. In addition, sodium chloride content in various organs and tissues was examined. It was found that cable root, stem and leaf blade showed some different anatomical characteristics between the two conditions. Periderm is a prominent tissue in saltwater roots. Tanniferous cells were observed in pneumatophores, petioles, stems and leaf blades of saltwater plants, but not found in pneumatophores and lamina of freshwater plants. Mesophyll thickness was lower in the saltwater condition. The vessel density was significantly higher in the saltwater condition than in the freshwater condition, whereas the vessel diameters in the freshwater condition were significantly higher than those in the saltwater condition. From the results, it can be concluded that root periderm plays an important role in salt exclusion, and the occurrence of tanniferous cells is associated with salt elimination.

The aim of this work was to study of diagnostic signs of the morphological and anatomical structure of Veronica crista-galli Steven. from the flora of Azerbaijan. Materials and methods. The samples for research were collected during their flowering time in June 2018, in the Ismailli region of the Republic of Azerbaijan. Plant samples were fixed in a solution made in 0.1 M phosphate buffer (pH=7.4), containing 2.5 % glutar-aldehyde, 2.5 % paraformal-aldehyde and 0.1 % picric acid. In the next stage was the preparation of block and their filling in Araldite – Epon according to the TEM method. Results. The leaf is simple, lower part is short-petiolate and upper is sessile. The surface, on both sides of the leaf, is reliefly, and 7–8 conductive veins are clearly visible. The lower and upper sides of the leaf, and also margin, are strewn with multicellular hairs. The calyx of the flower consists of two sepals which grown together at the base, covered with simple multicellular hairs. The stalk in is a long filiform. The corolla of flower consists of 4 petals which grown together at the base and 2 stamens attached to the tube of the corolla. On the epidermis, cells with sinuous and bead-like walls, numerous stomata of the stavrocytic type, capitate hairs are visible. From the cross section of the leaf, it is visible that palisade tissue at the upper and sponge tissue at the bottom. Conclusions. As a result of morphological and anatomical studies, it was revealed that diagnostic signs of plant raw material can be: Present of multicellular hairs on the leaf blade; The location of the capsule between the sepals; Stavrocytic type of the stoma structure; The bead-like walls of the epidermis; Capitate hairs on the epidermis; Sepals covered by hairs. The established anatomical diagnostic features can be used for the drafting of the normative document on the plant raw materials and for identification of plant raw material of Veronica crista-galli

Greenhouse experiments under winter conditions were conducted to examine the effects of soil type, mineral nutrition and salinity on vegetative growth and. fruit yield of ‘Galia’ muskmelon (Cucumis melo L.). Growth in a calcareous soil or in sand, under low nutrition level or with 200 mM NaCl added during fruit maturation, imposed significant stresses on the plants expressed by (a) a decrease in dry matter accumulation in vegetative organs, in fruit number and size, and (b) an increase in dry matter percentage in leaf blades and stems. Despite the significant differences in vegetative growth of plants grown in heavy soil vs sandy soil, and in high nutrition vs low nutrition levels, the distribution of dry matter among vegetative organs (leaves, stems and roots) was affected only slightly. Sandy soil, low nutrition and high salinity decreased branching, and thus the distribution of dry matter between the main shoot and the branches. Dry matter percentage in leaf blades and stems was a sensitive pa...

Two soybean cultivars, Kaohsiung No. 3 (KS-3) and Shih-Shih (SS), were grown in the summer crop of 1981 and spring crop of 1982 at the experimental farm of Taiwan Agricultural Research Institute. Concentrations of P, K and Mg were determined in various plant fractions at stages of soybean development. The purpose was to study the nutritional status in relation to grain yield of soybeans cultured in different crop seasons. Experimental results indicated that concentrations of the three elements were all within the resonable ranges. Vegetative organs (leaf blade, leaf petiole, stem and root), especially the leaf blade, of the spring-grown soybeans contained higher P, K and Mg concentrations than those of the summer-grown soybeans. The concentrations decreased in the vegetative organs during grain-filling, suggesting redistribution of minerals to the seed. The redistribution was more prominent for the summer crop. The only exception was observed for Mg concentration in the leaf petiole which increased drastically during the same period. One possible explanation was that the accumulation of Mg was associated with senescence and the formation of abscission layer. The spring crop also contained higher P and K concentrations in the reproductive organs than the summer crop. Redistribution of P and K from pod wall to the seed was obvious during grain-filling. However, accumulation of Mg in the pod wall was observed. Patterns of changes in mineral concentations during development were similar for cultivars grown in the same crop season, indicating significant environmental impacts on the mineral status of soybean plants. The high elemental concentrations along with the low grain yield of the spring crop revealed no clear relationship between the two characters. It was concluded that low grain yield due to the unfavorable environmental factors in the spring crop season was the major cause of the high mineral concentrations in the vegetative organs of the maturing soybean plants.

Rice is the model C3 crop for investigating the starch biosynthesis mechanism in endosperm because of its importance in grain production. However, little is known about starch biosynthesis in the vegetative organs of rice. In this study, we used novel rice mutants by inserting Tos17 into the starch synthase (SS) IIIb gene, which is mainly expressed in the leaf sheath (LS) and leaf blade (LB), and an ss1 mutant to clarify the differences in roles among SS isozymes during starch biosynthesis. Native polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (PAGE)/activity staining for SS, using LS and LB of ss mutants, revealed that the lowest migrating SS activity bands on the gel were derived from SSIIIb activity and those of two ss3b mutants were not detected. The apparent amylose content of LS starch of ss3b mutants increased. Moreover, the chain-length distribution and size-exclusion chromatography analysis using ss mutants showed that SSIIIb and SSI synthesize the B2-B3 chain and A-B1 chain of amylopectin in the LS and LB respectively. Interestingly, we also found that starch contents were decreased in the LS and LB of ss3b mutants, although SSI deficiency did not affect the starch levels. All these results indicated that SSIIIb synthesizes the long chain of amylopectin in the LS and LB similar to SSIIIa in the endosperm, while SSI synthesizes the short chain in the vegetative organ as the same in the endosperm.

SummaryPreviously, we found that promotion of ripening by brassinolide (BR) in rice plants is attributable to the rapid translocation of assimilates from leaves to the panicle (Fujii and Saka, 1992). In this study, we examined the effect of BR treatment on the distribution aspects of carbohydrates (starch, sucrose, glucose and fructose) in upper organs including the panicle of the rice plant (cv. Nipponbare) grown in a low temperature condition (20°C in the daytime / 13°C at night) in a phytotron under natural daylight in summer. Rice plants in a greenhouse in summer were sprayed with BR(2X 10-8M and 2X 10-9M) twice at around the heading stage, and were then kept in the phytotron and in the greenhouse to examine the carbohydrate contents in leaf blades, leaf sheaths, culms, hulls and hulled grains at the milk-ripe and dough-ripe stages.At milk-ripe stage, the starch content in the plants grown in the greenhouse without BR treatment was overwhelmingly high in hulled grains with a low content in culm, leaf sheaths and hulls, whereas starch was hardly detected in the leaf blade. At the dough-ripe stage, starch was more accumulated in hulled grains. Sucrose content at the milk-ripe stage was low in hulls, but high in leaf sheaths and culms, especially in leaf blades. However, at the dough-ripe stage, a large amount of sucrose was accumulated in culms, and only a small amount in leaf blades. The content of glucose and fructose was 10 to 20% of that of sucrose in each organ, and did not differ so much between the two stages of ripeness.In the plants grown in the phytotron, the total amount of starch was markedly lower and the contents of sucrose, glucose and fructose were considerably higher than those in the greenhouse. The marked decrease of starch content in the phytotron was found in hulled grains while the content in leaf sheaths, culms and leaf blades increased. On the other hand, the increase of sucrose content resulted from the increase in vegetative organs with the decrease in hulled grains. An increase of glucose and fructose were also found in leaf organs at the milk-ripe stage.BR decreased the starch content in leaf sheaths and culms, and increased the contents of starch and sucrose in hulled grains in both temperature conditions. The contents of starch and sucrose in hulls were not influenced so much by BR. Neither did BR largely influence the contents of glucose and fructose. However, BR treatment strikingly increased the 1,000-grain weight and the percentage of ripened grains in the rice plant in both of the greenhouse and phytotron.