Increase In Fresh Weight Research Articles

Effects of fungal volatile organic compounds on Arabidopsis thaliana growth and gene expression

Abstract Many microorganisms produce volatile organic compounds (VOCs) with biological effects on plants. In this study, Arabidopsis seeds or 14-day-old vegetative plants were exposed to 0.5 μg/l of chemical standards of 26 VOCs previously identified from the biocontrol fungus Trichoderma. Seven compounds (1-decene, 2-heptylfuran, 2-methyl-1-propanol, 2-methyl-1-butanol, 3-methyl-1- butanol, 2-heptanone, and 1-octen-3-ol) were further tested at the physiological concentration (10 ng/l) and 3-methyl-1-butanol, 1-decene, and 2-heptylfuran induced significant increases in fresh weight and total chlorophyll content. Plants exposed to 1-decene had the greatest increase in plant fresh shoot weight (38.9%) and chlorophyll content (67.8%). An RNA sequencing analysis was performed on plants treated with vapors of 1-decene. The expression of 123 genes was differentially affected, encompassing genes involved in cell wall modification, auxin induction, stress, and defense responses, with several major classes of stress-related genes showing down-regulation. To our knowledge, this is the first report of the effect of a plant growth promoting VOC on gene expression in Arabidopsis thaliana. As the role of fungal VOCs in biocontrol moves from correlative studies to more hypothesis driven approaches, our findings can guide both basic and applied studies in agricultural research.

Improvement of bean yield and Fusarium root rot biocontrol using mixtures of Bacillus, Pseudomonas and Rhizobium

During a screening of beneficial rhizobacteria strains with capability of suppressing Fusarium root rot and improving bean yield, 680 bacteria belonging to Bacillus, fluorescent and non-fluorescent Pseudomonas, and Rhizobium were isolated from commercial field soils and plant root nodules in Zanjan province, Iran. Of these, two hundred representative isolates were biochemically characterized and screened in vitro for inhibiting mycelia growth of Fusarium solani f. sp. phaseoli. Sixteen rhizobacteria isolates were able to strongly inhibit fungal growth. Five promising rhizobacteria were evaluated for suppressing the disease and promoting plant growth in greenhouse plants. Mixed inoculation of rhizobacteria caused greater increases in disease suppression, dry and fresh matter weight of plant (aerial part) and root, plant height, and pod number per plant compared to diseased control and absolute control. Treatments involving Bacillus subtilis produced higher number of pods compared to other single and dual treatments, except for Rhizobium-Pseudomonas treatment. Treating with rhizobacteria decreased disease severity ratings by 50 to 62% compared to untreated plants. Further examination of the rhizobacteria under field conditions is required to uncover their efficacy in biofertilization and viability as biocontrol agent in bean crops.

English

Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR) are well-known to influence plant growth via a variety of mechanisms such as nitrogen fixation, production of volatile organic compounds and enzymes, and bioremediation contaminants from the environment. PGPR have been previously identified by other researchers using laboratory screening methods. It was hypothesized that relying on these routine laboratory tests, some PGPR species are being overlooked. These species could promote growth through genes that encode for the synthesis of specific growth stimuli or other growth-promoting traits such as vitamins, antibiotics, and secondary metabolites. To evaluate this hypothesis, PGPR (MA-7, ON-4, SP-7, and RA-9) and previously overlooked PGPR (SE-7, LE-26, SQ-7, and SQ-9) were tested both with sterilized and non-sterilized soil in pot and greenhouse experiments. The PGPR isolates significantly increased pea plant growth, albeit to different degrees based on isolate, in both types of soil. The increases were recorded in shoot and root length and fresh matter in non-sterilized soil whereas increases in root length and root fresh weight were observed in sterilized soil. Interestingly, strains SE-7 and SQ-7 of the four overlooked PGPR isolates tested were also able to promote pea plant growth similarly to the PGPR isolates under both pot and greenhouse conditions. Morphological and biochemical characterization of the four original PGPR isolates revealed that they were rod-shaped, gram-positive, and spore-forming. Sequencing of 16S ribosomal RNA showed that these strains were mostly similar to Bacillus sp. (99% similarity). Using the EzBioCloud 16S rRNA database, it was found that one strain was likely to be Bacillus paramycoides based on 100% similarity, two strains were Bacillus wiedmannii based on 99.05 and 100% similarity, and the remaining strain was Bacillus amyloliquefaciens based on 99.64% similarity. Key words: Plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria (PGPR), pea, soil, 16S rRNA, Bacillus.

A Multi-year Beneficial Effect of Seed Priming with Gibberellic Acid-3 (GA3) on Plant Growth and Production in a Perennial Grass, Leymus chinensis

Seed priming is a widely used technique in crops to obtain uniform germination and high-quality seedlings. In this study, we found a long-term effect of seed priming with gibberellic acid-3 (GA3) on plant growth and production in Leymus chinensis. Seeds were germinated on agar plates containing 0–200 μM GA3, and the germinated seedlings were transplanted to clay planting pots and grown for about one year. The clonal tillers grown from the mother plants were transplanted to field conditions in the second year. Results showed that GA3 treatment significantly increased seed germination rate by 14–27%. GA3 treatment also promoted subsequent plant growth and biomass production, as shown by a significant increase in plant height, tiller number, and fresh and dry weight in both pot (2016) and field (2017) conditions. It is particularly noteworthy that the growth-promoting effect of a single seed treatment with GA3 lasted for at least two years. In particular, GA3 treatment at 50 μM increased aboveground fresh and dry weight by 168.2% and 108.9% in pot-grown conditions, and 64.5% and 126.2% in field-grown conditions, respectively. These results imply a transgenerational transmission mechanism for the GA-priming effect on clonal offspring growth and biomass production in L. chinensis.

Yeast-extract improved biosynthesis of lignans and neolignans in cell suspension cultures of Linum usitatissimum L.

Lignans and neolignans are important biologically active ingredients (BAIs) biosynthesized by Linum usitatissimum. These BAIs have multi-dimensional effects against cancer, diabetes and cardio vascular diseases. In this study, yeast extract (YE) was employed as an elicitor to evaluate its effects on dynamics of biomass, BAIs and antioxidant activities in L. usitatissimum cell cultures. During preliminary experiments, flax cultures were grown on different concentrations of YE (0–1000 mg/L), and 200 mg/L YE was found to be optimum to enhance several biochemical parameters in these cell cultures. A two-fold increase in fresh (FW) and dry weight (DW) over the control was observed in cultures grown on MS medium supplemented with 200 mg/L YE. Similarly, total phenolic (TPC; 16 mg/g DW) and flavonoids content (TFC; 5.1 mg/g DW) were also positively affected by YE (200 mg/L). Stimulatory effects of YE on biosynthesis of lignans and neolignans was also noted. Thus, 200 mg/L of YE enhanced biosynthesis of secoisolariciresinol diglucoside (SDG; 3.36-fold or 10.1 mg/g DW), lariciresinol diglucoside (LDG; 1.3-fold or 11.0 mg/g DW) and dehydrodiconiferyl alcohol glucoside (DCG; 4.26-fold or 21.3 mg/g DW) in L. usitatissimum cell cultures with respect to controls. This elicitation strategy could be scaled up for production of commercially feasible levels of these precious metabolites by cell cultures of Linum.

Antifungal and plant growth-promoting activities of Streptomyces roseoflavus strain NKZ-259

Biocontrol approach, using beneficial microorganisms, is becoming an important alternative to the use of chemical fungicides to control crop diseases. Therefore there is a need to found new effective biocontrol agents. Herein, a bacterial strain named NKZ-259 was isolated from soil samples obtained from Qilian Mountain, Qinghai, using the dilution plate method and streak plate technique. Strain NKZ-259 was identified as Streptomyces roseoflavus based on 16S rDNA sequencing, which displayed high antagonistic activity against six fungal pathogens tested. A greenhouse experiment showed that the use of NKZ-259 fermentation broth reduced the incidence of the tomato gray mold by 66.67%, and promoted the growth of tomato and pepper seedlings, with a significant increase in plant height, root length, and fresh weight compared to controls; the field experiment also showed the growth promotion of tomato and pepper seedlings by the use of NKZ-259 fermentation broth. Furthermore, indoleacetic acid (IAA) production was also detected in strain NKZ-259 using the Salkowski’s reagent method, and was important for its plant growth-promoting effects. The results suggest that NKZ-259 has potential for commercial application as a biofertilizer or biocontrol agent.

Actinobacteria Associated With Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Funneliformis mosseae Spores, Taxonomic Characterization and Their Beneficial Traits to Plants: Evidence Obtained From Mung Bean (Vigna radiata) and Thai Jasmine Rice (Oryza sativa).

In this study, we report on the isolation of actinobacteria obtained from spores of Funneliformis mosseae and provide evidence for their potential in agricultural uses as plant growth promoters in vitro and in vivo. Actinobacteria were isolated from spores of F. mosseae using the dilution plate technique and media designed for the selective isolation of members of specific actinobacterial taxa. Six strains namely 48, S1, S3, S4, S4-1 and SP, were isolated and identified based on16S rRNA gene sequences. Phylogenetic analysis showed that isolate SP belonged to the genus Pseudonocardia with P. nantongensis KLBMP 1282T as its closest neighbor. The remaining isolates belonged to the genus Streptomyces. Two isolates, 48 and S3 were most closely related to S. thermocarboxydus DSM 44293T. Isolates S4 and S4-1 shared the highest 16S RNA gene similarity with S. pilosus NBRC 127772T. Isolate S1 showed its closest relationship with the type strain of S. spinoverrucosus NBRC14228T. The ability of these isolates to produce indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), siderophores and the ability to solubilize phosphate in vitro were examined. All isolates produced siderophores, four isolates produced IAA and two isolates solubilized inorganic phosphate at varying levels. S. thermocarboxydus isolate S3 showed the highest IAA production with high activities of phosphate solubilization and siderophore production. The inoculation of mung beans (Vigna radiata) with this strain resulted in a significant increase in fresh weight, root length and total length as an effect of IAA production. In an experiment with rice (Oryza sativa), S. thermocarboxydus isolate S3 promoted the growth of rice plants grown in low nutritional soil under induced drought stress. This report supports the view that the inoculation of rice with plant growth promoting actinobacteria mitigates some adverse effects of low nutrient and drought stress on rice.

Klebsiella pneumoniae SnebYK Mediates Resistance Against Heterodera glycines and Promotes Soybean Growth.

Soybean is an important economic crop that is often adversely affected by infection in the field with the soybean cyst nematode Heterodera glycines. Biological control is an eco-friendly method used to protect the crop against disease. The bacterium Klebsiella pneumoniae has been reported to protect rice from sheath blight and seedling blight, but its role in the control of nematode is unclear. In this study, the effect of K. pneumoniae SnebYK on the control of H. glycines was assessed. Potting experiment results showed that coating soybean seeds with K. pneumoniae SnebYK not only reduced the infection rate of H. glycines but also decreased the proportion of adult female nematodes. Field experiment results showed that K. pneumoniae SnebYK reduced both the number of H. glycines in soybean roots and the number of adult females. However, K. pneumoniae SnebYK caused low juvenile mortality in an in vitro assay. To further analyze the role of K. pneumoniae SnebYK in the inhibition of H. glycines infection, split root experiments were conducted. The results indicated that K. pneumoniae SnebYK controls H. glycines via induced systemic resistance, which reduces H. glycines penetration. Klebsiella pneumoniae SnebYK treatment also significantly increased the proportion of second-stage juveniles and decreased the proportions of third- and fourth-stage juveniles in the H. glycines population. Moreover, 48 h after inoculation with H. glycines, the expression levels of PR1, PR2, PR5, and PDF1.2 were significantly higher in soybeans pretreated with K. pneumoniae SnebYK than in control soybeans. Interestingly, besides providing protection against nematodes, K. pneumoniae SnebYK fixed nitrogen, produced ammonia, solubilized phosphate, and produced siderophores, leading to well-developed root system and an increase in soybean seedling fresh weight. These results demonstrate for the first time that K. pneumoniae SnebYK not only promotes soybean growth but also inhibits the invasion and development of H. glycines by inducing systemic resistance.

The Growth of Transgenic Tobacco Plants with Estradiol-Induced Expression of Tomato Xyloglucan Endotransglucosylase Gene tXET-B2 under Stress Conditions

The role of xyloglucan endotransglycosylases in the regulation and promotion of plant growth in response to such widespread stress factors as drought, salinization, and hypothermia remains poorly understood. The tXET-B2 (SlXTH10) gene encodes one of the xyloglucan endotransglycosylases of tomato, which is most closely related in the nucleotide sequence to the AtXTH15 and AtXTH16 genes of Arabidopsis thaliana. At present, the specific functions of the tXET-B2 gene, as well as of its homologs, AtXTH15 and AtXTH16, remain obscure. To study the role of tXET-B2 in the regulation of growth and adaptation to abiotic stress factors, transgenic tobacco plants with estradiol-inducible expression of the tomato tXET-B2 gene were generated. Overexpression of this gene promoted tobacco root growth in a medium containing 50 mM NaCl. Under drought conditions, exogenous treatment with estradiol resulted in a considerable increase in fresh and dry weight in many of the studied transgenic lines. Under normal conditions, as well as under salinization and hypothermia stress, such positive effect was detected only for some transgenic lines. The obtained data point to the possibility of using genetically engineered constructs of the tXET-B2 gene to correct growth parameters of transgenic plants under the influence of stress factors.

Nematicidal Activities of Certain Animal Manures and Biopesticides against Meloidogyne incognita Infecting Cucurbit Plants under Greenhouse Conditions

A greenhouse experiment was carried out to evaluate the nematicidal activity of animal manures viz. chicken and goat manures, biopesticides viz. bio-zeid and nemex against Meloidogyne incognita infecting three cucurbits compared with oxamyl. Cucurbit plants namely cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) cv. Biet Alpha, squash (Cucurbita pepo L.) cv. Escandrany and watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) cvs. Master and.Mlokywere chosen for this study. Results indicated that of five tested materials, oxamyl, chicken and goat manures were the most effective in suppressing root galling and number of egg masses of M.incognita infecting cucurbit plants. Oxamyl (69.22%), chicken (60.98%) and goat (56.60 %) manures showed better performance in reducing root galling on cucumber than did on squash. Among the two cultivars of watermelon, the effectiveness of oxamyl (70.75), chicken (52.29) and goat (49.22%) manures were more pronounced on Master than on Mloky cultivar with root galling reached 50.74, 28.36 and 23.88% respectively. On the other hand, all treatments showed significant (P ≤ 0.05) improvement in cucurbits to certain extent. The maximum percentage of increase in shoot fresh weight was recorded on cucumber (93.30; 74.76%) and watermelon cv. Mloky (92.74; 76.81%) in pots receiving oxamyl and chicken manure, respectively. In general, number of galls showing fewer and smaller gall diameter (˂ 2 mm ) was significantly decreased by oxamyl, chicken and goat manures in the three plant species. Our results showed that chicken and goat manures could be used to increase crop yield of cucurbit plants and for controlling root-knot nematode, M.incognita .

Studies on growth dynamics of embryogenic cell suspension cultures of commercially important Indica rice cultivars ASD16 and Pusa basmati.

Significant efforts are being directed towards the improvement of rice using genetic manipulations. A good and reproducible system for recovering fertile Indica rice plants is imperative. The aim of this study was to study the influence of initial cell density on growth dynamics of suspension cultures. The cultures were initiated from 3-week-old embryogenic calli derived from mature seeds of Indica rice cultivars ASD16 and Pusa basmati. Growth kinetics of the rice cell suspensions were measured and the obtained data reveal that viable cells at 3% PCV using 20ml liquid (N6D) medium and sub-culturing at 7-day intervals resulted in rapid increase in fresh and dry weightsand the embryogenic competency of the cells were found to be high. The growth kinetics analysis revealed that ASD16 showed better efficiency for high frequency and viable somatic embryo formation as compared to Pusa basmati. The technique was found to be suitable for developing somatic embryos for both cultivars ASD16 and Pusa basmati, which can be used for many important applications including micropropagation and secondary metabolites production.

Phytochrome B regulates resource allocation in Brassica rapa.

Crop biomass and yield are tightly linked to how the light signaling network translates information about the environment into allocation of resources, including photosynthates. Once activated, the phytochrome (phy) class of photoreceptors signal and re-deploy carbon resources to alter growth, plant architecture, and reproductive timing. Most of the previous characterization of the light-modulated growth program has been performed in the reference plant Arabidopsis thaliana. Here, we use Brassica rapa as a crop model to test for conservation of the phytochrome-carbon network. In response to elevated levels of CO2, B. rapa seedlings showed increases in hypocotyl length, shoot and root fresh weight, and the number of lateral roots. All of these responses were dependent on nitrogen and polar auxin transport. In addition, we identified putative B. rapa orthologs of PhyB and isolated two nonsense alleles. BrphyB mutants had significantly decreased or absent CO2-stimulated growth responses. Mutant seedlings also showed misregulation of auxin-dependent genes and genes involved in chloroplast development. Adult mutant plants had reduced chlorophyll levels, photosynthetic rate, stomatal index, and seed yield. These findings support a recently proposed holistic role for phytochromes in regulating resource allocation, biomass production, and metabolic state in the developing plant.

Population diversity of bacterial endophytes from jute (Corchorus olitorius) and evaluation of their potential role as bioinoculants

Endophytes are bacterial or fungal organisms associated with plants in an obligate or facultative manner. In order to maintain a stable symbiosis, many of the endophytes produce compounds that promote plant growth and help them adapt better to the environment. This study was conducted to explore the potential of jute bacterial endophytes for their growth promotion ability in direct and indirect ways. A total of 27 different bacterial species were identified from different varieties of a jute plant (Corchorus olitorius) and different parts of the plant (leaf, root, seed, and seedling) based on 16S rRNA gene sequence. Two of the isolates showed ACC deaminase activity with Staphylococcus pasteuri strain MBL_B3 and Ralstonia solanacearum strain MBL_B6 producing 18.1 and 8.08 μM mg−1 h−1 α-ketobutyrate respectively while eighteen had the ACC deaminase gene (acdS). Fourteen were positive for siderophore activity while Kocuria sp. strain MBL_B19 (133.36 μg/ml) and Bacillus sp. strain MBL_B17 (124.72 μg/ml) showed high IAA production ability. Seven bacterial strains were able to fix nitrogen with only one testing positive for nifH gene. Five isolates exhibited phosphorus utilization ability with Bacillus sp. strain MBL_B17 producing 218.47 μg P/ml. Three bacteria were able to inhibit the growth of a phytopathogen, Macrophomina phaseolina and among them Bacillus subtilis strain MBL_B4 was found to be the most effective, having 82% and 53% of relative inhibition ratio (RIR) and percent growth inhibition (PGI) values respectively. Nine bacteria were tested for their in vivo growth promotion ability and most of these isolates increased seed germination potential and vigour index significantly. Bacillus subtilis strain MBL_B13 showed 26.8% more vigour index than the control in which no bacterial inoculum was used. All inoculants were found to increase the dry weight of jute seedlings in comparison to the control plants and the most increase in fresh weight was found for Staphylococcus saprophyticus strain MBL_B9. Staphylococcus pasteuri strain MBL_B3 exhibited diverse in vitro growth promotion activity and significant growth promoting effect in in vivo pot experiments. These bacterial strains with plant growth enhancing abilities have the potential to be used as bioinoculants.

Effect of spraying with bio stimulators “agrosign and liquid humus” on vegetative growth characteristics and volatile oil yield of local mint plant (Mentha spicata L.)

The study was conducted during the growth season 2016/2017 in one of the private fields in the area of Hartha, 10 km from the center of Basrah. The aim of the study was to determine the effect of the treatment with the bio stimulators “agrosign and liquid humus” on vegetative growth and volatile oil yield of local mint plant. The results showed that the plants treated with agrosign at a concentration of 0.75 ml.L-1 gave a significant increase in leaf content of total chlorophyll compared to control treatment. The plants treated with a concentration of 1.50 ml.L-1 agrosign gave a significant increase in fresh and dry weight, the percentage of volatile oil and total yield of oil compared to 0.75 ml.L-1 treatment, which significantly exceeded the control treatment. Plants treated with liquid humus at a concentration of 0.5 and 1.0 ml.L-1 gave a significant increase in plant height and 1.0 ml.L-1 in leaf content of total chlorophyll. The treatment with liquid humus at 1.0 ml.L-1 concentration gave a significant increase in fresh and dry weight, the percentage of volatile oil and total yield of oil compared to control treatment. The effect of the interaction between the factors was significant in all studied characteristics.

Changes accompanying proliferative capacity and morphology of Nicotiana tabacum L. callus in response to 2,4-D

The common trait of all auxins is a stimulation of cell elongation and also cell division in the presence of cytokinin; both are essential for callus induction and its multiplication. The response of plant tissues to various compounds with auxin activity may be quite different. In this study, the effectiveness of a synthetic auxin, 2,4-dichlorofenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D), instead of the generally applied natural auxin, indole-3-acetic acid (IAA), was tested for the proliferation of <em>Nicotiana tabacum</em> callus. The following concentrations of 2,4-D were tested: 0.1, 0.5, 1.0, 1.5, and 2.0 mg dm<sup>−3</sup>. Callus was derived from stem pith and its proliferation allowed on MS medium through five subcultures at 25°C and in darkness. After each passage, the fresh weight and morphological features of the callus were determined. The 0.5 mg dm<sup>−3</sup> 2,4-D treatment was the most favorable for producing the greatest increase in fresh weight in each of five subsequent subcultures as well as maintaining normal morphological features for proliferation. However, the 1.0 mg dm<sup>−3</sup> 2,4-D treatment in comparison with the lowest, 0.1 mg dm<sup>−3</sup>, was more beneficial when considering regular increases of fresh weight and a better cell cohesion for callus growth.

Effects of Adding Chicken Blood Meal and Fishmeal to Sludge Biogas as White Oyster Mushroom Media.

The biogas sludge is generally not used optimally and people even pour it directly into the river that it cause environmental pollution. One of the ways to get the benefit from sludge and chicken blood meal or fishmeal is to use it as a substitute for bran in mushroom media. This study aimed to improve the nutrient content of biogas sludge with the addition of chicken blood meal (CBM) and fishmeal (FM) as substitute material for bran in white oyster mushroom media. The biogas sludge was dried in the sun for 3 days until its form resembled the soil. The treatment consisted of dried biogas sludge without CBM (BP0), dried biogas sludge with 1% CBM (BP1) and dried biogas sludge with 3% CBM (BP2). Each was added to the media of white oyster mushroom as much as 15% as substitute material for bran. The other treatment consisted of dried biogas sludge without FM (FP0), dried biogas sludge with 2% FM (FP1) and dried biogas sludge with 4% FM (FP2). Each was added to the media of white oyster mushroom as much as 5% as substitute material for bran. BP0 and FP0 created from white oyster mushroom media were commonly used by farmers. Each treatment was analyzed of nutritional and biological contents. All the data were tested using completely randomized design one-way ANOVA. The results of the research on the use of chicken blood meal and fishmeal showed that the best treatments were BP2 and FP2. Their nutrient content increased, including the organic-C, organic matter, nitrogen, P2O5 and K2O. The productivity of the oyster mushroom increased, shown by the increase of fresh weight and diameter of caps in treatment BP2. The replacement of bran by biogas sludge with 4% FM addition (FP2) in oyster mushroom media increased the fresh weight, the number of caps and the length of oyster mushroom stalks. The best treatments for mushroom media were BP2 and FP2 to be used as substitute material for bran in white oyster mushroom media.

Effect of using different fertilizers sources on forage sorghum yield, digestibility and energy parameters by In vitro Gas Test production

The effect of using different rates of organic and mineral fertilization on forage sorghum was studied. An experiment was conducted at the Agricultural Research and Experimental Station, Cairo University in 2013 and 2014 summer seasons. The experiment was performed in a randomized complete design with three replicates. The experiment included five treatments; the T1 (control)= 100% mineralization, T2 (C6M0) =100% compost, T3 (C4.5M25%) = 25% minerals + 75% compost, T4 (C3M50%)= 50% minerals+50% compost and T5 (C15M75%) = 75% minerals+25% compost. The results showed significant increases in plant height, stem thickness, fresh weight and dry weight for the T3 compared with the other treatments, while means value were 152.4 cm, 1.047 cm, 22.96 ton. /fed and 6 ton/fed, respectively. Moreover, T3 (C4.5M25%) led to increasing the content of CP and NFE and did not affect the EE and ash. While this treatment led to increasing the content of NDF%, ADF% and decreasing the content of hemi cellulose and higher content of cellulose compared to the other treatments. The results of gas parameters correct (GP ml /200 mg DM), gas production structure fraction (GPSF %) and gas production non-structure fraction (GPNSF %) recorded the best values with the T2 (C6M0). The highest values of each of (GP ml / 200 mg. DM), (GPSF %) and (GPNSF %) was recorded in the 1st and 2nd cut, while the T4 (C3M50%) gave the highest value in the 3rd cut. The T2 recorded the highest values ​​of ME (MJ / Kg. DM) in the 1st cut and the net energy lactation (NELMJ/kg.DM) in the 2nd cut. The short-chain fatty acids (SCFA, s m mol / ml. gas) showed the highest values ​​in the 1st and 2nd cut, while for the T4 (C3M50%) showed the highest values ​​in the 3rd cut. The T2 recorded a significant increase in dry matter and organic matter digestibility in the 1st cut followed by the T4 which recorded the highest value in the 1st cut. The economic study proved that the T3 (C4.5M25%) has the highest profit (2.29 L.E.), the T4 = (2.46 L.E.) and the lowest return of the T2 = 100% organic gave a profit of (1.90 L. E.). The T2 gave the highest digestive value for the 1st and 2nd cut, followed by the T4 which gave the highest digestive value in the 3rd cut. Finally, we can conclude that the T2 is the best treatment in terms of feeding animal and the size of the crop in the 2nd cut is like the size of the crop in the 3rd cut of the T4, which gave the best economic feasibility using the 2nd cut of the T2 to provide the time of cultivation for another crop. In addition, necessary work of the digestion and feeding trails on the animal on these 2nd cut of T2 which gave positive results in order to link the amount of yield in the 1st and 2nd cut and digestion factors and measure the amount of meat produced to determine the economic efficiency in obtaining a good crop in arms of quantity and quality and reduce the crop duration to provide land for cultivation another crop as well as reducing the mineral contamination of the fertilizer-producing soil.

Expression Profiling of Ribosomal Protein Gene Family in Dehydration Stress Responses and Characterization of Transgenic Rice Plants Overexpressing RPL23A for Water-Use Efficiency and Tolerance to Drought and Salt Stresses.

Our previous findings on the screening of a large-pool of activation tagged rice plants grown under limited water conditions revealed the activation of Ribosomal Protein Large (RPL) subunit genes, RPL6 and RPL23A in two mutants that exhibited high water-use efficiency (WUE) with the genes getting activated by the integrated 4x enhancers (Moin et al., 2016a). In continuation of these findings, we have comprehensively characterized the Ribosomal Protein (RP) gene family including both small (RPS) and large (RPL) subunits, which have been identified to be encoded by at least 70 representative genes; RP-genes exist as multiple expressed copies with high nucleotide and amino acid sequence similarity. The differential expression of all the representative genes in rice was performed under limited water and drought conditions at progressive time intervals in the present study. More than 50% of the RP genes were upregulated in both shoot and root tissues. Some of them exhibited an overlap in upregulation under both the treatments indicating that they might have a common role in inducing tolerance under limited water and drought conditions. Among the genes that became significantly upregulated in both the tissues and under both the treatments are RPL6, 7, 23A, 24, and 31 and RPS4, 10 and 18a. To further validate the role of RP genes in WUE and inducing tolerance to other stresses, we have raised transgenic plants overexpressing RPL23A in rice. The high expression lines of RPL23A exhibited low Δ13C, increased quantum efficiency along with suitable growth and yield parameters with respect to negative control under the conditions of limited water availability. The constitutive expression of RPL23A was also associated with transcriptional upregulation of many other RPL and RPS genes. The seedlings of RPL23A high expression lines also showed a significant increase in fresh weight, root length, proline and chlorophyll contents under simulated drought and salt stresses. Taken together, our findings provide a secure basis for the RPL gene family expression as a potential resource for exploring abiotic stress tolerant properties in rice.

High Tunnel and Field System Comparison for Spring Organic Lettuce Production in Georgia

High tunnels may help mitigate unfavorable climate and weather on lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) production leading to greater yields and quality, yet information for using these systems in the Southeast region is lacking. This study evaluated the effect of high tunnels and three planting dates (PDs) (early March, late-March, and mid-April) on spring organic lettuce production. A 25% to 36% increase in marketable fresh weight for butterhead and romaine lettuce, respectively, was observed under high tunnels compared with the field in 2016, but there was no difference among the two growing systems in 2015. High tunnel lettuce was harvested ≈2 to 7 days earlier than in the field in 2015 and 2016, respectively. Pest and disease pressure (e.g., Sclerotinia sclerotiorum) as well as the incidence of physiological disorders (i.e., bolting, tip burn, and undersized heads) were similar between the two systems indicating that our high tunnel system did not provide a benefit for these issues. High tunnel air temperatures were ≈3 to 5 °C greater on the coldest mornings and only 1 °C greater on the warmest days compared with the field. Average relative humidity (RH), leaf wetness, and light levels were all lower under the high tunnels. Our results indicate that high tunnels can help increase the production of spring organic lettuce in Georgia, but that the advantage may depend on yearly weather conditions.

24-epibrassinolide effects on in vitro callus tissue formation, growth, and regeneration in wheat varieties with contrasting drought resistance

Effects were investigated of kinetin replacement on 24-epibrassinolide (24-EB) in the in vitro cultured embryonic explants that were obtained from two varieties of spring soft wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)— Bashkirskaya 26 (drought resistant) and Salavat Yulaev (weakly resistant), differing in drought resistance, on the calli formation, its growth indices, contents of ABA and cytokinins, morphological and histological parameters, as well as their regenerative capacity. The resistant Bashkirskaya 26 variety, in contrast to the Salavat Yulaev variety, was characterized by a significantly higher frequency of calli formation in the culture of immature embryos on the 24-EB induction medium, higher increase in fresh and dry weights, and a large number of morphogenetic centers. On the medium containing kinetin, the Salavat Yulaev calli were characterized by an increased level of ABA throughout the experiment with a maximum of 15–25 days, whereas, in the Bashkirskaya 26 calli, the maximum ABA accumulation occurred on the seventh to 11th day of cultivation, after which a decrease in the hormone content was observed. It was found that calli of both varieties cultivated on the 24-EB medium against the background of absence in the ABA content changes were characterized by an increased content of endogenous cytokinins, especially significant in Bashkirskaya 26 calli. Calli of both varieties were characterized by a high regenerative capacity in all the studied variants of the regeneration medium. At the same time, the maximum capacity for regeneration and formation of regenerants with a single callus were revealed by replacing kinetin with 24-EB, especially pronounced in a resistant variety. The combination of the results obtained demonstrates the efficacy of 24-EB introducing instead of kinetin into the in vitro culture medium for explants of two varieties of spring soft wheat that differ in drought resistance, as evidenced by an increase in the frequency of callus formation from immature embryos, as well as the number of morphogenetic centers in the resulting calli.