Petals Research Articles

Phenylalanine Mitigates the Phenotypic Color Variations in Pressed Petals of Petunia hybrida ‘Red Sun’

The art of pressed flowers is a method of artistic expression involving the pressing of flowers, leaves, and other plant organs for artistic creative purposes. However, the pressing process often results in color variation of the plant material, which significantly diminishes the quality of artistic works and must be solved using appropriate techniques. During this research, phenylalanine (10 mmol⋅L−1) was used to treat the petals of postharvest Petunia flowers to investigate the impact of phenylalanine on mitigating color variation, and the effect of phenylalanine on inhibiting the color variation of Petunia petals during the pressing process was evaluated by color measurement, physicochemical indices, and gene expression level analyses. Using the CIEL*a*b* color measurements, the samples from the test group had significantly higher brightness (L*) and red coloration (a*) at the final stage (S4) than the control group. In addition, phenylalanine had a significant inhibitory effect on malondialdehyde and superoxide anion accumulations in Petunia petals during pressing and reduced the enzymatic activities of superoxide dismutase, polyphenol oxidase, and catalase. The quantitative reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction analysis showed that the transcript levels of CHS, DFR, F3′5′H, and UFGT genes in the petals of the treatment group continued to increase during the pressing process, and the transcript levels of key genes in the anthocyanin metabolic pathway of the treated samples were higher than those of the control group at the final stage (S4). These results indicated that phenylalanine can effectively diminish the color variation of Petunia petals in the pressing process, which could serve as a theoretical basis for the development of a comprehensive technology system aimed at preserving the color of pressed horticultural plants.

Study on the preference of rosella mangrove syrup with different concentrations of sucrose

Syrup products are preferred considering the tropical climate of Indonesia. One of the mangrove fruits that can be processed into syrup is pedada (Sonneratia caseolaris) which is combined with the natural colour of roselle flower petals. With the addition of roselle, the resulting syrup colour becomes attractive with a pink color. The manufacture of roselle mangrove syrup requires the addition of the right sugar. In this study, the manufacture of 1 kg of mangrove fruit was added with 3 concentrations of sucrose sugar (1; 1.5, and 2 kg). Tests were carried out by measuring antioxidant activity, the value of sucrose content, viscosity, and hedonic test. The test results showed that the value of sucrose content increased along with the addition of sucrose sugar to the syrup, namely 65.61 to 71.46%. The value of this sucrose content has met the SNI for syrup. The highest antioxidant value in the 2 kg sugar treatment was 79.58. In the study of the viscosity, the highest value at treatment with the composition of 2 kg sugar additional. However, the panelists preferred syrup with a sugar composition of 1.5 kg with the highest score marked on the hedonic test.

Physicochemical, Microbiological and Organoleptic Characteristics of Rosella Water Kefir with Sucrose Sweetener

<p>Red rosella is one of the beneficial plants with its flower petals that have a distinctly sour taste. Using rosella in water kefir can enrich its functionality and taste. Rosella water kefir has acidic characteristics derived from rosella and sugar substrates. Sugars such as sucrose in the production of water kefir act as a carbon source for the metabolism of water kefir grains. The higher the added sugar causes the total of good microbes and organic acids in water kefir products to increase, but too high sugar can cause the death of these good microbes so it also affects the nutritional content and taste of the product. Therefore, the best concentration of sugar is needed. This study aims to obtain the best sucrose concentration in producing the best physicochemical, microbiological, and organoleptic characteristics of rosella water kefir. This study used the addition of sucrose at concentrations of 6%, 9%, 12%, and 15% (w/v) with the parameters observed in physicochemical characteristics including total dissolved solids, biomass, CO<sub>2</sub> content, and total acid, microbiological characteristics including total lactic acid bacteria and total microbes, and organoleptic characteristics including sweet taste, sour taste, soda sensation, and aroma. The results obtained in this study indicate that increasing the concentration of sucrose in rosella water kefir had a significant effect (p<0.05) on the physicochemical, microbiological, and organoleptic characteristics of sweet and sour tastes. The addition of 12% sucrose was the limit—tolerance for the addition of sugar in rosella water kefir which is also the best treatment.</p>

The effect of roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa l.) flower petal extract on smear layer removal of crown dentin

One of the initial stages carried out before making a restoration is the tooth preparation. The debris resulting from the preparation process of the tooth structure is called the smear layer. Dentin conditioner is needed to remove the smear layer so that the crown dentin surface is clean and the restoration can adhere well. Roselle (Hibiscus sabdariffa L.) are a herbal ingredient that has acidic properties found in its flower petals. This research was conducted to determine the effect of roselle flower petal extract on the removal of the smear layer on crown dentin. Eight human maxillary first premolars from orthodontic extraction patients were used as samples. This pre-experimental study was conducted with a test group consisted of control group conditioned with sterile distilled water and treatment group with 2,5%, 5%, and 10% of roselle flower petal extract. The research data was obtained through observing the results of scanning Electron Microscope (SEM). Roselle flower petal extracts 5% and 10% were able to clean the smear layer better than extracts with a concentration of 2.5% and the control group. This may be due to the acidic pH of the solution and demineralization process caused by the presence of citric acid and other organic acids in roselle flower petal extract.

Expression of a mycoparasite protease in plant petals suppresses the petal-mediated infection by necrotrophic pathogens

Sclerotinia sclerotiorum and Botrytis cinerea are necrotrophic plant-pathogenic fungi, causing substantial economic losses on many crops. So far, resistant cultivars against these pathogens are unavailable in most crops. Here, we show that the serine protease CmSp1 of Coniothyrium minitans, a well-characterized mycoparasite of S. sclerotiorum, contributed to suppressing the petal-mediated infection by S. sclerotiorum in rapeseed. Application of recombinant CmSp1 proteins facilitates the bulk degradation of S. sclerotiorum proteins and inhibits spore germination and hyphal growth of S. sclerotiorum and B. cinerea, thereby preventing the development of both diseases. Stable transgenic rapeseed plants with tissue-specific expression of CmSp1 in flower petals inhibit the petal-mediated infection by both S. sclerotiorum and B. cinerea, and resulting transgenic plants have no adverse effect on other agronomic traits. Thus, our findings provide a novel mechanism by which a mycoparasite inhibits fungal pathogens and an environmentally friendly disease management strategy.

Evaluation of Solar Conversion Efficiency in Dye-sensitized Solar Cells Using Natural Dyes Extracted from Alpinia purpurata and Alstroemeria Flower Petals as Novel Photosensitizers

Herein, we evaluate the conversion efficiency of dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) photosensitized using two different natural dyes extracted from Alpinia purpurata and Alstroemeria flower petals. The appreciable absorption capacity of the extracts in the visible light region was examined through absorption spectroscopy. The functional groups of the corresponding pigments were identified through Fourier transform spectroscopy (FTIR) technique thus indicating the presence of cyanidin 3-glycosides and piperine in the flowers of Alstroemeria and Alpinia purpurata. The extracted dyes were immobilized on TiO2 on transparent conducting FTO glass, which were used as photoanode. The dye-coated TiO2 photoanode, pt photocathode and iodide/triiodide redox electrolyte assembled into a cell module was illuminated by a light source intensity 100 mW/cm2 to measure the photovoltaic conversion efficiency of DSSCs. The TiO2 anode and Pt counter electrode surface roughness and morphological studies were evaluated using atomic force microscope (AFM) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), respectively. Through the photoelectric characterizations, it was promising to verify that the solar conversion efficiency was calculated with the photovoltaic cell sensitized by Alstroemeria and Alpinia purpurata. This was achieved with a yield (η) of 1.74% and 0.65%, with an open-circuit voltage (Voc) of 0.39 and 0.53 V, short-circuit current density (Jsc) of 2.04 and 0.49 mA/cm2, fill factor (FF) of 0.35 and 0.40, and Pmax of 0.280 and 0.100 mW/cm2, respectively. The results are promising and demonstrate the importance of the search for new natural dyes to be used in organic solar cells for the development of devices that generate electricity in a sustainable way.

Assessment of phytochemicals, nutritional compositions and metabolite profiling using GCMS– from annual edible flowers

In this work, the nutritional value and phytochemical content of the six annual flower petals such as Pansy (Viola wittorckiana), Dianthus (Dianthus chinensis), Cosmos (Cosmos bipinnatus), Calendula (Calendula officinalis), Petunia (Petunia hybrida), and Geranium (Pelargonium hortorum), were assessed. Gas Chromatography-Mass spectrometry (GC–MS) was utilized to characterize their metabolites in addition to assessing their antioxidant and antibacterial activities. Dianthus chinensis was found to have the highest concentrations among all six annuals' components, including total protein (19.5 gm/100 g), ascorbic acid (100 mg/100 g), anthocyanin (1.23 mg Cyn. H./g), total reducing capacity (9.47 mg GAE/g), and hydrolysable tannin (36.96 mg TAE/g). While TPC and TFC values in all of the studied flowers ranged from 13.94 to 107.9 mg catechol/g and 13.3 to 135.84 mg rutin /g, respectively. Maximum TPC was found in geranium flowers (107.9 mg catechol/g). The pansy was shown to have a minimum amount of total phenol (13.9 mg catechol/g). Calendula has the highest level of β-carotene (0.85 mg/g), whereas the cosmos has the highest amount of carotenoid (18.8 µg/g) and lycopene (0.55 µg/g) among the flowers. Petunia flowers showed the highest antioxidant activity (98.3 %), according to the 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay, followed by pansies (87.6 %), cosmos (65 %), geraniums (56.3 %), and calendula (46.4 %), with the exception of Dianthus. The concentration of micronutrients differed significantly among all six flowers which accumulated nutrients in descending order from (highest to lowest) Fe (1771 ppm) > Zn (143 ppm)>Cu (21.1 ppm) with maximum concentration obtained in Cosmos, Dianthus, and Calendula, respectively. It was found that Petunia extracts exhibited the highest antimicrobial properties, with a maximum growth inhibition zone against Salmonella typhi A (S. typhi A), S. typhi B, Enterobacter, and Pseudomonas with hexane extract, except for S. typhi. However, Dianthus extracts exhibited the highest growth inhibition zones against Enterobacter. Several bioactive metabolites were found in the petals during GC–MS analysis. Among others, notable metabolites include ß-Amyrin, Caryophyllene, 2,4-Di‑tert-butylphenol, ß-Sitosterol, and Stigmasterol, while brewing samples include significant amounts of phenylethyl alcohol, indole, 4-Vinylphenol,.tau.-Muurolol, and 2-Methoxy-4-Vinylphenol. The results are significant information that may be utilized to promote the consumption of annual edible flowers and to recognize their usage as flower infusions or as tea supplements.

Quantitative Profiling of Carotenoids, Tocopherols, Phytosterols, and Fatty Acids in the Flower Petals of Ten Marigold (Tagetes spp. L.) Cultivars.

Marigold (Tagetes spp.) flower petals are the most vital sources of carotenoids, especially lutein esters, for the production of natural lutein to use for food, feed, and pharmaceutical industries. Several marigold cultivars are cultivated globally; however, their lutein ester composition and contents have not been widely investigated. Considering this, this study aimed to identify and quantify prominent carotenoid esters from the flower petals of ten marigold cultivars by liquid chromatography (LC)-diode-array detection (DAD)-mass spectrometry (MS). In addition, tocopherols, phytosterols, and fatty acids were analyzed by gas chromatography (GC)-flame ionization detection (FID) and GC-MS. Furthermore, the 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazoline-6-sulfonic acid (ABTS•+) and 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH•) radical scavenging abilities of lipophilic extracts were determined. The total carotenoid contents varied significantly (p < 0. 05, Tukey HSD) among cultivars, ranging from 25.62 (cv. Alaska)-2723.11 µg/g fresh weight (cv. Superboy Orange). Among the five major lutein-diesters, (all-E)-lutein-3-O-myristate-3'-O-palmitate and lutein dipalmitate were predominant. Among the studied cultivars, α-tocopherol was recorded, ranging from 167.91 (cv. Superboy Yellow) to 338.50 µg/g FW (cv. Taishan Orange). Among phytosterols, β-sitosterol was the most prevalent phytosterol, ranging between 127.08 (cv. Superboy Yellow) and 191.99 µg/g FW (cv. Taishan Yellow). Palmitic acid (C16:0; 33.36-47.43%) was the most dominant among the fatty acids. In this study, the highest contents of lutein were recorded from cv. Superboy Orange; however, due to the substantially higher flower petal yield, the cv. Durango Red can produce the highest lutein yield of 94.45 kg/ha. These observations suggest that cv. Durango Red and cv. Superboy Orange are the ideal candidates for lutein fortification in foods and also for commercial lutein extraction.

Spatially resolved detection of small molecules from press-dried plant tissue using MALDI imaging.

Matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization mass spectrometry imaging (MALDI-MSI) is a chemical imaging method that can visualize spatial distributions of particular molecules. Plant tissue imaging has so far mostly used cryosectioning, which can be impractical for the preparation of large-area imaging samples, such as full flower petals. Imaging unsectioned plant tissue presents its own difficulties in extracting metabolites to the surface due to the waxy cuticle. We address this by using established delipidation techniques combined with a solvent vapor extraction prior to applying the matrix with many low-concentration sprays. Using this procedure, we imaged tissue from three different plant species (two flowers and one carnivorous plant leaf). Material factorization analysis of the resulting data reveals a wide range of plant-specific small molecules with varying degrees of localization to specific portions of the tissue samples, while facilitating detection and removal of signal from background sources. This work demonstrates applicability of MALDI-MSI to press-dried plant samples without freezing or cryosectioning, setting the stage for spatially resolved molecule identification. Increased mass resolution and inclusion of tandem mass spectrometry are necessary next steps to allow more specific and reliable compound identification.

MicroRNAs and their targets involved in unreduced pollen formation induced by heat stress in Camellia nitidissima

Heat stress is often employed as a physical mutagenic agent to produce unreduced gametes because of its operational advantages and consistency of treatment. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are critical for the control of gene expression through post-transcription in plants exposed to abiotic stresses. Here, the effect of heat stress on flower buds and pollen in Camellia nitidissima was investigated, and it was demonstrated that heat treatment significantly stimulated the formation of unreduced pollen. The highest frequency of unreduced pollen, 48.67 ± 2.10%, was obtained in the treatment at 42 °C for 4 hrs. Integrated analysis was conducted to identify and characterize the miRNAs and their targets involved in unreduced pollen formation induced by heat stress, through small RNA, degradome, and transcriptome sequencing. In all 268 known and 234 novel miRNAs were identified from heated anthers (AnT), untreated anthers (AnC), heated petals (PeT), and untreated petals (PeC) samples, of which 42 miRNAs were specifically regulated in the comparison of AnT vs AnC. The targets of miRNAs were predicted by degradome analysis, and the expression profiles of these targets were characterized based on transcriptome sequencing. A total of 150 negatively regulated DE miRNA-DEG pairs were found using the 42 specifically regulated DE miRNAs in AnT vs AnC as screening criteria. Among them, ten candidate miRNA-target pairs that were involved in unreduced pollen formation induced by heat stress were screened based on the GO annotation of the targets. One pair (Cni-miR535a-MUS81), two pairs (Cni-miR168b-TUBA1 and Cni-miR6478-TUBB), seven pairs (Cni-miR8674-STL1, Cni-miR159f-CSLG2, Cni-miR535b-SBT1.6, Cni-miRn37-TBL6, Cni-miRn112-BGAL2, Cni-miRn61-RHD3, and Cni-miR168b-TUBA1), and one pair (Cni-miR156k-GRV2) were associated with cross-overs, microtubule, cell wall, and vacuole, respectively. For the first time, our findings indicate the potential roles of miRNAs in unreduced pollen formation. It is also a fundamental resource for further study on miRNA-mediated regulation of unreduced pollen formation induced by heat stress in C. nitidissima.

A Study on Extraction Methods and Primary Toxicity Level of Bio Colourants

Bio-colourants for food are extracted from plant sources that it is becoming a huge demand in the global market of processed foods and confectionaries. Natural colours play a vital role in food safety and also in meeting the needs of food consumption practices for the growing crisis in the availability of healthy foods. Aim of the bio colours is to replace synthetic colours like sunset yellow FCF, Allura Red, Ponceau 4R, Amaranth and Brown HT as they are becoming a wide range of threat to the human race, especially in bringing psychological changes in children and adolescents. Usually bio-colourants are extracted from almost all the parts of a plant. But majority of the colours are extracted from leaves and barks, whereas few colours in specific are extracted from fruits, seeds and some from petals of flowers. In this study, bio-colouring agents such as madder roots (Rubia cordifolia), eucalyptus bark (Eucalyptus grandis), annatto seeds (Bixaorellana), roselle petals (Hibiscus sabdariffa) and tamarind seeds (Tamarindus indica) were identified and used in extraction of colours. The colours obtained were of different shades of red like: sangria red, rusty red and yellow red. These natural food colours were extracted from their natural sources through two processes:10 per cent aqueous extraction (reflux, boiling) and powdering the substances. The pH of the extracts was taken to know their level of hydrogen ion concentration. To verify,if these extracts are edible and stable, preliminary toxicology study was carried out in brine shrimp assay. On the other hand, every fourth day the discolouring of the extracts was constantly measured using Food Colour Reader. The aqueous extracts showed discolouring and formation of microbial layer even when preserved in refrigerator in sterilized glass bottles, whereas the powdered substances remained the same with no discolouring or microbial activity in it. The toxicity study has practically proved that the powdered substances in various concentrations of 100, 250, 500, 1000 and 1500 µg/ml has the overall lowest mortality rate in consideration to mean and standard deviation (M ± SD) of 11.7 ± 10.7, than to the aqueous extraction samples of 73.7 ± 22.8 respectively. This study is carried out to promote and incorporate bio-colours in foods that can be consumed on daily basis, replacing the commercially available hazardous food colourants.

Relationship of the Anthocyanian Content with the Expression Level of the Anthocyanian Biosynthesis Pathway Regulatory and Structural Genes in &lt;i&gt;Capsicum&lt;/i&gt; L. Species

In this study, the content of anthocyanins and the expression pattern of regulatory (CaMYB113, CaMYB1, and CaMYB1-like) and structural (CaCHS, CaCHI, CaF3H, CaDFR, CaANS, CaUFGT1, and CaGSTF12) genes of the anthocyanin biosynthesis pathway in leaves, flower petals, and peel of unripe fruits of pepper Capsicum frutescens L. cultivars (Samotsvet, Rozhdestvenskii buket and Eureka), which differ in the pattern of anthocyanin-mediated pigmentation of aboveground organs. A positive correlation was found between the levels of CaCHS, CaF3H, CaDFR, CaANS, and CaCSTF12 transcripts with the amount of anthocyanins in the leaves of these cultivars. It was shown that out of three regulatory genes only CaMYB113 is expressed. Using ten cultivars of three Capsicum species as an example, the presence of 5'-UTR in CaMYB113 mRNA was confirmed. The second variant of the CaMYB113 allele with the insertion of the LINE-1 retrotransposon in intron I was found in the genome of cv. Rozhdestvensky buket and Samotsvet with purple color of the analyzed organs.

First Report of Cucurbita Blossom Blight and Fruit Rot Caused by Choanephora cucurbitarum in Mexico.

In December 2022, blossom blight, abortion, and soft rot of fruits were observed on Cucurbita pepo L. var. Zucchini in Mexico under greenhouse conditions (temperatures of 10 to 32°C and relative humidity up to 90%). The disease incidence in about 50 plants analyzed was around 70% with a severity of nearly 90%. Mycelial growth on flower petals and fruit rot with brown sporangiophores was observed. Ten disinfested fruit tissues in 1% NaClO for 5 min and then rinsed twice in distilled water from the lesion edges were placed on potato dextrose agar culture medium (PDA) supplemented with acid lactic and then, the morphological characterization was carried out in V8 agar medium. After 48 h of growth at 27°C, the colonies were pale yellow with diffuse cottony mycelia that were non-septate and hyaline and produced both sporangiophores bearing sporangiola and sporangia. The sporangiola were brown, ranged from ellipsoid to ovoid, and had longitudinal striations that measured 22.7 to 40.5 (29.8) μm x 16.08 to 21.9 (14.5) μm long and wide, respectively (n=100). The sporangia were subglobose, had a diameter of 127.2 to 281.09 (201.7) μm (n=50), and contained ovoid sporangiospores that measured 26.5 to 63.1 (46.7) μm x 20.07 to 34.7 (26.3) μm long and wide, respectively (n=100) which had hyaline appendages at the ends. Based on these characteristics, the fungus was identified as Choanephora cucurbitarum (Ji-Hyun et al. 2016). For molecular identification, DNA fragments for the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) and the large subunit rRNA 28S (LSU) regions for two representative strains (CCCFMx01 and CCCFMx02) were amplified and sequenced with the primer pairs ITS1-ITS4 and NL1-LR3 (White et al. 1990; Vilgalys and Hester 1990). The ITS and LSU sequences were deposited in GenBank database (Accession numbers OQ269823-24 and OQ269827-28, respectively) for both strains. The Blast alignment showed from 99.84 to 100% identity with Choanephora cucurbitarum strains JPC1 (MH041502, MH041504), CCUB1293 (MN897836), PLR2 (OL790293), and CBS 178.76 (JN206235, MT523842). To confirm the specie identification, the evolutionary analyses were conducted from the concatenated sequences of the ITS and LSU of C. cucurbitarum and other mucoralean species with the Maximum Likelihood method and Tamura-Nei model included in the software MEGA11. The pathogenicity test was demonstrated using five surface-sterilized zucchini fruits inoculated with a sporangiospores suspension containing a concentration of 1 x 105 esp/mL on two sites per fruit (20 µL each) that previously were wounded with a sterile needle. For fruit control, 20 µL of sterile water was used. Three days after inoculation under humidity conditions at 27°C, white mycelia and sporangiola growth with a soaked lesion were observed. That fruit damage was not observed on the control fruits. C.cucurbitarum was reisolated from lesions on PDA and V8 medium which was confirmed by morphological characterization fulfilling Koch's postulates. Blossom blight, abortion, and soft rot of fruits caused by C. cucurbitarum were observed on Cucurbita pepo and C. moschata in Slovenia and Sri Lanka (Žerjav and Schroers 2019; Emmanuel et al. 2021). This pathogen has the capability to infect a wide variety of plants worldwide (Kumar et al. 2022; Ryu et al. 2022). There are no reports of C. cucurbitarum causing agricultural losses in Mexico, and this is the first report causing the disease symptoms in Cucurbita pepo in this country; however, this fungus was found in the soil of papaya-producing areas and it is considered an important plant pathogenic fungus. Therefore, strategies for their control are highly recommended to avoid spreading the disease (Cruz-Lachica et al. 2018).

Registration certificate for local variety of curly red chili Pengkol Jati from Grobogan, Central Java, Indonesia

Pengkol Jati curly red chili is a local variety of chili from Grobogan Regency, Central Java that has been grown by farmers for decades. A certificate of ownership of local varieties issued by Center for Crop Variety Protection and Agricultural Licensing, Ministry of Agriculture of Republic Indonesia is very important to protect the variety from illegal name and to meet the requirements for the release of varieties. The primary requirement to get the certificate of ownership is morphological identification, which was conducted in February to April 2020 in Pengkol Jati village, Grobogan regency. The character observed include external appearance of tree (height, growth, head shape, crown, branching, color on the book, canopy, stem shape and color), leaves (shape, size, direction, leaf color, size and color petiole, wax layer), flower (color of flower; stem; and flower crown, stain, petals, pistil head,position and angle of flower stalk, number of flower per node, flowering schedule, time of flower to fruit,), fruit (color, size, shape, skin and flesh thickness, fruit weight, seed color, shape, and size), and general data. The morphological characteristics and general data were noted and organized in the form of a standard blank and registered to Center for Crop Variety Protection and Agricultural Licensing to get a Certificate of Ownership of Local Varieties. Result of the experiment revealed that in 18 December 2020, a Certificate of Ownership of Local Varieties of Pengkol Jati curly red chili numbered: 1609/PVL/2020 was issued and submitted to local government of Grobogan regency.

Transient gene expression in petunia flower petals as a toolbox

ABSTRACT Agroinfiltration-mediated transient expression is widely used in plant gene functional studies. In this study, the functionality of a metabolic engineering construct containing multiple expression cassettes for betalain biosynthesis genes was validated via agroinfiltration in petunia flower petals. The effects of transcription factors that upregulate anthocyanin biosynthesis and a gene that regulates cellular pH were also demonstrated on petunia petals by agroinfiltration. We also showed that flower petal agroinfiltration is a quick approach to test gene editing components, e.g. different guide RNAs. In general, the agroinfiltration-mediated transient transformation in flower petals is a great tool for testing flowering colour–related trait genes, as well as for optimising gene editing components.

In Vitro Evaluation of Antioxidant and Anti-inflammatory Potentials of Herbal Formulation Containing Marigold Flower (Calendula officinalis L.) Tea.

Aim To assess the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties of Calendula officinalis tea formulation. Materials and methods In this study, a formulation of 2 grams of dried marigold flower petals and 100 milliliters (ml) of distilled water was subjected to anti-inflammatory testing using albumin denaturation assay and anti-protease activity and antioxidant testing by DPPH (2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl-hydrate) assay. An independent sample t-test was done to compare the anti-inflammatory and antioxidant potentials of marigold tea formulation and control using SPSS version 22.0 software (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY), and any p-value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results The highest anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities of marigold extract were exhibited at 10 microliters (µl) and 20 µl (p-value = 0.002 and 0.000), respectively. The anti-inflammatory activity was higher than the control at all concentrations, whereas the antioxidant activity was higher at lower concentrations when compared to higher concentrations. Conclusion Marigold flower tea formulation exhibited better anti-inflammatory and antioxidant activities than the controls and therefore could be evaluated as a potential therapeutic agent.

Overlapping and specialized roles of tomato phytoene synthases in carotenoid and abscisic acid production.

Carotenoids are plastidial isoprenoids required for photoprotection and phytohormone production in all plants. In tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), carotenoids also provide color to flowers and ripe fruit. Phytoene synthase (PSY) catalyzes the first and main flux-controlling step of the carotenoid pathway. Three genes encoding PSY isoforms are present in tomato, PSY1 to PSY3. Mutants have shown that PSY1 is the isoform providing carotenoids for fruit pigmentation, but it is dispensable in photosynthetic tissues. No mutants are available for PSY2 or PSY3, but their expression profiles suggest a main role for PSY2 in leaves and PSY3 in roots. To further investigate isoform specialization with genetic tools, we created gene-edited lines defective in PSY1 and PSY2 in the MicroTom background. The albino phenotype of lines lacking both PSY1 and PSY2 confirmed that PSY3 does not contribute to carotenoid biosynthesis in shoot tissues. Our work further showed that carotenoid production in tomato shoots relies on both PSY1 and PSY2 but with different contributions in different tissues. PSY2 is the main isoform for carotenoid biosynthesis in leaf chloroplasts, but PSY1 is also important in response to high light. PSY2 also contributes to carotenoid production in flower petals and, to a lesser extent, fruit chromoplasts. Most interestingly, our results demonstrate that fruit growth is controlled by abscisic acid (ABA) specifically produced in the pericarp from PSY1-derived carotenoid precursors, whereas PSY2 is the main isoform associated with ABA synthesis in seeds and salt-stressed roots.

Room temperature excitonic emission in highly aligned ZnO nanostructures prepared by glancing angle Xe+ ion irradiation

Highly aligned ZnO nanostructures have been prepared using glancing angle ion irradiation technique. ZnO thin films were deposited on Si substrates using pulsed laser deposition method. These films were irradiated with 100 keV Xe+ ions of different fluencies ranging from 1 × 1016 to 1 × 1017 ions/cm2 at a glancing angle of 70° with respect to the sample normal. The scanning electron and atomic force microscopy studies reveal a randomly oriented flower petal like structure in the pristine ZnO film. However after ion irradiation, these petals are aligned in the beam direction. Further, with the increase of the ion fluence the petals are transformed to the nanostripe, nanowire like structures and at highest fluence wrinkled structure are formed. Interestingly, on closer examination, these wrinkles consist of nanopillar like structures aligned in the beam direction. The X-ray diffraction analysis reveals that the formed ZnO nanostructures are of hexagonal wurtzite structure with preferred orientation along the c-axis. Further, the ion beam modified nanostructures exhibit interesting photoluminescence emissions in the UV regime. The exciton emission of these ion beam modified ZnO nanostructures has been discussed with the aid of X-ray absorption near edge spectroscopy at O K-edge.

An eco-friendly ultrasound approach to extracting yellow dye from Cassia alata flower petals: Characterization, dyeing, and antibacterial properties

Using natural dyes in dyeing industries becomes an alternative to synthetic dyes, which are known to contain harmful chemicals that can pose risks to the environment and human health. This study involves the extraction of yellow dye from Cassia alata flower petals, optimization of the extraction process using an ultrasonic bath (40 KHz and an input power of 500), ultrasonic probe (390 W, 455 W, 520 W, 585 W, and 650 W), and conventional heating (heating mantle with 30 °C, 40 °C, 50 °C, 60 °C, and 70 °C), characterization of the dye, as well as dyeing (cotton, silk, and leather) without using a mordant. The extracted yellow dye was further evaluated to determine its antibacterial activity against skin bacteria. Dye extraction optimization using UV–Visible spectrophotometric analysis revealed that the maximum yellow color in methanol extract (287 and 479 nm) was obtained at 50 °C for 45 min using ultrasonic water bath extraction, followed by the ultrasonic probe and direct heating. Based on the FTIR spectra, it is evident that OH is present at approximately 3300 cm−1, while CH stretches at around 2900 cm−1. A characteristic peak at 1608 cm−1 bears a striking similarity to anthraquinonoid-based compounds. Also, using the ultrasonic water bath dyeing technique at 50 °C for 45 min, the yellow color of cotton, silk, and leather was dyed optimally. Due to effective color removal after two washings with boiling soap liquid, the dyed cotton and silk fabric displayed good washing and rubbing fastness. Regarding antibacterial activity, the dye was highly active against all pathogens after extraction in methanol. The maximum inhibition was observed against Pseudomonas sp. with a MIC value of 1.56 mg/ml.

SUPER WOMAN 2 (SPW2) maintains organ identity in spikelets by inhibiting the expression of floral homeotic genes OsMADS3, OsMADS58, OsMADS13, and DROOPING LEAF

Flower organ identity in rice is mainly determined by the A-, B-, C- and E-class genes, with the majority encoding MADS-box transcription factors. However, few studies have investigated how the expression of these floral organ identity genes is regulated during flower development. In this study, we identified a gene named SUPER WOMAN 2 (SPW2), which is necessary for spikelet/floret development in rice by participating in the regulation of the expression of pistil identity genes such as OsMADS3, OsMADS13, OsMADS58 and DL. In the spw2 mutant, ectopic stigma/ovary-like tissues were observed in the non-pistil organs, including sterile lemma, lemma, palea, lodicule, and stamen, suggesting that the identities of these organs were severely affected by mutations in SPW2. SPW2 was shown to encode a plant-specific EMF1-like protein that is involved in H3K27me3 modification as an important component of the PRC2 complex. Expression analysis showed that the SPW2 mutation led to the ectopic expression of OsMADS3, OsMADS13, OsMADS58, and DL in non-pistil organs of the spikelet. The ChIP-qPCR results showed significant reductions in the levels of H3K27me3 modification on the chromatin of these genes. Thus, we demonstrated that SPW2 can mediate the process of H3K27me3 modification of pistil-related genes to regulate their expression in non-pistil organs of spikelets in rice. The results of this study expand our understanding of the molecular mechanism by which SPW2 regulates floral organ identity genes through epigenetic regulation.