Photinia Serrulata Research Articles

Assessment of metals (Ni, Ba) deposition in plant types and their organs at Mersin City, Türkiye.

The increase in heavy metal concentrations in the air, especially after the Industrial Revolution, is notable for the scientific world because of the adverse effects that threaten environmental and human health. Among the trace elements, nickel (Ni) is carcinogenic, and all barium (Ba) compounds are toxic. Trace elements are critical for human and environmental health. Their threat further increases, especially in the urban areas and surroundings with a high population. In urban areas, the trace element contamination in the airborne can be reduced using plants. However, which plant and plant organs absorb trace elements could not be determined. In the present study, Ni and Ba concentrations in the branch, wood, and leaf samples of 14 species collected from the city center of Mersin province were determined. As a result, broad-leaved species' Ni and Ba concentrations in their leaf sample were generally higher than other species. Almost all species had the lowest Ni and Ba concentrations in their wood samples. Among these 14 species, it was found that Ni concentration was very high, especially in non-washed leaves of Platanus orientalis, Photinia serrulata, and Citrus reticulate, and Ba concentration was very high in Citrus reticulata, Chamaecyparis lawsoniana, Laurus nobilis, and Acer hyrcanum. Using broad-leaved species in urban areas where pollution is at high levels will significantly contribute to reducing Ni and Ba pollution. It is recommended that these points be considered in future urban landscaping projects.

Impact of atmospheric particulate matter retention on physiological characters of five plant species under different pollution levels in Zhengzhou.

Atmospheric particulate matter (PM) pollution has become a major environmental risk, and green plants can mitigate air pollution by regulating their enzymatic activity, osmoregulatory substances, photosynthetic pigments, and other biochemical characteristics. The present investigation aims to evaluate the mitigation potential of five common evergreen tree species (Photinia serrulata, Ligustrum lucidum, Eriobotrya japonica, Euonymus japonicus, Pittosporum tobira) against air pollution and to assess the effect of dust retention on plant physiological functions exposed to three different pollution levels (road, campus, and park). The results found that the amount of dust retained per unit leaf area of the plants was proportional to the mass concentration of atmospheric particulate matter in the environment, and that dust accumulation was higher on the road and campus than in the park. There were significant differences in dust retention among the five tree species, with the highest leaf dust accumulation observed for E. japonica (5.45 g·m-2), and the lowest for P. tobira (1.53 g·m-2). In addition, the increase in PM adsorption by different plants was uneven with increasing pollution levels, with significant decreases in chlorophyll content, photosynthetic and transpiration rate. From a physiological perspective, P. tobira exhibited greater potential to respond to PM pollution. Biochemical indicators suggested that PM pollution caused changes in plant protective enzyme activities, with a decrease in superoxide dismutase (SOD) and peroxidase (POD) activities, as well as promoting membrane lipid peroxidation, and appropriate stress also enables plants to counteract oxidative damage. In particular, PM exposure also induced stomatal constriction. Overall, PM retention was significantly associated with physiological and photosynthetic traits. In conclusion, our study contributes to the understanding of the effects of PM on plant physiology. Furthermore, it also provides insights into the selection of plants that are tolerant to PM pollution.

Botryosphaeria dothidea causing leaf blight of Photinia serrulata in China

Photinia serrulata is a widely cultivated ornamental plant in China and many other nations. P. serrulata leaf blight was observed in April 2022 in Xinxiang City, Henan Province, China. On the leaves, typical leaf blight symptoms included brown necrotic lesions with alternating rings. Botryosphaeria dothidea was isolated from symptomatic leaves of P. serrulata and identified through morphological and phylogenetic analysis of ITS, TEF1-α, and TUB2. According to the biological characteristics of B. dothidea, the optimal growth temperature and pH are 30 °C and 6, respectively. In addition, light conditions can promote the growth of mycelium. Under controlled environmental conditions, P. serrulata detached leaves and seedlings were subjected to inoculation experiments. Inoculation with a B. dothidea isolate produced typical symptoms of brown blight, and the same pathogen was re-isolated and identified. According to our knowledge, this is the first report of leaf blight disease caused by B. dothidea on P. serrulata in China.

First Report of Powdery Mildew on Photinia × fraseri Caused by Podosphaera leucotricha in Guizhou Province, China.

The evergreen shrub Photinia × fraseri is a Photinia glabra × Photinia serrulata hybrid belonging to the family Rosaceae that is widely used in ornamental landscaping. In March 2022, severe powdery mildew symptoms were observed on shrubs of Photinia × fraseri in Huaxi University Town, Guiyang, Guizhou Province, China. All observed Photinia × fraseri plants in the green belts of both roads and parks in University Town showed powdery mildew symptoms. Almost all young branches of each Photinia × fraseri individual was infected. Powdery mildew colonies covered twig tips entirely, including the stems, petioles, and the adaxial and abaxial surfaces of leaves. Infected leaves were rolled up and had irregular, dark red spots. Fungal hyphae were straight to flexuous, branched, septate, 3 to 6 μm in width, and had nipple-shaped appressoria. Conidiophores were erect, straight or somewhat flexuous, and measured 90 to 300 µm × 7 to 10.5 µm (n = 30). Foot-cells were cylindrical or subcylindrical, straight or somewhat flexuous, and measured 25 to 50 × 7 to 9.5 µm (n = 30). Foot-cells were followed by one to two shorter cells, these being 10 to 16 × 7 to 9.5 µm in size (n = 50). Shorter cells were followed by one to six conidia (most often five conidia). Conidia formed in chains, ellipsoid to ovoid in shape, having dimensions of 22.5 to 30 × 12.5 to 16 µm (n = 50), and containing fibrosin bodies. No chasmothecia (fruiting bodies) were observed. Based on these morphological characteristics, the pathogen was identified as Podosphaera leucotricha (Ellis & Everh.) E.S. Salmon (Braun & Cook 2012). To confirm this species-level identification, the ribosomal DNA internal transcribed spacer (ITS) was amplified using the primers ITS1/ITS4 (White et al. 1990). The resulting sequence was deposited in GenBank (Accession No. ON325389). When the query coverage is 100%, the obtained ITS sequence showed 99.8% identity with P. leucotricha (AB027231, MT180425, MZ298746, KX842350, and KY661036) and 100% with P. leucotricha (HM242221, KY661017, KY661028, KY661050, KY661076, KR048110, MW364489, MW364490, MZ343479, OM022112, ON073894, and ON325389), respectively. Based on the ITS sequences of Podosphaera spp., phylogenetic tree was constructed with MEGA7.0 using the Maximum Likelihood method. The ML analysis supported our isolate's putative identification as P. leucotricha. To fulfill Koch's postulates, pathogenicity testing was conducted by gently pressing naturally diseased leaves onto young leaves of three healthy, potted 1-year-old Photinia × fraseri plants; three non-inoculated healthy plants served as control. Powdery mildew symptoms were observed on 100% inoculated Photinia × fraseri plants after 12 days (in a growth chamber at 21°C under a 12 h/12 h light/dark cycle), whereas the control plants remained symptomless. The powdery mildew colonies on inoculated leaves were morphologically identical to those observed on the original diseased leaves. It is known that P. leucotricha causes powdery mildew on Photinia × fraseri in Italy (Garibaldi et al. 2005). Moreover, this fungus reportedly infected Photinia serrulata in New Zealand, Ukraine, Italy, the United States, Japan, and in East China's Shandong Province (Liang et al. 2012). To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report of powdery mildew caused by P. leucotricha on Photinia × fraseri in Southwest China's Guizhou Province. This finding is significant as P. leucotricha is the causal agent of powdery mildew on apple and pear (Strickland et al. 2021). The occurrence of said disease on Photinia × fraseri could pose a potential disease threat to these fruit crops if nearby ornamental shrubs were able to act as reservoirs for the fungus, and a means to escape agricultural management efforts.

A Wireless Acoustic Emission Sensor System with ACMD-IGWO-XGBoost Algorithm for Living Tree Moisture Content Diagnosis.

Trunk water has an important influence on the metabolism and ecological balance of living trees, which affects the vegetation growth and moisture cycle of the whole forest ecosystem. The accurate and real-time measurement of moisture content (MC) is of vital guiding meaning to living tree cultivation and forest management. In this paper, a water content diagnosis system based on a wireless acoustic emission sensor network (WASN) was designed and implemented with the aim of the nondestructive detection of water content in living wood trunks. Firstly, the acoustic emission (AE) signal of the trunk epidermis was sampled at high speed; then, its characteristic parameters were calculated and transmitted wirelessly to the gateway. Furthermore, the optimal characteristic wavelet sequence was decomposed by the adaptive chirp mode decomposition (ACMD), and the improved grey wolf optimizer (IGWO) optimization XGBoost established the MC prediction model, which was improved by the multi-strategy joint optimization. Finally, field monitoring was carried out on Robinia Pseudoacacia, Photinia serrulata, Pinus massoniana and Toona sinensis. The average diagnostic accuracy reached 96.75%, which shows that the diagnosis system has excellent applicability in different working conditions.

Analysis of Mn accumulation onto plants in urban areas

The biggest problem in dense cities is air pollution and the damage to the environment caused by vehicles. Roadside landscape plants are exposed to pollutants, especially in small urban centers, which are caused by congested traffic. According to the type of landscape plants, being a good biomonitor varies according to their adsorbing capacity of pollutants. Fe and Mn are the leading pollutants originating from emissions. They are selected within the study and have various negative effects on plants in high concentrations. This study aimed to determine the Mn concentration changes according to organ and washing status and location of selected commonly used 14 landscape species in parks. The heavy metal holding capacity of 14 species used was compared the Mn concentration changed significantly depending on the factors evaluated to adsorb them. Chamaecyparis lawsoniana (A. Murr.) Parl. and Photinia serrulata Lindl. Where the highest values are obtained, they can reduce Mn pollution. Schinus molle L. is a suitable type that can monitor and mitigate the Mn concentration in the air.

Study on the migration and transformation of arsenic and antimony in the rhizosphere of plants grown in zinc smelting slag

ABSTRACT We studied the speciation of arsenic and antimony in the rhizosphere of 6 pioneer plants grown in zinc smelting slag to understand the main affecting factors of phytoremediation. Compared with the control slag, the pH of rhizosphere decreased significantly (p < 0.05) and the DOC content increased significantly (p < 0.05). Overall, the contents of arsenic (except Photinia serrulata and Lolium perenne) and antimony in the rhizosphere were lower than those of control slag. The proportions of residual arsenic and antimony in the rhizosphere were the highest and significantly higher than control slag. Exchangeable state, aluminum-bound state and calcium-bound state were lower than control slag. The contents of arsenic and antimony in plants were normal and followed the order of roots > leaves > stems. Arsenic and antimony were significantly positively correlated with Free iron and aluminum oxides and negatively correlated with DOC. After 7 years of phytoremediation, the content and bioavailability of arsenic and antimony in the rhizosphere were significantly reduced and have a normal contents in plants. It is speculated that phytoremediation increases the migration of arsenic and antimony to the surrounding area, and Photinia serrulata and Lolium perenne exhibited the best performance on stabilise arsenic in slag.

First Report of Leaf Spot on Chenopodium album Caused by Nigrospora pyriformis in China

Chenopodium album Linn. (Chenopodiaceae) is an herbaceous vegetable plant that originates from Western Asia. It is usually grown in gardens and considered as nutritious in the human diet (Poonia and Upadhayay 2015). Moreover, the leaves of C. album harbor several bioactive compounds, which are used in ethnomedical practices (Sikarwar et al. 2017). In July 2018, leaf spots were observed on leaves of C. album cultivated at a production base located in the Shuitang National Forest Park, Hezhang, Guizhou, China (27°04′56″ N, 104°38′36″ E). The emerging occurrence of the disease significantly reduced the yield of C. album at different small-scale farms in the region. At the selected sampling site, the disease incidence was 50 to 60% on a 0.067-ha field. A total of 12 leaf samples with symptomatic spots were collected. They were surface sterilized with 10% sodium hypochlorite solution for 30 s followed by 75% ethanol for 30 s, rinsed three times with sterilized distilled water, air dried, placed on potato dextrose agar, and incubated at 25°C in the dark for 10 days. The colonies were white with a regular round shape at the early stage and became black with fluffy hyphae after 10 days. Conidia were produced from clusters of conidiophores. The single-cell conidia were initially pale brown with black pigments that accumulated with time, dimorphic, globose to subglobose, 8.2 to 13.3 μm in diameter or pyriform, 14.4 to 21.5 × 8.3 to 14.5 μm. The surface of the conidium was shiny, smooth, and aseptate. Morphological characteristics of the isolates matched the description of the Nigrospora genus (Barnett and Hunter 1998). Genomic DNA of four representative isolates was extracted according to the manufacturer’s instructions (Biomiga Fungal DNA Extraction Kit, U.S.A.). Subsequently, PCR amplifications were performed with primers ITS1 (5′-TCCGTAGGTGAACCTGCGG-3′) and ITS4 (5′-TCCTCCGCTTATTGATATGC-3′) for the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region, which also includes flanking rRNA regions and the complete 5.8S rRNA gene (White et al. 1990). The obtained sequences were compared with other ITS sequences following alignment with the GenBank database. BLAST analysis of the ITS region showed more than 97% identity (alignment length: 524 bp) to Nigrospora pyriformis type specimen isolate CGMCC 3.18122 (accession no. NR_153469.1). A representative sequence (isolate CXYL) was deposited in GenBank (accession no. MN044951). In addition, homology was confirmed with a phylogenetic tree constructed with MEGA 7 for which the maximum likelihood method was used with 1,000 bootstrapping iterations. To complete Koch’s postulates, conidial suspensions of the representative strain were prepared from 1-month-old colonies in 0.05% Tween 20 buffer and adjusted to a concentration of 1 × 10⁶ conidia/ml. Leaves of five 4-month-old healthy C. album plants were spray inoculated with the suspension (200 μl per leaf), and an additional five plants were sprayed with equal amount of 0.05% Tween 20 buffer as a control. After 15 days, symptomatic spots appeared on all inoculated leaves. In contrast, no symptoms appeared on leaves in the control. Pure cultures of N. pyriformis were isolated from infected leaves and identified with the methods mentioned above. Recently, Nigrospora leaf spot was reported on watermelon and Photinia serrulata in Guizhou Province, China (Chen et al. 2019). To our knowledge, this study is the first report of N. pyriformis as a pathogen on C. album causing leaf spots. The identification of the pathogen could provide relevant background for its future management.

First identification of cucumber mosaic virus in Prunus serrulata, Photinia serrulata, Begonia semperflorens and Osmanthus matsumuranus

Infection with cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) has resulted in important economic losses in many crops worldwide. In this study, CMV was detected from Prunus serrulata, Photinia serrulata, Begonia semperflorens and Osmanthus matsumuranus by RT-PCR and Western blot, when eleven kinds of horticultural plants from three provinces were screened. This is the first report of CMV naturally infecting these four species of horticultural plants. In addition, CMV isolates from southwest China presented regional differences to isolates from other parts of China based on phylogenetic analysis.

Adsorption of Strontium onto Adaxial and Abaxial Cuticle of Photinia serrulata Leaf.

Leaf cuticle sorption is one important process for the uptake of environment pollutants in plants, and mixed powder including adaxial and abaxial cuticle is generally used to demonstrate the sorption behavior. However, the difference of adaxial and abaxial cuticle on plant cuticle sorption is not well understood. Abaxial cuticle (PAC) and adaxial cuticle (PBC) were isolated from hypostomatic Photinia serrulata to investigate their adsorption of a model radionuclide (strontium). The elemental composition and FTIR spectra for two cuticles were quite similar and both show high affinity (H/C, 1.59 and 1.65) and polarity ((O + N)/C, 0.470 and 0.499). Both adsorption isotherms fit well with Langmuir model (R2, 0.97 and 0.97), and the maximum adsorption capacity of PAC was 12.1 mg/g, little higher than that of PBC (10.3 mg/g). Adsorption of strontium increased with the increase of pH, and the maximum was attained when pH ≥4. Electrostatic attraction was demonstrated to be the main mechanism of -strontium adsorption onto PAC and PBC, and the similar adsorption of adaxial and abaxial cuticle was consistent with their similar isoelectric point.

Abundance of human pathogen genes in the phyllosphere of four landscape plants

The surface of leaf, also known as phyllosphere, harbors diverse microbial communities which include both beneficial microorganisms promoting plants growth and harmful microorganisms, such as plant pathogens and human pathogens. Several studies have investigated the interaction between plants and human pathogens, while few works have focused on the quantitative analysis of pathogenic bacteria. On the basis of real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR), this study aimed to evaluate the abundance of following genes: the nuc and pvl of Staphylococcus aureus, the lytA and psaA of Streptococcus pneumoniae, and the ttr and invA of Salmonella enterica in the phyllosphere of four landscape plants (Nandina domestica, Rhododendron pulchrum, Photinia serrulata, and Cinnamomum camphora) growing in two habitats. Our results indicated that the relative abundance of pathogenic genes in the phyllosphere ranged from 10−9 to 10−6. The specific genes of S. aureus, S. pneumoniae and S. enterica in landscape plants were pvl, lytA and ttr, respectively. The two pathogenic genes of S. pneumoniae and the 16S rRNA gene were mainly affected by habitats, host species, and habitats-species interaction. Moreover, for the abundance of lytA and 16S rRNA, results showed that plants present in roadside with traffic pollution were relatively higher than that of campus with less pollution. The N. domestica and C. camphora were recommended for planting along the roadsides due to lower abundance of pathogenic genes. However, we have observed no significant difference in the abundance of pathogenic genes among four plants in the campus. Thereby, this study provided a valuable reference for selecting landscape plants in view of human health.

First Report of Leaf Spots on Photinia serrulata Caused by Nigrospora oryzae in China

First Report of Leaf Spots on <i>Photinia serrulata</i> Caused by <i>Nigrospora oryzae</i> in China

Molecular analysis of semen-like odor emitted by chestnut flowers using neutral desorption extractive atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mass spectrometry.

Knowledge about the chemical composition of floral volatile organic compounds (VOCs) is valuable in biological studies as well as for the flavor, cosmetic, and fragrance industries. The flowers of Chinese chestnut (Castanea mollissima) emit a distinctive semen-like odor; however, the chemical composition and biological role for the semen-like odor of chestnut flowers remain scarcely studied. Herein, we report the floral VOCs and the pollinators of chestnut flowers. A fast method based on a neutral desorption (ND) device coupled to extractive atmospheric pressure chemical ionization mass spectrometry (EAPCI-MS) was developed for the rapid identification of VOCs from freshly collected chestnut flowers without any chemical pretreatment. Chemical identification was performed using high-resolution MS analysis in combination with tandem MS analysis and whenever possible was confirmed by the analysis of standard reference compounds. Twenty volatiles were identified, most of which are nitrogen-containing. Out of the identified volatiles, 1-pyrroline is known to have a semen-like odor and is probably also responsible for the semen-like odor of the chestnut flowers. Four nitrogenous VOCs of chestnut flowers, including 1-pyrroline, 1-piperideine, 2-pyrrolidone, and phenethylamine, were also common in other semen-like odor flowers such as Photinia serrulata, Castanopsis sclerophylla, and Stemona japonica, suggesting similar chemical origin. The main visitors of chestnut flowers were dipteran species, such as Eristalis tenax, Eristalis arvorum, Episyrphus balteatus, Lucilia sericata, Chrysomya megacephala, Chrysochus asclepiadeus, and Adalia bipunctata. Our results suggest that the chestnut flowers and other semen-like odor flowers may present a new type of sapromyophily. This study also indicates that ND-EAPCI-MS provides more sensitive and simpler detection of many VOCs (particularly nitrogen-containing VOCs) than GC-MS and therefore can be used to complement traditional approaches for the higher chemical coverage of VOCs analysis. Graphical abstract ᅟ.

Green vegetation to remove contaminants in surface runoff from an urban area, Xuzhou, China

Effects of different Greenbelt Plant configurations on pollutants from Urban Surface runoff varies. A study on the surface runoff samples of five different plant communities in the same green space between Fuchun Road and Shundihe River in Xuzhou City in 2017 due to 12 rainfall events. The results showed that: the content of Pb of Osmanthus fragrans + Crataegus pinnatifida + Nandina domestica community was 0.263 mg.L-1 in summer(months of 4-6 ), and it was lower than that in autumn (months of 7-9 ) (0.333 mg.L-1), spring(months of 1-3 ) (0.444 mg.L-1) and winter (months of 10-12) (0.448 mg.L-1). Under the condition of less rainfall in winter and spring with longer rainfall interval, the pollutant content of surface runoff is higher in five plant communities studied than that in summer with shorter rainfall intervals. The order of average content of Zn in surface runoff in 1 year was as follows: Koelreuteria integrifoliola + Forsythia suspensa + Cynodon dactylon community (0.194 mg.L-1) > Cedrus deodara + F. suspensa + C. dactylon community (0.178mg.L-1) > O. fragrans + C. pinnatifida + N. domestica community (0.166 mg.L-1)> Cinnamomum camphora + Photinia serrulata community (0.149 mg.L-1) > C. camphora + N. domestica + C. dactylon community (0.128 mg.L-1). The average contents of COD, Cu, Pb, TSS, TP, TN and TOC were in the same order in the five communities studied. Therefore, in urban green space plant design, the plant community of evergreen tree and shrub such as C. camphora + N. domestica + C. dactylon community should be allocated as far as possible in order to purify the urban water resources environment.

The ecological risk assessment of heavy metals in the Kuihe River basin (Xuzhou section) and the characteristics of plant enrichment

In order to investigate Kuihe River basin of heavy metals (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn) pollution, the determination of the Kuihe River water body, the bottom of the river silt, riparian soil plants and heavy metal content of 9 kinds of riparian plants, investigate the pollution situation, so as to screen out the plants that has potential of enrichment and rehabilitation of heavy metal pollution. The results showed that Cd and Mn in the water body exceed bid; The pollution of Zn and Cu in the bottom mud is serious, potential ecological risk of heavy metals is Zn>Cu>Pb>Ni>Cd>As>Cr>Mn; Riparian soil affected by sewage and overflow of sediment has significant positive correlation with soil heavy metals, among them, the Zn and Cu are heavy pollution; The selective absorption of heavy metals by 9 kinds of dominant plant leads to its bio concentration factor (BCF) of Cr and Pb on the low side, are all less than 1, from the translocation factor (TF), Setcreasea purpurea and Poa annua showed obvious roots type hoarding. Poa annua and Lycium chinense have a resistance on the absorption of heavy metals, Lythrum salicaria, Photinia serrulata and Broussonetia papyrifera have a unique advantage on enrichment of heavy metals, Broussonetia papyri era on a variety of strong ability of enrichment and transfer of heavy metals suggests that the woody plants in the vast application prospect in the field of rehabilitation technology of heavy metals.

Effects of recycled and grey water on the growth of ornamental shrubs used in urban green spaces of north-western Greece

Worldwide efforts for water conservation has led to successful reuse of water for irrigation. This is particularly important for countries that demonstrate water scarcity phenomena as in Southern Europe, especially during the summer, due to increased summer temperatures, low precipitation and increased demands for water for irrigation and tourism. Irrigation of urban green spaces uses considerable amounts of water and water reuse constitutes a sustainable, practice. However, the application of reusable water for irrigation purposes faces the potential risk of exhibiting toxicity in plants, as it usually contains high concentrations of dissolved salts. Therefore, a field study was undertaken at the Technological Educational Institute of Epirus (TEIEP, Arta, Greece) from May to October 2014 in order to assess the effects of irrigation using recycled water and greywater on the quality and growth of ornamental shrubs. Three irrigation treatments were applied to six shrub species namely Abelia chinensis, Ligustrum japonicum, Photinia serrulata, Viburnum tinus, Pittosporum tobira and Thuja occidentalis. Irrigation treatments constituted of tertiary treated wastewater provided by the Municipal Sewage Treatment Plant, grey water captured from TEIEP's facilities and tap water provided by the local municipal potable water supply network. Plant quality (overall status of plant determined by photographs), was rated on a five point scale at regular intervals and plant growth assessed by the measurement of height and mean width, and the calculation of growth index at fortnight intervals. Results showed that the different irrigation treatments affected both the visual quality and growth of plant species differently. Therefore depending on the plant species, irrigation with tap water could be replaced or supplemented by irrigation with grey water or/and recycled water.

Deciphering the chemical origin of the semen-like floral scents in three angiosperm plants

The chemical origin and biological role of distinct semen-like odor occasionally found in some flowers are very curious but remain scarcely studied. Here, we used direct ambient corona discharge ionization mass spectrometry (MS) to study the volatile chemical composition behind the semen-like odor emitted by the fresh flowers of Photinia serrulata, Castanopsis sclerophylla and Stemona japonica without any chemical pretreatment. Chemical identification was performed using high-resolution MS analysis in combination with tandem MS analysis and whenever possible was confirmed by the analysis of standard reference compounds. A total of 19 compounds, mostly belonging to nitrogenous volatiles, were identified in P. serrulata, C. sclerophylla, and S. japonica flowers, 1-pyrroline, 1-piperideine, 2-pyrrolidone, and phenethylamine being common in all the three studied species. Several lines of evidence indicate that the major component responsible for the semen-like odor is most likely 1-pyrroline. 1-Pyrroline is most probably formed via the oxidative deamination of putrescine, as indicated by the observation of signal from 4-amino-butanal intermediate. Flower visitation observations suggest that the released volatiles serve to attract dipterans, including Syrphidae, Calliphoridae, and Muscidae. On the analytical side, the comparison of our results to earlier studies also indicate that compared to the traditional GC-MS approach the direct corona discharge ionization mass spectrometry provides more sensitive detection of VOCs with high proton affinity, in particular volatile amines, and therefore can be used to complement traditional GC-MS approach for the highest chemical coverage of VOC analysis.

The Divergence of Flowering Time Modulated by FT/TFL1 Is Independent to Their Interaction and Binding Activities.

FLOWERING LOCUS T (FT) and TERMINAL FLOWER1 (TFL1) proteins share highly conserved amino acid residues but they play opposite regulatory roles in promoting and repressing the flowering response, respectively. Previous substitution models and functional analysis have identified several key amino acid residues which are critical for the promotion of flowering. However, the precise relationship between naturally occurring FT/TFL1 homologs and the mechanism of their role in flowering is still unclear. In this study, FT/TFL1 homologs from eight Rosaceae species, namely, Spiraea cantoniensis, Pyracantha fortuneana, Photinia serrulata, Fragaria ananassa, Rosa hybrida, Prunus mume, Prunus persica and Prunus yedoensis, were isolated. Three of these homologs were further characterized by functional analyses involving site-directed mutagenesis. The results showed that these FT/TFL1 homologs might have diverse functions despite sharing a high similarity of sequences or crystal structures. Functional analyses were conducted for the key FT amino acids, Tyr-85 and Gln-140. It revealed that TFL1 homologs cannot promote flowering simply by substitution with key FT amino acid residues. Mutations of the IYN triplet motif within segment C of exon 4 can prevent the FT homolog from promoting the flowering. Furthermore, physical interaction of FT homologous or mutated proteins with the transcription factor FD, together with their lipid-binding properties analysis, showed that it was not sufficient to trigger flowering. Thus, our findings revealed that the divergence of flowering time modulating by FT/TFL1 homologs is independent to interaction and binding activities.

Taxonomic Studies Using Multivariate Analysis of Eriobotrya Based on Morphological Traits

A phenetic analysis was obtained using numerical taxonomy involving 27 accessories composed of species and varieties of Eriobotrya Lindl. and two related species, Photinia serrulata Lindl., and Rhapiolepis indica Lindl. Principal component analysis (PCA) was used to separate 53 morphological traits. Leaf morphology was essential for the classification of Eriobotrya. Clustering was consistent with traditional taxonomy. Eriobotrya was distinctly separate from its related genera, and when the similarity coefficient was 0.55, the Eriobotrya accessions could be divided into five groups as follows: Group 1: species with small leaf, included E. angustissima Hook. f., E. henryi Nakai, and E. seguinii Cardot ex Guillaumin; Group 2: Species with mid-size and large leaf included E. japonica Lindl., E. malipoensis K.C. Kuan, E. serrata J.E. Vidal, and E. stipularis Craib; Group 3: Species with large leaf distributed in tropical and south subtropical areas, E. elliptica Lindl., E. ellliptica f. peniolata Hook., and E. elliptica var. petelottii Vidal; Group 4: Species with tomentose leaves included E. prinoides Rehder &amp; E.H. Wilson, E.× daduheensis H.Z. Zhang ex W.B. Liao, Q. Fan &amp; M.Y. Ding, E. prinoides var. laotica Vidal, E. salwinensis Hand.-Mass., and E. tengyuehensis W.W. Smith; Group 5: All the remaining species including E. bengalensis Hook. f. bengalensis, E. bengalensis (Roxb.) Hook. f. forma angustifolia (Card.) Vidal E. cavaleriei Rehder, E deflexa Nakai, E. deflexa f. buisanensis Nakia, E. deflexa f. koshunensis, E. fragrans Champ. ex Benth., E. kwangsiensis, E. obovata, and E. potlanei Vidal. Our results were in total agreement with the traditional taxonomy of Eriobotrya classification and provide a foundation for the classification and genetic improvement of loquat germplasm.

Inter-specific and Inter-generic Hybridization Compatibility of Eriobotrya Species (Loquat) and Related Genera

We studied the cross-compatibility among 91 inter-specific combinations and 21 inter-generic combinations in 7 Eriobotrya plants and 2 related genera (Raphiolepis indica Lindl. and Photinia serrulata Lindl.) using emasculation, bagging, and artificial pollination. Our results showed that 28 of the 91 inter-specific combinations set no fruit, which means nearly 30% of the combinations were incompatible. In the remaining 63 combinations, most showed partial cross-compatibility, and a few showed complete cross compatibility. Eriobotrya plants were incompatible with plants from their related genera (R. indica Lindl. and P. serrulata Lindl.). Backcrossing produced 5 compatible combinations, which could set fruits and produce F1 progeny but only after embryo rescue. Fruit setting ratios varied among various species used as male or female parents. E. prinoides Rehd. & Wils., common loquat (E. japonica) and Eriobotrya × daduheensis, used as female parents resulted in an average fruit-setting ratio of 36.2%–58.2%. E. deflexa Nakai and its two forms, and E. elliptica Lindl. as female parents resulted in 2.9%–16.3% average fruit-setting ratio; however, the fruit set ratio was higher (22.4%–43.1%) if they were used as male parents. Failure of E. deflexa f. koshunensis Nakai × E. prinoides Rehd. & Wils. hybrids to set fruit could be attributed to sporophytic incompatibility.