Small-seeded Varieties Research Articles

Transcriptome analysis reveals cell cycle-related transcripts as key determinants of varietal differences in seed size of Brassica juncea

Brassica juncea is an important oilseed crop, widely grown as a source of edible oil. Seed size is a pivotal agricultural trait in oilseed Brassicas. However, the regulatory mechanisms underlying seed size determination are poorly understood. To elucidate the transcriptional dynamics involved in the determination of seed size in B. juncea, we performed a comparative transcriptomic analysis using developing seeds of two varieties, small-seeded Early Heera2 (EH2) and bold-seeded Pusajaikisan (PJK), at three distinct stages (15, 30 and 45 days after pollination). We detected 112,550 transcripts, of which 27,186 and 19,522 were differentially expressed in the intra-variety comparisons and inter-variety comparisons, respectively. Functional analysis using pathway, gene ontology, and transcription factor enrichment revealed that cell cycle- and cell division-related transcripts stay upregulated during later stages of seed development in the bold-seeded variety but are downregulated at the same stage in the small-seeded variety, indicating that an extended period of cell proliferation in the later stages increased seed weight in PJK as compared to EH2. Further, k-means clustering and candidate genes-based analyses unravelled candidates for employing in seed size improvement of B. juncea. In addition, candidates involved in determining seed coat color, oil content, and other seed traits were also identified.

Flax seeds from Neolithic and Bronze Age pile-dwelling sites in Europe

Abstract Plant finds from Neolithic and Bronze Age wetland sites in the Alpine region are usually extraordinarily well preserved and thereby offer realms of possibilities to study the relationship between plants and humans in the past. Changes in the importance of cultivating oil- and/or fibre flax (Linum usitatissimum L.) in the period between the 43rd and the 20th century BC are discussed. These changes might be explained by innovations in textile production at the same time. Thus, the study is considered to be relevant for both archaeologists and archaeobotanists. Flax seeds from 33 Neolithic and Bronze Age wetland sites were measured. The results show that two transitions in seed size occurred in the entire Alpine region. From the 38th century BC onwards a new variety of flax with smaller seeds was cultivated, and at the same time textile tools such as loom weights and spindle whorls, as well as textiles made of flax increased. In all sites that have been analysed so far, this small-seeded variety that produces a much higher amount of fibres in their stems than the oil variety, dominate from the 35th century onwards. However, during the 3rd millennium a change recurred. Increased flax seed size from locations dated to the 20th century indicates the cultivation of an oil variety. Presumably, fibre flax had lost its importance in favour of usage of animal fibres for textile production.

Screening exotic groundnut (<em>Arachis hypogaea</em> L.) lines for introducing as a small-seeded variety (ANKGN4/Tiny) in Sri Lanka

Tropical Agricultural Research and Extension is a peer-reviewed international scientific journal covering a wide range of subject areas in tropical and subtropical agriculture published quarterly by the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka. The journal is also available on the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Ruhuna website https://www.agri.ruh.ac.lk/tare/index.htm .

Influence of the sowing method and the predecessor on the yield of new chickpea varieties

The article presents the data of field experience on the study of the influence of the method of sowing and the predecessor on the yield of new chickpea varieties selected of the Federal State Budgetary Scientific Institution RosNIISK “Rossorgo”. As a result of the conducted analysis of variance, the share of the total variability of factor A – 12.95%, factor B – 65.59%, factor C – 3.92%, interaction of A*B – 9.14%, A*C – 0.83%, B*C – 4.35%, A*B*C – 2.17%, the remainder (unaccounted factors) – 1.05% was revealed. The ranking of varieties by seed yield was presented in the following order: Benefit > Bonus > Sphere > Galileo > Ball > Falcon; different row spacing options: 45 cm > 60 cm > 70 cm > 30 cm > 15 cm; different predecessor options: spring wheat > spring barley > corn > grain sorghum. According to experience, a high seed yield was obtained when cultivating the Benefit variety, placed with a row spacing of 45 cm according to the predecessor spring wheat. The yield of gross energy in the crop per a. s. v. was in the range from 15.75 to 70.58 GJ/ha; the yield of grain per 1 GJ of energy consumption was from 0.06 to 0.26 tons. The highest values in the experiment were noted in the large-seeded variety Benefit, low values - in the small-seeded variety Sokol. Under the conditions under consideration, the best indicators of bioenergetic efficiency of seed production were characterized by the following varieties: large-seeded Benefit (with row spacing of 45 cm and 60 cm for the predecessors spring wheat, grain sorghum and corn) and Bonus (with row spacing of 45 cm for the predecessor spring wheat); medium-seeded Sphere (with row spacing of 45 cm for the predecessor spring wheat), due to the combination of high yield and grain quality.

Evaluation of Natto Soybean for Agronomic and Seed Quality Traits

Natto is a traditional Japanese soyfood, but little information is available on how agronomic and seed physical quality traits affect natto quality. The objective of this study was to evaluate agronomic and seed physical quality traits of natto varieties of soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.], including genotype and environmental effects, as well the heritability and correlations among those traits. During two years, 15 natto genotypes were grown, with three replications, in three Arkansas locations (Keiser, Rohwer, and Stuttgart) and were analyzed for agronomic and seed physical quality traits. Genotype affected all of the traits except for yield. Superior natto varieties (ARK1, ARK2, and ARK3) matured later and produced smaller and softer seeds than the other natto varieties. All of the traits had high heritability (>0.60). Varieties with larger seeds had significantly higher yield than varieties with smaller seeds. Because small-seeded varieties with quality attributes are desirable for natto production, breeding for small-seeded, high-yielding genotypes will continue to be a challenge.

The economic and ritual utilization of plants at the Raqefet Cave Natufian site: The evidence from phytoliths

The Natufian culture marks a dramatic in the cultural evolution of our species, the shift from mobile to sedentary communities. Within this framework, analysis of their use of plants is pivotal for social and economic reconstruction. While most researchers believe the Natufians collected the grains of grasses, little direct evidence (e.g. macrobotanical remains) has been found. This current study uses phytoliths (opal silica bodies) to interpret Late Natufian plant use at Raqefet Cave (Mt. Carmel, Israel). We analyzed a wide range of sediment samples for microbotanical phytoliths remains. This analysis, of an assemblage of 35 samples, was aimed at exposing plant use at the site both in burial contexts and hewn bedrock features (e.g. mortars, cupmarks).The results indicate economic use of grass seeds, including both small-seeded varieties and large-seeded grasses such as barley and wheat. They also suggest an opportunistic approach to grass seed collection. Phytoliths found in the burials of Homo 19 and Homo 22 may be the remnants of a final meal. The phytolith assemblages from burial contexts also show abundant morphotypes from dicotyledons that are rare elsewhere in the cave. The evidence suggests that a multi-species layer of vegetation including flowering plants and Phragmites lined the graves, accompanying the dead. This adds new insights to the range of known Late Natufian mortuary practices.

Influence of growth factors on the yield and quality of dry beans

investigations were made on the relationship between plant density and plant height, and on the yield, thousand seed mass, and ratio of diseased and broken seeds of varieties with different seed sizes. Experiments were carried out to analyse the effects of potassium on the yield, bacterial diseases and nutritive quality of the seed of bean varieties. Three dry bean cultivars representing the small, medium and large seed size groups were investigated. Six plant density treatments were chosen based on theoretical seed norms, taking the germinative value of the seeds into consideration. The correlation between plant density and yield average showed that the volume of yield increased for varieties with large and medium-sized seeds up to a plant density of 285-400 thousand/ha, after which it declined. On the basis of the results, yield averages at plant densities of 285-334 thousand plants/ha were 0.17 t/ha higher than those achieved at low density (200 thousand plants/ha). At greater plant density the plant height increased in the case of large-seeded varieties and there was a considerable decrease in the thousand seed mass. With an adequate water supply a high level of potassium decreased the number of pods and seeds per plant compared with the basic level, which gave a yield of 2.5 t/ha. The use of high rates of potassium fertilizer decreased the number of infected seeds, but the differences were only significant for the small-seeded variety. A moderately high potassium level was advantageous for food quality, particularly during drought.

Influence of Seed Size on Winter Wheat Performance Tests (1991)

The Kansas Agricultural Experiment Station conducts performance tests of winter wheat varieties at 16 locations across Kansas. Planting rates have been dictated by the results of long-term studies at each location. These tests traditionally have been planted on a constant seed-weight basis (equal weight of seed of each cultivar planted/unit area) or on a constant seedvolume basis (equal volume of seed of each cultivar planted/unit area, volume based on the average test weight of test entries). In the early 1980s, complaints were made that winter wheat performance tests in Kansas and neighboring states were biased against large-seeded entries. The argument was that planting on a volume or weight basis used more seeds/unit area for small-seeded varieties than for large-seeded varieties. This seemed reasonable, because Kansas sorghum, corn, and soybean tests all are planted on an equal viable seed-number basis or are planted heavy and thinned to uniform plant populations. However, little published evidence shows such a bias occurring in the hard red winter wheat region of the Great Plains, and there are published data to the contrary. A 13-year study in Nebraska reported an

Effect of Water Stress on Grain Filling in Rice

Water stress, by affecting the rate of grain filling, decreased yield per panicle of rice by 29–40% in the small-seeded variety IR747(L) and by 19–32% in the large-seeded variety PP6R-13-12-3. It had little effect on the duration of grain filling. High nitrogen level increased culm+sheath and leaf blade weights substantially in both varieties, but decreased starch concentrations (determined for IR747(L) only) at flowering in the culm+sheath significantly. Relatively more starch remained in the culm+sheath of the water-stressed plants at maturity. The balance sheet suggested that plants grown at a low nitrogen level were more dependent on “reserve starch” and that the percentage of reserve starch that went to the panicle was higher in the stressed plants than in the unstressed plants. High nitrogen level increased the nitrogen concentration in the culm+sheath at flowering by about 80%. At harvest, the concentration decreased substantially irrespective of nitrogen levels and varieties. Relatively more nitro...

Significance of Intra-plant Flowering Date in Soybean Seed Production : 1. Pod and seed development among different flowering dates

Flowering of soybean plants continues for a cosiderably long period. This experiment was conducted to make clear the significance of intra-plant flowering date in yielding process of soybeans. Characteristics of pod and seed development were investigated under the field condition with nine varieties differing in growth habit, maturity and seed size (Table 1). Flowers were distinguished by five days interval by painting a different color to a calyx. The results obtained are summarized as follows: 1. Flowering period was classified into 3 (I-III) or 4 (I-IV) groups in six determinate types, 6 (I-VI) in one semi-indeterminate and 6 or 7 (I-VII) in two indeterminate types. All flowers of the last flowering group were aborted except three determinate varieties with 3 flowering groups (Fig. 1). 2. Pod length and pod width attained their maximum values within 20 to 30 days after flowering irrespective of variety and flowering group. There were little effects of flowering date on pod width at maturity. Although thickness of pod, and length, width and thickness of seed increased until near maturity, differences in sizes of seed among flowering groups became very small during dehydration process (Fig. 2). 3. During seed filling period and at maturity, sizes of pod and seed from the last flowering group (III) tended to be small compared with those from the earlier ones (I, II) in determinate types, whereas those from the earliest (I or I, II) and the last (V or VI) flowering group tended to be small in semi-indeterminate and indeterminate types (Fig. 2). These tendencies were more clearly shown in dry weight of pod and seed (Fig. 3). 4. Sigmoid curves were obtained for seed dry matter changes of each flowering group. The slope and duration of linear phase differed among varieties and flowering groups. Rate of dry matter accumulation (RDA) of seed in a large-seeded variety was of lineal phase differed among varieties and flowering groups. Rate of dry matter generally higher than that in a small-seeded variety. In determinate types, seed from the last flowering group had low RDA or short effective filling period (EFP), whereas in semi-indeterminate or indeterminate types, the earliest-flowered seed had low RDA and the last had short EFP (Table 2).

45Calcium Absorption by Two Cultivars of Groundnut (Arachis hypogea)

SUMMARYTwo groundnut varieties, the small-seeded, early-maturing Natal Common and the large-seeded, late maturing ‘pops’-susceptible Makulu Red, were cultivated in nutrient solution, Application of calcium, labelled with 45Ca, to the roots and the fruit-medium respectively, showed that both varieties absorbed most of their seed-Ca from the fruit-medium. The translocation of calcium from the shells to the nuts was greater in the small-seeded variety Natal Common, which showed less susceptibility to ‘pops’. Calcium absorbed by pods and gynophores also migrated to a certain extent into the vegetative parts.

How Seed Size Affects the Occurrence of “Active” and “Miniature” Forms of Callosobruchus maculatus in Laboratory Populations 1

The proportion of the “active” form of the cowpea weevil, Callosobruchus maculatus F., among a population emerging from infested cowpeas in the laboratory is greatly reduced in small seeds. It is replaced by a “miniature” form of the weevil. The factors conditioning production of the “active” form appear to operate when sufficient food is supplied. Small-seeded varieties would have a limiting effect on population increase of the weevil. However, breeders have to select cowpeas for a size acceptable to consumers and, in addition, for intrinsic characteristics conferring resistance to the cowpea weevil, preferably a deterrent seed coat and/or reduced nutritional value to the weevil. Frequency of miniature forms deserves attention as a more dependable parameter than that of the active form in rapid screening of large numbers of entries for sources of resistance.

Growth Analysis on the Plant Type in Peanut Varieties, Arachis hypogaea L. : IV. Relationship between the varietal difference of the progress of leaf emergence on the main stem during pre-flowering period and the degree of morphological differentiation of leaf primordia in the embryo

Following 2 experiments were undertaken to re-investigate in detail the varietal difference of the number of main stem leaves on the day of first flowering (MAEDA, 1968), using 6 varieties (see, note of fig. 1) differing the plant type, of which seeds have been storaged under low moisture in room temperature during 10 months after harvest. Experiment I. Varietal difference of the leaf emergence on the main stem during the pre-flowering period (48 days after seeding) under controlled condition (day : 14 hours, 27°C, 18∼20 klx; night: 10 hours, 22°C). Leaf emergence (full expansion of 4 leaflets) of 10 plants from 50 plants (10pl. × 5 replications) per a variety, in density of 6 × 7.5 cm per a plant, were observed every day. Experiment II. Morphological differentiation of the leaf primordia in the matured embryo of the selected newly shelled seeds of the same materials in Exp. I. The 1st and 2nd leaf primordia (plumule) were observed with dormant seeds, and the primordia of upper order of leaves were observed with 20- and 40-hours-incubated seeds placed on the moistend vermiculite at 30°C in dark, to avoid breakage of primordia of cured seeds which are too fragile to dissect under microscope. The embryos of incubated materials were cut-off and at once fixed in 80% alcohol solution. Results obtained and considerations are as follows : 1. A clear turning point of leaf emergence rate on the main stem was observed about 2 weeks after seeding in each of all varieties, and the number of leaves at the turning point was about 4 in large-seeded varieties (SP1, SP2, and P 1) and a small-seeded variety E 1, and about 3 in the other small-seeded varieties (E2 and P2) (fig. 1). Accordingly, varietal difference in the number of main stem leaves on the characteristics in leaf emergence of 2 varieties, P 2 and E 2. 2. Higher rate of leaf emergence (LER) shown by the regression coefficient until turning point after the 1st and 2nd leaf had unfolded, declined after turning point in every varieties. Thus, a difference in the behavior of LER before and after turning point between the peanut and the soybean which shows acceleration of LER after turning point (5th or 6th foliage leaf emergence period, OIZUMI, 1962), was noted. In the peanut which shows weak or no apical dominance, this fact may be explainable by the presence of competitive inhibition upon the leaf emergence on the main stem by vigourous growth of the primordia of cotyledonary laterals had developed in the embryo and would follow after the main stem's growth when seed germination occurred. 3. Close relationship between the occurrence of turning point of leaf emergence rate and the number or degree of morphological differentiation of embryonic leaves was suggested. Then, from the anatomical and microscopic observations of plumules and upper order-leaves' primordia, it was clarlified that 5 primordia (the 1st∼5th leaf primordia) with the developed leaflets and the lowery developed 6th primordium were observed in large-seeded varieties, SP1, SP2, and P1. However, 4 well developed and 1 or 2 lowery developed ones were observed in 2 small-seeded varieties, E 2 and P 2. And variety E 1 showed the intermediate tendency in the degree of development of leaf primordia (fig. 2, A∼D and table 1). The gap of the degree of differentiation of leaf primordia recognizable between the 4th and 5th primordia (or between 3rd and 4th) in each variety differing the seed size, appeared to be a reason of occurrence of the turning point of leaf emergence rate and, at the same time, of the varietal difference of the progress of leaf emergence on the main stem in the peanut. 4. And also it may be said that the verietal difference of LER during the pre-flowering period obtained in this experiment is a reason of the varietal difference in the number of main stem leaves on the day of first flowering reported by the author. [the rest omitted]

Inheritance of Seed Size in Sorghum, Sorghum vulgare Pers1

A large‐seeded variety of sorghum, ‘Big Seed’, and a small‐seeded variety, ‘Norghum’, their F1 and F2 cross generations, and the two first backcrosses were investigated to gain a better understanding of how seed size is inherited and to assess the possibility of increasing seed size through selection. A preliminary study indicated that a 300‐seed sample from each plant would give adequate precision.Population means and variances provided the basic data from which conclusions were drawn. All populations were approximately normally distributed on the original scale. Transformation to √Y‐2 caused the largeseeded parent to depart from normality but eliminated the correlation between means and variances. Gene action appeared to be almost entirely additive. Evidence for dominance or epistasis as an important contributor to seed size was lacking. A minimum of 3 or 4 genetic factors or blocks of genes, primarily additive in their effect, appear to control seed size.Heritability for seed size was estimated to be 60% indicating that considerable progress could be made in shifting mean seed size by selecting and recombining large‐seeded F2 plants.