Terrestrial Plant Groups Research Articles

GC-MS analysis of petroleum ether extract of Notothylas indica Kashyap for detecting compounds with antifeedant properties

Bryophytes are remarkable group of terrestrial plants that have several adaptations against biotic and abiotic stresses. They are a hoard of metabolites that provide protection against microbes and herbivores. Mostly bryophytes remain untouched by insect larvae as evident from the intact thallus. This can be attributed to the antifeedant compounds present in bryophytes. The current study aims at elucidating the various volatile compounds present in the petroleum ether extract of Notothylas indica and to determine the possible compounds that provide antifeedant properties. Altogether 154 compounds have been detected by GC MS analysis. 25 compounds showed a similarity of above 80 % with the NIST library and hence are evaluated for possible antifeedant activities. Insect/larval deterrent activity in N. indica may be due to compounds like 2-ethylnaphthalene, caryophyllene, phytol, beta-ionine, tridecane, undecane, tridecene. Since diverse chemicals are present in the extract with potential novelties, there are probabilities of more antifeedant compounds. Segregation and characterization of these chemicals can pave way for documentation of novel chemicals that can be used as antifeedants, thereby reducing the use of chemical pesticides in controlling pest.

Antibacterial activity and GC MS analysis of Notothylas indica Kashyap

Bryophytes form a diverse assemblage of embryophytes that lack vascular tissue. They are small in size but are the second largest group of terrestrial plants after angiosperms. They are the least studied group among plants mainly due to small size, less availability of biomass, lack of taxonomic knowledge and difficulty in identifying taxa. Bryophytes are poikilohydric forms and maintain a stable microclimate that support growth of small animals and microbes. They prevent soil erosion and maintain soil moisture. Bryophytes have several economic importance. They are now recognized to be store house of biochemicals having many bioactivities. Genus Notothylas belongs to the group Anthocerotophyta and have over 23 accepted species, with the highest species diversity in the Indian subcontinent. The present study deals with phytochemical extraction from dried biomass of N. indica, assessing the antibacterial activity of extract and GC MS analysis to elucidate the volatile compounds that may offer the antibacterial effect. The plant was powdered and solvent extracted sequentially using soxhlet extraction apparatus with petroleum ether, ethyl acetate, methanol and water. Among the extracts, methanol fraction showed antibacterial activity against all the tested strains of bacteria with highest zone of inhibition 16 mm against Bacillus subtilis. GC–MS analysis revealed the presence of over 215 volatile compounds with about 12 having reported antibacterial activities. Thiophene derivatives are common antibacterial agents and in N. indica, six derivatives of thiophene were seen. Other compounds with known antimicrobial activity include (z)-2 methyl-2-butenoic acid methyl ester, 2,4-pentaedione, Ethanone 1-(2-hydroxy-5-methylphenyl)-, Tridecanal, 2(5H)-Furanone-5 methyl-, hexadecanoic acid methyl ester and 2 pentadecanone. There may be more compounds that are potential antimicrobial agents, many might be new to plant world. Further work include isolation and purification of antimicrobial compounds and confirmation of its origin from bryophyte.

In vitro propagation of Valuable succulents: A review.

Succulents, popular group of terrestrial plants known for their unique appearance and ability to thrive in tropical arid environments. They can be vegetatively propagated through cuttings and seeds, also through in vitro propagation mass plantlets can be produced. Tissue culture raised plantlets have a number of advantages over traditional propagation methods, such as ability to produce large numbers of plants from a small amount of starting material, plants with free of pests, diseases and the ability to produce plants that are resistant to adverse environmental conditions. In this review, various results and discussion regarding different concentrations of plant growth regulators for multiplication, rooting of succulents with effective growth condition are described.

An Initiatory Review on Bryophytes Diversity

Abstract: The varied group of terrestrial plants known as bryophytes is tiny in stature but has significant ecological effects. The biggest group of terrestrial plants, excluding flowering plants, they have over 23,000 known species worldwide. Mosses, hornworts, and liverworts are among the three phylogenetically separate lineages that make up the category. Mosses are typically regarded as a "key group" in our comprehension of the phylogenetically relatedness and origin of contemporary land plants (embryophytes). Bryophytes are able to live in a wide range of settings and have various growth habits. Although, mosses exhibit high species diversity, a major limitation in using mosses as study organisms has been the lack of basic floristic, ecological, and alpha-taxonomical knowledge of plants in many regions

Recovery processes in areas affected by mining: a scienciometric review

A major challenge in using recovery techniques, for the different natural ecosystems affected by mining, is a mutual relationship between the habitat and its biota response. This study aimed to do a review to identify the number of publications, which countries are publishing more and which recovery techniques and taxonomic group are used in mining areas globally have contributed to the maintenance or recovery of the environment. We reviewed the literature on recovery in mining areas worldwide, between 1994 and 2016, using the Web of Science online database. We identified 9,000 publications, after the selection procedures, we analyzed the 467 remaining manuscripts. Of these, 34.26% were published between 1994 and 2004, and 65.74% between 2006 and 2016. The countries that contributed the most were the USA with 16.45%, Australia with 13.56% and China with 8.66%. Brazil contributed 6.9% of the publications. The recovery techniques using vegetation were the most reported in the literature and most used. The taxonomic group of terrestrial plants was the most cited and most used in the recovery of degraded areas. We found various techniques for recovering degraded areas can be established, but most of them did not show proper monitoring and without this the recovery processes may not achieve their objectives and studies that test the effect size of these recovery methods are still necessary.

Monocotyledonous plants graft at the embryonic root-shoot interface.

Grafting is possible in both animals and plants. Although in animals the process requires surgery and is often associated with rejection of non-self, in plants grafting is widespread, and has been used since antiquity for crop improvement1. However, in the monocotyledons, which represent the second largest group of terrestrial plants and include many staple crops, the absence of vascular cambium is thought to preclude grafting2. Here we show that the embryonic hypocotyl allows intra- and inter-specific grafting in all three monocotyledon groups: the commelinids, lilioids and alismatids. We show functional graft unions through histology, application of exogenous fluorescent dyes, complementation assays for movement of endogenous hormones, and growth of plants to maturity. Expression profiling identifies genes that unify the molecular response associated with grafting in monocotyledons and dicotyledons, but also gene families that have not previously been associated with tissue union. Fusion of susceptible wheat scions to oat rootstocks confers resistance to the soil-borne pathogen Gaeumannomyces graminis. Collectively, these data overturn the consensus that monocotyledons cannot form graft unions, and identify the hypocotyl (mesocotyl in grasses) as a meristematic tissue that allows this process. We conclude that graft compatibility is a shared ability among seed-bearing plants.

Generality and Shifts in Leaf Trait Relationships Between Alpine Aquatic and Terrestrial Herbaceous Plants on the Tibetan Plateau

Plant traits mirror both evolutionary and environmental filtering process with universal trait-trait relationships across plant groups. However, plants also develop unique traits precisely to different habitats, inducing deviations of the trait coupling relations. In this study, we aimed to compare the differences in leaf traits and examine the generality and shifts of trait-trait relationships between alpine aquatic and terrestrial herbaceous plants on the Tibetan Plateau, to explore the precise adaptive strategies of aquatic and terrestrial plants for its habitats. We measured mass-based and area-based leaf N and P concentrations, N:P ratios and specific leaf area (SLA) of aquatic and terrestrial herbaceous plants. Standardized major axis analysis were applied to build the correlations for every trait pairs of each plant group, and then to compare the differences in the trait-trait correlations among different plant groups. Leaf Nmass and Pmass of two groups of aquatic plants (emergent and submerged plants) were higher, but N:P ratios were lower than those of two groups of terrestrial plants (sedges and grasses). Submerged plants had extremely high SLA, while grasses had the lowest SLA. Nmass positively correlated with Pmass in three out of four plant groups. The two terrestrial plant groups had positive Nmass-SLA relationships but these two traits coupled weakly in aquatic plants. Pmass showed positive relationships to SLA in three out of four plant groups. Significant shifts of trait-trait relationships between aquatic and terrestrial plants were observed. In general, aquatic plants, especially submerged plants, are characterized by higher SLA, greater leaf nutrientmass than terrestrial plants, tend to pursue fast-return investment strategies, and represent the acquisitive end of leaf economics spectrum. The deviations of trait-trait relationships between different plant groups reveal the precise adaptions of submerged plants to the unique aquatic habitats.

Photosynthesis Optimized across Land Plant Phylogeny.

Until recently, few data were available on photosynthesis and its underlying mechanistically limiting factors in plants, other than crops and model species. Currently, a new large pool of data from extant representatives of basal terrestrial plant groups is emerging, allowing exploration of how photosynthetic capacity (Amax) increases from minimum values in bryophytes to maximum in tracheophytes, which is associated to an optimization of the balance between its limiting factors. From predominant mesophyll conductance limitation (lm) in bryophytes and lycophytes (fern allies) to stomatal conductance (ls) and lm colimitation in pteridophytes (ferns) and gymnosperms, a balanced colimitation by the three limitations is finally reached in angiosperms. We discuss the implications of this new knowledge for future biotechnological attempts to improve crop photosynthesis.

Land use alters soil propagule banks of wetlands down the soil-depth profile

Many studies have investigated the effects of human disturbances on floodplain propagule banks, but few have examined how these propagule banks change down the soil depth profile. Changes in soil propagule banks with depth can indicate the state of past vegetation and potentially demonstrate the effects of different land uses on the soil profile. Here, we examined changes in soil propagule banks down the soil-depth profile in an Australian floodplain wetland with five different land-use histories, ranging from a, in this case, relatively minor disturbance (clearing) through to more major disturbance (continuous cultivation). Land use had a larger influence than floodplain geomorphology on the propagule distribution of wetland plant-group numbers. An observed decrease in individuals over the depth profile also altered terrestrial plant groups in fields with longer land-use histories. Overall, soil-propagule profiles for terrestrial plants were not as affected by land use as were those of wetland plants. The geomorphological position on the floodplain also altered the soil propagule bank, with areas subject to the most flooding having the highest number of wetland species and retaining more of these species with greater depths. In conclusion, land-use impacts alter soil-propagule banks down the profile, despite most studies focussing on the top few centimetres.

Anatomical constraints to nonstomatal diffusion conductance and photosynthesis in lycophytes and bryophytes

Photosynthesis in bryophytes and lycophytes has received less attention than terrestrial plant groups. In particular, few studies have addressed the nonstomatal diffusion conductance to CO2 gnsd of these plant groups. Their lower photosynthetic rate per leaf mass area at any given nitrogen concentration compared with vascular plants suggested a stronger limitation by CO2 diffusion. We hypothesized that bryophyte and lycophyte photosynthesis is largely limited by low gnsd . Here, we studied CO2 diffusion inside the photosynthetic tissues and its relationships with photosynthesis and anatomical parameters in bryophyte and lycophyte species in Antarctica, Australia, Estonia, Hawaii and Spain. On average, lycophytes and, specially, bryophytes had the lowest photosynthetic rates and nonstomatal diffusion conductance reported for terrestrial plants. These low values are related to their very thick cell walls and their low exposure of chloroplasts to cell perimeter. We conclude that the reason why bryophytes lie at the lower end of the leaf economics spectrum is their strong nonstomatal diffusion conductance limitation to photosynthesis, which is driven by their specific anatomical characteristics.

Bryophytes and heavy metals: a review

Abstract Bryophytes, a group of terrestrial plants widely used in biomonitoring, are reviewed for their relation to heavy metals. In the present article, we summarized the knowledge on heavy metals pollution and accumulation effects on bryophytes. Mechanisms of tolerance and resistance are given as well.

Is the Binding Pattern of Zinc(II) Equal in Different Bryophyte Species?

Bryophytes are usually taken as good bioindicators. However, they represent a large group of terrestrial plants and they express an enormous range of peculiarities within the plant kingdom. With the aim to search for a common pattern of zinc binding, we established axenical in vitro cultures of a dozen bryophyte species that include hornworts, thallose, and leafy liverworts, as well as acrocarp and pleurocarp mosses. The species were grown free of contaminants for many years prior to the application of different treatments, i.e. offering Zn(II) from solid and liquid media and in combination with different anions. The localization and binding of zinc was detected by confocal microscopy using the zinc-specific dye FluoZin™-3. In one of the species, Hypnum cupressiforme (which is widely used for atmospheric heavy metal deposition studies in biomonitoring), semi-quantitative analyses of zinc were performed by energy dispersive X-ray microspectrometry (EDX) in a scanning electron microscope. The results suggest no common pattern of Zn(II) binding in different bryophyte species. Instead, the binding pattern seems to be species specific. Zinc is located in certain areas or cellular compartments, as clearly shown by the EDX measurements in H. cupressiforme.

BRYOPHYTES AS HIDDEN TREASURE

ryophytes are the second largest heterogeneous group of terrestrial plants. The bryophytes placed taxonomically between Algae and Pteridophytes, are further divided into three classes; Hornworts (class Anthocerotae), Liverworts (class Hepaticae) and Mosses (class Musci). They are the most captivating exotic species on earth with distinguishing characteristics.
 Bryophytes are rich in a variety of secondary biological active compounds. Bryophytes contain potentially useful natural products, including polysaccharides terpenoids, lipids, amino acids and phenylpropanoids. Bryophyte isolated compounds and extracts have cytotoxic, antimicrobial, insecticidal, antiviral, nematocidal, , effects on smooth and non-striated muscles, weight loss, plant growth regulation and allelopathic activities.
 In the present review, the therapeutic uses of bryophytes were focused in detail. This will highlight bryophytes as potential source for phytotherapeutic remedies and chemical products used in different fields of chemistry, pharmacology, bioiogy and different branches of life sciences.

Briófitas de ocorrências em São João do Sóter, Maranhão, Brasil

Briófitas são plantas de pequeno porte, vasos condutores lignificados ausentes, sendo o segundo maior grupo de plantas terrestres. Essa pesquisa teve por objetivo fazer levantamento de briófitas ocorrentes no município de São João do Sóter/Maranhão, elaborando uma lista das espécies encontradas, seus tipos de substratos e sua distribuição geográfica. Foram realizadas coletas bimestrais, com duração de três a cinco dias, entre agosto de 2010 e agosto de 2011, em trilhas pré-existentes, e no interior da vegetação nativa. O material botânico foi coletado seguindo a metodologia usual para o grupo. Foram registradas 28 espécies de briófitas distribuídas em 18 gêneros e 12 famílias. Para cada divisão, foram quantificados os seguintes número de famílias: Anthocerotophyta (1 família) e Bryophyta (8 famílias) e; Marchantiophyta (3 famílias). Syrrhopodon cryptocarpus Dozy & Molk, Fissidens goyazensis Broth, e Entodontopsis nitens Mitt. W.R. Buck, são novas ocorrências para o estado do Maranhão. Os resultados apresentados ampliam o conhecimento sobre a distribuição geográfica das espécies coletadas.

Baptism by fire: the pivotal role of ancient conflagrations in evolution of the Earth's flora

AbstractFire became a defining feature of the Earth's processes as soon as land plants evolved 420 million years ago and has played a major role in shaping the composition and physiognomy of many ecosystems ever since. However, there remains a general lack of appreciation of the place of fire in the origin, evolution, ecology and conservation of the Earth's biodiversity. We review the literature on the presence of fire throughout the Earth's history following the evolution of land plants and examine the evidence for the origin and evolution of adaptive functional traits, biomes and major plant groups in relation to fire. We show that: (1) fire activities have fluctuated throughout geological time due to variations in climate, and more importantly in atmospheric oxygen, as these affected fuel levels and flammability; (2) fire promoted the early evolution and spread of major terrestrial plant groups; (3) fire has shaped the floristics, structure and function of major global biomes; and (4) fire has initiated and maintained the evolution of a wide array of fire-adapted functional traits since the evolution of land plants. We conclude that fire has been a fundamental agent of natural selection on terrestrial plants throughout the history of life on the Earth's land surface. We suggest that a paradigm shift is required to reassess ecological and evolutionary theories that exclude a role for fire, and also there is a need to review fire-suppression policies on ecosystem management and biodiversity conservation in global fire-prone regions.

Bryophytes – an emerging source for herbal remedies and chemical production

AbstractBryophytes (including mosses, liverworts and hornworts) are a heterogeneous group of terrestrial plants, which comprise over 24,000 species worldwide. Given the various biological activities reported from bryophytes, they have a huge commercial potential. Due to their minute size and rather small biomass in various ecosystems, bryophytes are a seldom part of ethnomedicine and rarely subject to medicinal and chemical analyses. Still, hundreds of novel natural products have been isolated from bryophytes. Bryophytes have been shown to contain numerous potentially useful natural products, including polysaccharides, lipids, rare amino acids, terpenoids, phenylpropanoids, quinones and many other specialized metabolites. Additionally, different bryophyte extracts and isolated compounds have shown antimicrobial, antiviral, cytotoxic, nematocidal, insecticidal, effects on smooth and non-striated muscles, weight loss, plant growth regulators and allelopathic activities. Bryophytes also cause allergies and contact dermatitis. All these effects highlight bryophytes as potential source for herbal remedies and production of chemicals to be used in various products.

Epichloae infection in a native South African grass, Festuca costata Nees.

Fungal endophytes have been documented in almost all terrestrial plant groups. Although the endophyte infection syndrome in agronomic cultivars is well studied, relatively little work addresses questions of spatial ecology and fire effects on epichloae endophyte infection in native grasses, and none, to our knowledge, in sub-Saharan Africa. We sampled seven populations of the native Festuca costata Nees along the spline of the Drakensberg range in South Africa at several spatial scales, including both recently burned and unburned stands. We tested epichloae presence and prevalence with immunoblot assays, PCR and genetic sequencing. We found epichloae endophytes were present and prevalent (38-98% infection rates depending on location). Variation in infection rates occurred primarily among locations, but also among bunches. There was little evidence that endophyte infection rates varied with fire. Novel evidence of epichloae infection of a native Festuca in South Africa opens the door to several new research questions, from the phylogenetic relationship between epichloae of sub-Saharan Africa and other continents to the ecological advantages or disadvantages that endophytes confer upon their hosts, especially in a fire-prone ecosystem vulnerable to global environmental change.

Asymmetric hybridization and gene flow between Joshua trees (Agavaceae: Yucca) reflect differences in pollinator host specificity

The angiosperms are by far the largest group of terrestrial plants. Their spectacular diversity is often attributed to specialized pollination. Obligate pollination mutualisms where both a plant and its pollinator are dependent upon one another for reproduction are thought to be prone to rapid diversification through co-evolution and pollinator isolation. However, few studies have evaluated the degree to which pollinators actually mediate reproductive isolation in these systems. Here, we examine evidence for hybridization and gene flow between two subspecies of Joshua tree (Yucca brevifolia brevifolia and Yucca brevifolia jaegeriana) pollinated by two sister species of yucca moth. Previous work indicated that the pollinators differ in host specificity, and DNA sequence data suggested asymmetric introgression between the tree subspecies. Through intensive sampling in a zone of sympatry, a large number of morphologically intermediate trees were identified. These included trees with floral characters typical of Y.b.jaegeriana, but vegetative features typical of Y.b.brevifolia. The opposite combination-Y.b.brevifolia flowers with Y.b.jaegeriana vegetative morphology-never occurred. Microsatellite genotyping revealed a high frequency of genetically admixed, hybrid trees. Coalescent-based estimates of migration indicated significant gene flow between the subspecies and that the direction of gene flow matches differences in pollinator host fidelity. The data suggest that pollinator behaviour determines the magnitude and direction of gene flow between the two subspecies, but that specialized pollination alone is not sufficient to maintain species boundaries. Natural selection may be required to maintain phenotypic differences in the face of ongoing gene flow.

Carbon cycle perturbation and stabilization in the wake of the Triassic‐Jurassic boundary mass‐extinction event

The Triassic‐Jurassic boundary mass‐extinction event (T‐J; 199.6 Ma) is associated with major perturbations in the carbon cycle recorded in stable carbon isotopes. Two rapid negative isotope excursions in bulk organic carbon (δ13Corg) occur within the immediate boundary interval at multiple locations and have been linked to the outgassing of 12C‐enriched CO2 from the Central Atlantic Magmatic Province. In British Columbia, a positive δ13Corg excursion of +5‰ (Vienna Peedee belemnite (V‐PDB)) spans part or all of the subsequent Hettangian stage. Here, we examine the significance of these carbon isotope excursions as records of global carbon cycle dynamics across the T‐J boundary and test the link between carbon cycle perturbation‐stabilization and biotic extinction‐recovery patterns. A combination of δ13Corg and palynological analyses from the Late Triassic to Early Jurassic in the Mingolsheim core (Germany) suggests that organic carbon isotope variations are best explained as the result of both compositional changes in terrestrial versus marine input and disturbance and recovery patterns of major terrestrial plant groups across the T‐J boundary. A new high‐resolution δ13Ccarb record from the Val Adrara section in the Southern Alps (Italy) spanning from the uppermost Rhaetian through Lower Sinemurian does not exhibit a negative excursion at the T‐J boundary but does record a large positive δ13Ccarb excursion of +4‰ (V‐PDB) in bulk carbonate that begins at the T‐J boundary and reaches a local maximum at the Early Late Hettangian boundary. Values then gradually decrease reaching +0.5‰ at the Hettangian‐Sinemurian boundary and remain relatively constant into the Early Sinemurian. Complementary δ13Ccarb data from 4 more sections that span the Hettangian‐Sinemurian boundary support carbon cycle stabilization within the Upper Hettangian. Our analyses suggest that isotope changes in organic carbon reservoirs do not necessarily require a shift in the global exogenic carbon reservoir and that the positive excursion in the carbonate carbon isotope record is best explained as the combined result of an increase in atmospheric pCO2 leading to accelerated carbon cycling, decreased skeletal carbonate production, and increased organic carbon burial lasting several hundred thousand years. The termination of the positive inorganic carbon isotope excursion coincides with the recovery of marine skeletal carbonate producers and coeval changes in terrestrial vegetation and reflects the gradual reduction in pCO2 and the stabilization of the global carbon cycle during the Sinemurian.

Oxygen and Hydrogen Isotopic Ratios in Plant Cellulose

The variations of the D/H and (18)O/(16)O ratios of nonexchangeable hydrogen and oxygen in plant cellulose reveal systematic differences between terrestrial plant groups. The slope of deltaD versus delta(18)O of cellulose from a variety of aquatic plants is close to 8 (the meteoric water value), while the slope for a number of terrestrial species is greater than or equal to about 24. Two models involving incorporation of CO(2) and H(2)O into cellulose precursors are proposed to account for these differences. Effects of evaporative transpiration on the isotopic composition of water in leaves are measured and discussed in the context of these models.