Shikimic acid accelerates phase change and flowering in Chinese jujube

The juvenile-to-adult phase change with first flowering as the indicator plays a crucial role in the lifecycle of fruit trees. However, the molecular mechanisms underlying phase change in fruit trees remain largely unknown. Shikimic acid (ShA) pathway is a main metabolic pathway closely related to the synthesis of hormones and many important secondary metabolites participating in plant phase change. So,whether ShA regulates phase change in plants is worth clarifying. Here, the distinct morphological characteristics and the underlying mechanisms of phase change in jujube (Ziziphus jujuba Mill.), an important fruit tree native to China with nutritious fruit and outstanding tolerance abiotic stresses, were clarified. A combined transcriptome and metabolome analysis found that ShA is positively involved in jujube(Yuhong’×Xing 16’) phase change. The genes in the upstream of ShA synthesis pathway (ZjDAHPS, ZjDHQS and ZjSDH), the contents of ShA and the downstream secondary metabolites like phenols were significantly upregulated in the phase change period. Further, the treatment of spraying exogenous ShA verified that ShA at a very low concentration (60 mg·L^(-1)) can substantially speed up the phase change and flowering of jujube and other tested plants including Arabidopsis, tomato and wheat. The exogenous ShA (60 mg·L^(-1)) treatment in jujube seedlings could increase the accumulation of endogenous ShA, enhance leaf photosynthesis and the synthesis of phenols especially flavonoids and phenolic acids, and promote the expression of genes (ZjCOs, ZjNFYs and ZjPHYs) involved in flowering pathway. Basing on above results, we put forward a propose for the underlying mechanism of ShA regulating phase change, and a hypothesis that ShA could be considered a phytohormone-like substance because it is endogenous, ubiquitous, movable and highly efficient at very low concentrations. This study highlights the critical role of ShA in plant phase change and its phytohormone-like properties.

Biology of Flowering of Some Species of the Genus Phlomoides Moench

The article presents the biology of flowering and the daily dynamics of flowering of two species from the Lamiaceae family: ph. anisochila va ph. sogdiana of the distribution out in the Nuratau Mountains range.

J-family genes redundantly regulate flowering time and increase yield in soybean

Soybean(Glycine max)is a short-day crop whose flowering time is regulated by photoperiod.The longjuvenile trait extends its vegetative phase and increases yield under short-day conditions.Natural variation in J,the major locus controlling this trait,modulates flowering time.We report that the three J-family genes influence soybean flowering time,with the triple mutant Guangzhou Mammoth-2 flowering late under short days by inhibiting transcription of E1-family genes.J-family genes offer promising allelic combinations for breeding.

Molecular mechanism of flowering time regulation in Brassica rapa:similarities and differences with Arabidopsis

Properly regulated flowering time is pivotal for successful plant reproduction.The floral transition from vegetative growth to reproductive growth is regulated by a complex gene regulatory network that integrates environmental signals and internal conditions to ensure that flowering takes place under favorable conditions.Brassica rapa is a diploid Cruciferae species that includes several varieties that are cultivated as vegetable or oil crops.Flowering time is one of the most important agricultural traits of B.rapa crops because of its influence on yield and quality.The transition to flowering in B.rapa is regulated by several environmental and developmental cues,which are perceived by several signaling pathways,including the vernalization pathway,the autonomous pathway,the circadian clock,the thermosensory pathway,and gibberellin(GA)signaling.These signals are integrated to control the expression of floral integrators BrFTs and BrSOC1s to regulate flowering.In this review,we summarized current research advances on the molecular mechanisms that govern flowering time regulation in B.rapa and compare this to what is known in Arabidopsis.

CmbHLH110,a novel bHLH transcription factor,accelerates flowering in chrysanthemum

Basic helix-loop-helix(bHLH)transcription factor gene family in plants controls various growth and development aspects;however,the actual roles of these genes in flowering plants are not well known.In this study,a novel bHLH protein CmbHLH110 was found to interact with CmERF110 by in vitro and in vivo experiments,a chrysanthemum ERF110 homolog that acts as a positive flowering regulator.In addition,CmbHLH110 was also found to regulate the flowering of chrysanthemums,overexpression of CmbHLH110 causes chrysanthemums to flower earlier,and suppressed CmbHLH110 leads to delayed flowering.Furthermore,the loss-of-function Arabidopsis mutant of its homologue PERICYCLE FACTOR TYPE-A 5(PFA5)had a noticeable late flowering phenotype,and CmbHLH110 completely complemented the late flowering phenotype of the pfa5 mutant,whereas heterologous overexpression of CmbHLH110 in Arabidopsis Col-0 caused early flowering.Transcriptome sequencing revealed significant differential expression of flowering-related and circadian clock-related genes in transgenic chrysanthemum.Therefore,we concluded that CmbHLH110,as a novel flowering regulator,could interact with CmERF110 to regulate flowering in chrysanthemum.

GmAP1d regulates flowering time under long-day photoperiods in soybean

Flowering time is important for adaptation of soybean(Glycine max)to different environments.Here,we conducted a genome-wide association study of flowering time using a panel of 1490 cultivated soybean accessions.We identified three strong signals at the qFT02-2 locus(Chr02:12037319–12238569),which were associated with flowering time in three environments:Gongzhuling,Mengcheng,and Nanchang.By analyzing linkage disequilibrium,gene expression patterns,gene annotation,and the diversity of variants,we identified an AP1 homolog as the candidate gene for the qFT02-2 locus,which we named GmAP1d.Only one nonsynonymous polymorphism existed among 1490 soybean accessions at position Chr02:12087053.Accessions carrying the Chr02:12087053-T allele flowered significantly earlier than those carrying the Chr02:12087053-A allele.Thus,we developed a cleaved amplified polymorphic sequence(CAPS)marker for the SNP at Chr02:12087053,which is suitable for marker-assisted breeding of flowering time.Knockout of GmAP1d in the‘Williams 82’background by gene editing promoted flowering under long-day conditions,confirming that GmAP1d is the causal gene for qFT02-2.An analysis of the region surrounding GmAP1d revealed that GmAP1d was artificially selected during the genetic improvement of soybean.Through stepwise selection,the proportion of modern cultivars carrying the Chr02:12087053-T allele has increased,and this allele has become nearly fixed(95%)in northern China.These findings provide a theoretical basis for better understanding the molecular regulatory mechanism of flowering time in soybean and a target gene that can be used for breeding modern soybean cultivars adapted to different latitudes.

The mid-domain effect in flowering phenology

The timing of flowering is an important driver of species distribution and community assembly patterns.However,we still have much to learn about the factors that shape flowering diversity(i.e.,number of species flowering per period) in plant communities.One potential explanation of flowering diversity is the mid-domain effect,which states that geometric constraints on species ranges within a bounded domain(space or time) will yield a mid-domain peak in diversity regardless of ecological factors.Here,we determine whether the mid-domain effect explains peak flowering time(i.e.,when most species of communities are flowering) across China.We used phenological data of 16,267 herbaceous and woody species from the provincial Flora in China and species distribution data from the Chinese Vascular Plant Distribution Database to determine relationships between the observed number of species flowering and the number of species flowering as predicted by the mid-domain effect model,as well as between three climatic variables(mean minimum monthly temperature,mean monthly precipitation,and mean monthly sunshine duration).We found that the mid-domain effect explained a significant proportion of the temporal variation in flowering diversity across all species in China.Further,the mid-domain effect explained a greater proportion of variance in flowering diversity at higher latitudes than at lower latitudes.The patterns of flowering diversity for both herbaceous and woody species were related to both the mid-domain effect and environmental variables.Our findings indicate that including geometric constraints in conjunction with abiotic and biotic predictors will improve predictions of flowering diversity patterns.

Analysis on Genetic Diversity of 40 Flowering Cherry Cultivars and Construction of Molecular ID Based on SSR Markers

Studying on the genetic diversity and genetic relationship of flowering cherry cultivars is extremely important for germplasm conservation, cultivar identification and breeding. Flowering cherry is widely cultivated as an important woody ornamental plant in worldwide, especially Japan, China. However, owning to the morphological similarity, many cultivars are distinguished hardly in non-flowering season. Here, we evaluated the genetic diversity and genetic relationship of 40 flowering cherry cultivars, which are mainly cultivated in China. We selected 13 polymorphicprimers to amplify to allele fragments with fluorescent-labeled capillary electrophoresis technology. The population structure analysis results show that these cultivars could be divided into 4 subpopulations. At the population level, Na and Ne were 6.062, 4.326, respectively. Ho and He were 0.458 and 0.670, respectively. The Shannon’s information index (I) was 1.417. The Pop3, which originated from P. serrulata, had the highest Ho, He, and I among the 4 subpopulations. AMOVA showed that only 4% of genetic variation came from populations, the 39% variation came from individuals and 57% (p < 0.05) came from intra-individuals. 5 polymorphic SSR primers were selected to construct molecular ID code system of these cultivars. This analysis on the genetic diversity and relationship of the 40 flowering cherry cultivars will help to insight into the genetic background, relationship of these flowering cherry cultivars and promote to identify similar cultivars.

Evaluation of Application Value of 30 Introduced Flowering Shrubs in Landscape in Hefei City Based on AHP Method

The application effect of 30 introduced flowering shrubs in landscape in Hefei City was comprehensively evaluated by the analytic hierarchy process(APH).A comprehensive evaluation model was established by using factors such as plant type,resistance and drought tolerance of introduced flowering shrubs.The results show that the application effect of grade-I introduced flowering shrubs(including 12 kinds,e.g.Lantanacamara)was the best(j≥2.6),and that of grade-II introduced flowering shrubs(including 14 kinds,e.g.Abelia×grandiflora‘Francis Mason’)was better(2.2≤j<2.6),while that of grade-III introduced flowering shrubs(including 4 kinds,e.g.Ligustrum×vicaryi)was moderate(j<2.2).The evaluation results can provide reference for the application effect of introduced flowering shrubs in landscape in Hefei City.

山核桃FLOWERING LOCUS T同源基因的克隆与序列分析

根据不同植物FLOWERING LOCUST（FT）同源基因序列的保守区，设计合成1对长度为18bp的PCR简并引物，以山核桃基因组DNA为模板，采用PCR方法扩增出长度为152bp的DNA片段，克隆到pMD19-T载体上。测序及序列分析结果表明，扩增所获得的片段序列为FT基因第四外显子部分序列，不含内含子，推测共编码50个氨基酸；其序列在GenBank中注册号为FJ858260．1，同源性比对结果表明，其氨基酸序列与其他植物FT基因的同源性高达88％～96％。

Effects of Media and Nutrient Levels on Growth and Flowering of Cymbidium hybridium Seedlings

Effects of two media and fertilizer levels on the growth of Cymbidium hybridium were studied. Results demonstrated that peanut\|hull mixed sand (abbreviated as PH/S=1/1) medium had higher total porosity and larger air space and lower water holding capacity in comparison with sphagnum (abbreviated as SP) medium. Leaf growth rate, chlorophyll contents, fresh weight and photosynthetic rate change along with the changes of nitrogen concentrations of both SP and PH/S media. According to the investigation,when the nitrogen concentration was 222 75?mg·L -1 , the photosynthetic rate of SP\|medium reached the highest. The practical nitrogen content was 180 00?mg·L -1 for PH/S medium . The maximum of flower quantity (number per spike) was gotten by treating of N/P 2O 5/K 2O=10/30/20 on PH/S medium, and N/P 2O 5/K 2O=0/23/29 treatment was the lowest on PH/S medium. The differences in small flowers, stem length and flower quantity among the two media and the three fertilization methods reached significant at 0 05 level,respectively.

Observation on Flowering Habit of Reverse Genic Sterile Rice FHS

[Objective] This study was to use reverse genic male sterile FHS better in field production. [Method] Low energy nitrogen ion beam was taken as a mutation source to conduct mutagenic treatment for indica rice 99-02 and the mutant FHS with special fertility that was isolated from their offspring. Some characteristics such as flowering habit and stigma exsertion rate of FHS were observed in this experiment. [Result] The reverse genic sterile rice FHS had an obvious peak flowering stage from 10:00 to 10:30, while the second peak flowering was from August 5 to August 10. Compared with PA64S, FHS flowered early and its flowering time was concentrated, showing that it is for seed propagation. The stigma exsertion rate of FHS was 85.8% and low exsertion rate was good for the purity of seed. [Conclusion] The reverse genic sterile rice FHS had good value in use, besides, it could also be used as comparison material for studying fertility alternation mechanism of photoperiod sensitive genic male sterile rice.

Effects of Ethephon on Flowering of Ornamental Pineapple in Guzmania

[Objective] This study aimed to establish the technical system for forcing ornamental pineapple in Guzmania to flower and further provide technical parameters for large-scale cultivation.[Method] The effect of different concentrations of ethephon solution on flowering in Guzmania ornamental pineapple was studied by using randomized block design.[Results] All the different concentrations of ethephon solution were capable to force the four mainly-cultivated ornamental pineapple varieties to flower to varying degrees.After the flower forcing,it took about 180 d for the pineapple to stay in the ornamentation period,and there were no significant differences in inflorescence shape,inflorescence height,inflorescence diameter and bract number among different treatment pineapples.[Conclusion] All the four varieties have shown high sensitivity to ethephon.The optimal ethephon concentration is 400 mg/L for treating G.lingulata,G.remembrance and G.denise and 500 mg/L for treating G.conifera.After treatment,their major ornamentation traits are were able to satisfy the requirements for commercial production of pineapple.

Effects of Hormone Factors on the in vitro Culture Flowering Induction of Dendrobium officinate Kimura et Migo

[Objective]The aim was to select the suitable hormone factors for flowering induction in vitro culture of Dendrobium officinate Kimura et Migo.[Method]The test-tube plantlets from the stems of Dendrobium officinate Kimura et Migo were used as the experimental materials and MS medium as the basic medium.Comparative tests have been done between single-factor hormone treatments（different concentrations of PP333 or TDZ） and multi-factor hormone treatments（different combinations of PP333,TDZ,6-BA and NAA） to research the effects of hormone factors on the flowering induction of the plantlets.[Result]Among the single-factor hormone treatments,the suitable concentration and the rate of flower buds formation of PP333 treatment were 0.2 mg/L and 8.5%,the that of TDZ treatment were 0.06 mg/L and 15.5%;the effects of multi-factor hormone treatments on the flowering induction were ordered as follow：（PP333 ＋ 6-BA ＋ NAA ＋ TDZ）〉 （PP333 ＋ 6-BA ＋ NAA）〉 （PP333 ＋ 6-BA） and（PP333 ＋ NAA） ;the most suitable treatment was PP333 0.3 mg/L ＋ 6-BA 0.5 mg/L ＋ NAA 0.5 mg/L ＋ TDZ 0.06 mg/L,the rate of flower bud formation and the rate of the blossomed flower were respectly reached to 80.4% and 90.3%.[Conclusion]PP333 and TDZ showed the important effect on the flowering induction in vitro culture of Dendrobium officinate Kimura et Migo.The effect of TDZ was better than that of PP333.It is much more conducive to the flower bud formation,when using appropriate concentration of TDZ combined with other hormones properly.

Effect of Foliar Application of Amino Acid on the Quality and Enzyme Activity of Flowering Chinese Cabbage(Brassica parachinensis Bailey)

A pot experiment was conducted to study the influences of foliar application of glycine,alanine,lysine,and glutamic acid in 200 mg/kg or 500 mg/kg upon the quality and enzyme activity of flowering Chinese cabbage（Brassica parachinensis Bailey）.The results showed that all the application of these four amino acids could increase the yield of flowering Chinese cabbage,significantly raise the content of soluble sugar,and reduce the accumulation of nitrate.The applications of three other amino acids except alanine can increase the content of soluble proteins and decrease the accumulation of oxalic acid.However,the application of amino acid has insignificant influences on the SPAD number of chlorophyll,and causes the decrease of Vitamin C content.Meanwhile,the application of amino acid can improve the activity of nitrate reductase（NR） and glutamate dehydrogenase（GDH） as well.It shows that the application of amino acid is beneficial to improve ammonia metabolism,reduce the accumulation of nitrate and oxalic acid,increase the content of soluble sugar and soluble proteins,and improve the quality of flowering Chinese cabbage.

Effects of Microbial Fertilizer and Compound Feritlizer Mixed Application on Yield and Fruit Quality and Flowering and Fruit Setting of Following Year of Apple

In order to study the application effect of microbial fertilizer and compound fertilizer mixed application on microirrigation apple, three types of fertilizers were applied in spring which were urea（CK, 15 kg/plant）, microbial fertilizer（5.0 kg/plant）,microbial fertilizer and compound fertilizer mixed（each 2.5 kg/plant） to study the effect of different fertilizer treatments on yield, fruit quality, flowering and fruit setting of Xinshijie apple. The results showed that application of microbial fertilizer could increase the yield, fruit weight and fruit shape index, significantly increase the flowering rates and inflorescence fruit setting rate of following year, while reduce the fruit hardness and soluble solids content, and the effect of microbial fertilizer and compound fertilizer mixed application on increasing fruit weight and yield was higher than that of microbial fertilizer separate application, the effect of the two was not obvious in other aspects. Therefore, microbial fertilizer could be used instead of some chemical fertilizer and organic fertilizer in apple production to reach the aim of increasing yield and efficiency, and the effect of microbial fertilizer and compound fertilizer mixed application was best.

PVX介导拟南芥Flowering locusT诱导烟草开花研究

为研究拟南芥Flowering locus T(FT)基因在开花诱导过程中的重要生物功能,本研究用RT-PCR方法,从拟南芥野生型(WS)中得到全长FT序列,采用Potato Virus X(PVX)野生型病毒构建载体,将全长FT基因连接到PVX第5个阅读框架即Coat Protein(CP)编码序列之前,经体外转录成PVX-FT病毒RNA,人工感染短日照烟草Maryland mommath,成功诱导短日照烟草在长日照条件下开花。

Effect of Extreme Natural High Temperature on Seed Setting Rate of Rice(Oryza sativa L.) at Heading and Flowering Stage

The seed setting rates of total 198 rice cultivars （lines） at heading and flowering stage were investigated under the condition of extreme natural high tem- perature in 2013 so as to analyze the effect of extreme natural high temperature on seed setting rate of different rice cultivar （line）. The results showed that the contin- uous high temperature showed certain effects on the seed setting rates of tested materials, and significant differences were shown in seed setting rate among differ- ent rice cultivars （lines）. The seed setting rates differed significantly among indica F1 hybrids derived from different sterile and restorer lines, indicating that the sterile and restorer lines had great effects on heat tolerances of different F~ hybrids. The cor- relation analysis showed that the seed setting rates of conventional indica restorer lines and conventional japonica rice cultivars （lines） were negatively related to the daily highest temperature （P〉0.05）, and the seed setting rates of indica F1 hybrids were positively related to the seed setting rates of their restorer lines. Total four in- dica restorer lines, including Ninghuiguangkangzhan, Shuhui 527, Chenghui 3203 and Xianyin-8, and four new japonica rice cultivars （lines）, including Wuyinjinghui （B2）, Nanjing 4//W3660/Nanjing 44 （B12） and Wuyun 2330/JD6011 （B22） were pre- liminarily screened, and their seed setting rates were all close to the normal level （90%）. The screened rice cultivars （lines） showed higher heat tolerances.

Effects of Spraying Nitrogen and Zinc Fertilizers after Flowering on Grain Weight and Nutritional Quality of Winter Wheat

In order to explore the effect of spraying fertilizers after flowering on grain weight and nutritional quality of different winter wheat cultivars, twenty wheat culti- vars in wheat zones along Yellow River and Huai River, were used to investigate the change of thousand kernel weight （TKW）, phytic acid content （PAC）, contents of Fe, Zn and Mg and bioavailability by spraying zinc and nitrogen fertilizers after flowering. The results showed that both of TKW and protein content in grains in- creased by spraying Zn and N fertilizers, and the effect of N fertilizer proved more significant. The PAC decreased significantly after Zn treatment, for example, PAC of ＂955159＂, a wheat cultivar, decreased by 27.95%. However, PAC was in- significantly influenced by N fertilizer. On the other hand, Zn content in wheat grains were improved after spraying Zn fertilizer and the increase aveaged 54.38%. Furthermore, Fe and Zn contents grew significantly after spraying N fertilizer, and the increase averaged 36.88% and 11.25% respectively. However, Mg content in grains declined by N fertilizer. Still, the bioavailability of zinc in grains was enhanced after spraying Zn fertilizer, and of Fe was also increased greatly after spraying N fertilizer. In conclusion, grain weight, and content and effectiveness of mineral ele-ments can be improved simultaneously by rational spraying of N and Zn fertilizers to improve quality of grains.

植物FLOWERING LOCUS T/TERMINAL FLOWER1基因家族的研究进展

植物FLOWERING LOCUS T/TERMINAL FLOWER1(FT/TFL1)基因家族是一个进化上高度保守的基因家族,它在植物的花发育过程中具有重要作用:其成员FT基因编码的蛋白产物是可以长距离转运的成花激素,在花形成过程中起关键作用;另一成员TFL1基因则在花序的形成和维持过程中起重要作用.本文就近年来国内外对植物FT/TFL1基因家族的结构、成员,以及各个成员在花发育转换过程中的功能等研究现状进行综述,并对该基因家族的研究前景提出展望.