Effects of a controlled-release fertilizer on yield, nutrient uptake, and fertilizer usage efficiency in early ripening rapeseed(Brassica napus L.)

Background： Nitrogen（N）, phosphorous（P）, and potassium（K） are critical nutrient elements necessary for crop plant growth and development. However, excessive inputs will lead to inefficient usage and cause excessive nutrient losses in the field environment, and also adversely affect the soil, water and air quality, human health, and biodiversity. Methods： Field experiments were conducted to study the effects of controlled-release fertilizer（CRF） on seed yield, plant growth, nutrient uptake, and fertilizer usage efficiency for early ripening rapeseed（Xiangzayou 1613） in the red-yellow soil of southern China during 2011–2013. It was grown using a soluble fertilizer（SF） and the same amounts of CRF, such as SF1/CRF1（3750 kg/hm^2）, SF2/CRF2（3000 kg/hm^2）, SF3/CRF3（2250 kg/hm^2）, SF4/CRF4（1500 kg/hm^2）, SF5/CRF5（750 kg/hm^2）, and also using no fertilizer（CK）. Results： CRF gave higher seed yields than SF in both seasons by 14.51%. CRF4 and SF3 in each group achieved maximum seed yield（2066.97 and 1844.50 kg/hm^2, respectively）, followed by CRF3（1929.97 kg/hm^2） and SF4（1839.40 kg/hm^2）. There were no significant differences in seed yield among CK, SF1, and CRF1（P0.05）. CRF4 had the highest profit（7126.4 CNY/hm2） and showed an increase of 12.37% in seed yield, and it decreased by 11.01% in unit fertilizer rate compared with SF4. The branch number, pod number, and dry matter weight compared with SF increased significantly under the fertilization of CRF（P0.05）. The pod number per plant was the major contributor to seed yield. On the other hand, the N, P, and K uptakes increased at first and then decreased with increasing the fertilizer rate at maturity, and the N, P, and K usage efficiency decreased with increasing the fertilizer rate. The N, P, and K uptakes and usage efficiencies of the CRF were significantly higher than those of SF（P0.05）. The N accumulation and N usage efficiency of CRF increased by an average of 13.66% and 9.74 percentage points, respectively, compared to SF. In conclusion, CRF significantly promoted the growth of rapeseed with using total N as the base fertilizer, by providing sufficient N in the later growth stages, and last by reducing the residual N in the soil and increasing the N accumulation and N usage efficiency.

Identification,characterization,and verification of miR399 target gene in grape

The microRNA miR399 plays an important role in phosphorus signal transduction pathways in plants.Previously,miR399 was shown to be closely associated with berry ripening in grape(Vitis vinifera).The objective of the present study was to elucidate the evolutionary characteristics of the miR399 gene family in grape and to verify the cleavage effect on the target genes.Grape miR399s were identified by miRNA sequencing and retrieval from the miRBase database.The mature sequences and precursor sequences were subjected to phylogenetic analysis to reconstruct evolutionary trees,as well as secondary structure analysis of the precursor sequence,and prediction of target genes.The cisacting elements in the miR399 promoter were predicted and the cleavage effect of grape miR399b on its target genes was verified.The grape miR399 family comprised nine precursor sequences and nine mature sequences.The precursor sequences formed a typical and stable stem—loop structure.The minimum folding free energy ranged from-55.70 kcal·mol^(-1)to-37.40 kcal·mol^(-1).Multiple sequence alignment revealed that the miR399 family was highly conserved.The grape miR399 family was phylogenetically closely related to peach,apple,and citrus miR399s.Grape miR399s were predicted to target inorganic phosphate transporter 1—3,phospholipase D delta-like,and beta-glucuronosyltransferase.The cleavage effect of grape miR399b on the target genes was verified by means of a dual-luciferase assay and 5’RLM-RACE.Histochemical GUS staining showed that the promoter activity of miR399b was promoted by GA3treatment.