Savanna, semi-deserts, and hot deserts characterize the Saharo-Arabian region, which includes Morocco, Mauretania, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Palestine, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, the United Arab Emira...Savanna, semi-deserts, and hot deserts characterize the Saharo-Arabian region, which includes Morocco, Mauretania, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Palestine, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Yemen, southern Jordan, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and northern India. Its neighboring regions, the Sudano-Zambezian region belonging to the Paleotropical Kingdom and the Mediterranean and Irano-Turanian regions included in the Holarctic Kingdom, share a large portion of their flora with the Saharo-Arabian region. Despite the widespread acknowledgment of the region's global importance for plant diversity, an up to date list of the Saharo-Arabian endemics is still unavailable. The available data are frequently insufficient or out of date at both the whole global and the national scales. Therefore, the present study aims at screening and verifying the Saharo-Arabian endemic plants and determining the phytogeographical distribution of these taxa in the Egyptian flora. Hence, a preliminary list of 429 Saharo-Arabian endemic plants in Egypt was compiled from the available literature. Indeed, by excluding the species that were recorded in any countries or regions outside the Saharo-Arabian region based on different literature, database reviews, and websites, the present study has reduced this number to 126 taxa belonging to 87 genera and 37 families. Regarding the national geographic distribution, South Sinai is the richest region with 83 endemic species compared with other eight phytogeographic regions in Egypt, followed by the Isthmic Desert(the middle of Sinai Peninsula, 53 taxa). Sahara regional subzone(SS1) distributes all the 126 endemic species, Arabian regional subzone(SS2) owns 79 taxa, and Nubo-Sindian subzone(SS3) distributes only 14 endemics. Seven groups were recognized at the fourth level of classification as a result of the application of the two-way indicator species analysis(TWINSPAN) to the Saharo-Arabian endemic species in Egypt, i.e., Ⅰ Asphodelus refractus group, Ⅱ Agathophora alopecuroides var. papillosa group, Ⅲ Anvillea garcinii group, Ⅳ Reseda muricata group, V Agathophora alopecuroides var. alopecuroides group, Ⅵ Scrophularia deserti group, and Ⅶ Astragalus schimperi group. It's crucial to clearly define the Saharo-Arabian endemics and illustrate an updated verified database of these taxa for a given territory for providing future management plans that support the conservation and sustainable use of these valuable species under current thought-provoking devastating impacts of rapid anthropogenic and climate change in this region.展开更多
The present study was designed to evaluate the effect of 12 6+ C ion beam (10～80 Gy) on biological changes of wheat seedlings. Reactive oxygen species (ROS)-related biomarkers and the quantification of plant survival...The present study was designed to evaluate the effect of 12 6+ C ion beam (10～80 Gy) on biological changes of wheat seedlings. Reactive oxygen species (ROS)-related biomarkers and the quantification of plant survival and growth were examined at 10 day after carbon ions irradiation (LET: 30.8 keV/μm). The results showed that heavy ions obviously enhanced ROSs reflected by the production of O2 and H2O2 as well as TBARS, and - treatment with 20 Gy achieved the peak value, suggesting that higher mutagenic potential may occur at 20 Gy. Simultaneously, increase of SOD activity was induced by heavy ions to counteract ROS accumulation. On the other hand, higher doses at 40 and 80 Gy inhibited wheat growth and survival in comparison with the control, and reversely lower doses at 10 or 20 Gy stimulated wheat growth and survival. In conclusion, the above observations imply that a dose range of 20~40 Gy is likely promised for wheat mutation breeding.展开更多
Juncus bufonius L. （Juncaceae） is recognized by the US Department of Agriculture as a weed or invasive plant. Recently, we reported on 3i bufonius L. var. bufonius associated with the native vascular plants Deschamp...Juncus bufonius L. （Juncaceae） is recognized by the US Department of Agriculture as a weed or invasive plant. Recently, we reported on 3i bufonius L. var. bufonius associated with the native vascular plants Deschampsia antarctica and Colobanthus quitensis in the environs of the Polish Arctowski Station, King George Island, in the Maritime Antarctica. In this study, we evaluated the developmental stages and morphological characteristics of J. bufonius plants cultivated in controlled conditions beginning with seeds obtained from plants of the Antarctic population. Germination occurred at 3 weeks and the germination percentage was low （22.5%）. The average time between the anthesis and seed formation was 7 weeks, similar to that reported for other species in the Juncaceae. According to data reported in the literature, Antarctic individuals were significantly smaller than their relatives growing in other conditions, except for the number of inflorescences. The morphological characteristics of a species vary according to its distribution and the edaphoclimatic environment where it occur; cosmopolitan plants shuch as J. bufonius also have reduced stature in cold environments. The low percentage germination may have been due to water availability in the plant chamber in which the study was conducted. J. bufonius is intolerant of dry environments, and once it suffers hydric stress its recovery is very low; thus, a moister environment could be beneficial. J. bufonius has become established amongst native vegetation near Arctowski Station and without careful control or eradication; it may have the potential to spread far beyond the site, as has happened with the alien grass Poa annua as human disturbance and climate warming increase.展开更多
Aims Although shrubs are an important component of forests,their role has not yet been considered in forest biodiversity experiments.In the biodiversity-ecosystem functioning(BEF)experiment with subtropical tree speci...Aims Although shrubs are an important component of forests,their role has not yet been considered in forest biodiversity experiments.In the biodiversity-ecosystem functioning(BEF)experiment with subtropical tree species in south-east China(BEF-China),we factorially combined tree with shrub species-diversity treatments.Here,we tested the hypotheses that shrub survival differs between the 10 planted shrub species,with lower survival rates of late-than early-successional species and is affected by environmental conditions,such as topography and top soil characteristics,as well as by biotic factors,represented by tree,shrub and herb layer characteristics.Methods We analyzed the survival of 42000 shrub individuals in 105 plots varying in tree and shrub species richness of the BEF-China project four years after planting.Shrub survival was analyzed with generalized linear mixed effects models at the level of individuals and with variance partitioning at the plot level.Random intercept and random slope models of different explanatory variables were compared with respect to the Bayesian Information Criterion(BIC).Important Findings Survival rates differed largely between the 10 shrub species,ranging from 26%to 91%for Ardisia crenata and Distylium buxifolium,respectively.Irrespective of species identity,single abiotic factors explained up to 5%of species survival,with a negative effect of altitude and slope inclination and a positive effect of the topsoil carbon to nitrogen ratio,which pointed to drought as the major cause of shrub mortality.In contrast,neither tree nor shrub richness affected shrub survival at this early stage of the experiment.Among the biotic predictors,only herb layer species richness and cover of the dominant fern species(Dicranopteris pedata)affected shrub survival.Overall,our models that included all variables could explain about 65%in shrub survival,with environmental variables being most influential,followed by shrub species identity,while tree species diversity(species richness and identity)and herb layer characteristics contributed much less.Thus,in this early stage of the experiment the biotic interactions among shrubs and between shrubs and trees have not yet overruled the impact of abiotic environmental factors.展开更多
文摘Savanna, semi-deserts, and hot deserts characterize the Saharo-Arabian region, which includes Morocco, Mauretania, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Palestine, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, Yemen, southern Jordan, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, and northern India. Its neighboring regions, the Sudano-Zambezian region belonging to the Paleotropical Kingdom and the Mediterranean and Irano-Turanian regions included in the Holarctic Kingdom, share a large portion of their flora with the Saharo-Arabian region. Despite the widespread acknowledgment of the region's global importance for plant diversity, an up to date list of the Saharo-Arabian endemics is still unavailable. The available data are frequently insufficient or out of date at both the whole global and the national scales. Therefore, the present study aims at screening and verifying the Saharo-Arabian endemic plants and determining the phytogeographical distribution of these taxa in the Egyptian flora. Hence, a preliminary list of 429 Saharo-Arabian endemic plants in Egypt was compiled from the available literature. Indeed, by excluding the species that were recorded in any countries or regions outside the Saharo-Arabian region based on different literature, database reviews, and websites, the present study has reduced this number to 126 taxa belonging to 87 genera and 37 families. Regarding the national geographic distribution, South Sinai is the richest region with 83 endemic species compared with other eight phytogeographic regions in Egypt, followed by the Isthmic Desert(the middle of Sinai Peninsula, 53 taxa). Sahara regional subzone(SS1) distributes all the 126 endemic species, Arabian regional subzone(SS2) owns 79 taxa, and Nubo-Sindian subzone(SS3) distributes only 14 endemics. Seven groups were recognized at the fourth level of classification as a result of the application of the two-way indicator species analysis(TWINSPAN) to the Saharo-Arabian endemic species in Egypt, i.e., Ⅰ Asphodelus refractus group, Ⅱ Agathophora alopecuroides var. papillosa group, Ⅲ Anvillea garcinii group, Ⅳ Reseda muricata group, V Agathophora alopecuroides var. alopecuroides group, Ⅵ Scrophularia deserti group, and Ⅶ Astragalus schimperi group. It's crucial to clearly define the Saharo-Arabian endemics and illustrate an updated verified database of these taxa for a given territory for providing future management plans that support the conservation and sustainable use of these valuable species under current thought-provoking devastating impacts of rapid anthropogenic and climate change in this region.
文摘The present study was designed to evaluate the effect of 12 6+ C ion beam (10～80 Gy) on biological changes of wheat seedlings. Reactive oxygen species (ROS)-related biomarkers and the quantification of plant survival and growth were examined at 10 day after carbon ions irradiation (LET: 30.8 keV/μm). The results showed that heavy ions obviously enhanced ROSs reflected by the production of O2 and H2O2 as well as TBARS, and - treatment with 20 Gy achieved the peak value, suggesting that higher mutagenic potential may occur at 20 Gy. Simultaneously, increase of SOD activity was induced by heavy ions to counteract ROS accumulation. On the other hand, higher doses at 40 and 80 Gy inhibited wheat growth and survival in comparison with the control, and reversely lower doses at 10 or 20 Gy stimulated wheat growth and survival. In conclusion, the above observations imply that a dose range of 20~40 Gy is likely promised for wheat mutation breeding.
基金financed by the INACH T_03-09 and INACH RG_02-13 projects of the Chilean Antarctic Institute
文摘Juncus bufonius L. （Juncaceae） is recognized by the US Department of Agriculture as a weed or invasive plant. Recently, we reported on 3i bufonius L. var. bufonius associated with the native vascular plants Deschampsia antarctica and Colobanthus quitensis in the environs of the Polish Arctowski Station, King George Island, in the Maritime Antarctica. In this study, we evaluated the developmental stages and morphological characteristics of J. bufonius plants cultivated in controlled conditions beginning with seeds obtained from plants of the Antarctic population. Germination occurred at 3 weeks and the germination percentage was low （22.5%）. The average time between the anthesis and seed formation was 7 weeks, similar to that reported for other species in the Juncaceae. According to data reported in the literature, Antarctic individuals were significantly smaller than their relatives growing in other conditions, except for the number of inflorescences. The morphological characteristics of a species vary according to its distribution and the edaphoclimatic environment where it occur; cosmopolitan plants shuch as J. bufonius also have reduced stature in cold environments. The low percentage germination may have been due to water availability in the plant chamber in which the study was conducted. J. bufonius is intolerant of dry environments, and once it suffers hydric stress its recovery is very low; thus, a moister environment could be beneficial. J. bufonius has become established amongst native vegetation near Arctowski Station and without careful control or eradication; it may have the potential to spread far beyond the site, as has happened with the alien grass Poa annua as human disturbance and climate warming increase.
基金financed by the German Research Foundation(DFG FOR 891/1,2,3)in a grant to H.B.(Br1698/10-3)the Sino-German Centre for Research Promotion in Beijing for travel grants and the participation in a summer school on scientific writing(GZ 785)support through the cooperation group“Linkages between plant diversity,microbial diversity and ecosystem functioning in subtropical forest”(GZ 986).
文摘Aims Although shrubs are an important component of forests,their role has not yet been considered in forest biodiversity experiments.In the biodiversity-ecosystem functioning(BEF)experiment with subtropical tree species in south-east China(BEF-China),we factorially combined tree with shrub species-diversity treatments.Here,we tested the hypotheses that shrub survival differs between the 10 planted shrub species,with lower survival rates of late-than early-successional species and is affected by environmental conditions,such as topography and top soil characteristics,as well as by biotic factors,represented by tree,shrub and herb layer characteristics.Methods We analyzed the survival of 42000 shrub individuals in 105 plots varying in tree and shrub species richness of the BEF-China project four years after planting.Shrub survival was analyzed with generalized linear mixed effects models at the level of individuals and with variance partitioning at the plot level.Random intercept and random slope models of different explanatory variables were compared with respect to the Bayesian Information Criterion(BIC).Important Findings Survival rates differed largely between the 10 shrub species,ranging from 26%to 91%for Ardisia crenata and Distylium buxifolium,respectively.Irrespective of species identity,single abiotic factors explained up to 5%of species survival,with a negative effect of altitude and slope inclination and a positive effect of the topsoil carbon to nitrogen ratio,which pointed to drought as the major cause of shrub mortality.In contrast,neither tree nor shrub richness affected shrub survival at this early stage of the experiment.Among the biotic predictors,only herb layer species richness and cover of the dominant fern species(Dicranopteris pedata)affected shrub survival.Overall,our models that included all variables could explain about 65%in shrub survival,with environmental variables being most influential,followed by shrub species identity,while tree species diversity(species richness and identity)and herb layer characteristics contributed much less.Thus,in this early stage of the experiment the biotic interactions among shrubs and between shrubs and trees have not yet overruled the impact of abiotic environmental factors.
