Genetics of biochemical attributes regulating morpho-physiology of upland cotton under high temperature conditions

Background Cotton is a strategically important fibre crop for global textile industry.It profoundly impacts several countries’industrial and agricultural sectors.Sustainable cotton production is continuously threatened by the unpre-dictable changes in climate,specifically high temperatures.Breeding heat-tolerant,high-yielding cotton cultivars with wide adaptability to be grown in the regions with rising temperatures is one of the primary objectives of modern cotton breeding programmes.Therefore,the main objective of the current study is to figure out the effective breed-ing approach to imparting heat tolerance as well as the judicious utilization of commercially significant and stress-tolerant attributes in cotton breeding.Initially,the two most notable heat-susceptible(FH-115 and NIAB Kiran)and tolerant(IUB-13 and GH-Mubarak)cotton cultivars were spotted to develop filial and backcross populations to accom-plish the preceding study objectives.The heat tolerant cultivars were screened on the basis of various morphological(seed cotton yield per plant,ginning turnout percentage),physiological(pollen viability,cell membrane thermostabil-ity)and biochemical(peroxidase activity,proline content,hydrogen peroxide content)parameters.Results The results clearly exhibited that heat stress consequently had a detrimental impact on every studied plant trait,as revealed by the ability of crossing and their backcross populations to tolerate high temperatures.However,when considering overall yield,biochemical,and physiological traits,the IUB-13×FH-115 cross went over particularly well at both normal and high temperature conditions.Moreover,overall seed cotton yield per plant exhibited a posi-tive correlation with both pollen viability and antioxidant levels(POD activity and proline content).Conclusions Selection from segregation population and criteria involving pollen viability and antioxidant levels concluded to be an effective strategy for the screening of heat-tolerant cotton germplasms.Therefore,understanding acquired from this study can assist breeders identifying traits that should be prioritized in order to develop climate resilient cotton cultivars.

Comparative analysis of SIMILAR to RCD ONE(SRO)family from tetraploid cotton species and their diploid progenitors depict their significance in cotton growth and development

Background SRO(Similar to RCD1)genes family is largely recognized for their importance in the growth,develop-ment,and in responding to environmental stresses.However,genome-wide identification and functional characteri-zation of SRO genes from cotton species have not been reported so far.Results A total of 36 SRO genes were identified from four cotton species.Phylogenetic analysis divided these genes into three groups with distinct structure.Syntenic and chromosomal distribution analysis indicated uneven distribu-tion of GaSRO,GrSRO,GhSRO,and GbSRO genes on A2,D5 genomes,Gh-At,Gh-Dt,Gb-At,and Gb-Dt subgenomes,respectively.Gene duplication analysis revealed the presence of six duplicated gene pairs among GhSRO genes.In promoter analysis,several elements responsive to the growth,development and hormones were found in GhSRO genes,implying gene induction during cotton growth and development.Several miRNAs responsive to plant growth and abiotic stress were predicted to target 12 GhSRO genes.Organ-specific expression profiling demonstrated the roles of GhSRO genes in one or more tissues.In addition,specific expression pattern of some GhSRO genes dur-ing ovule development depicted their involvement in these developmental processes.Conclusion The data presented in this report laid a foundation for understanding the classification and functions of SRO genes in cotton.

Enhancing cotton resilience to challenging climates through genetic modifications

Cotton is one of the most important fiber crops that plays a vital role in the textile industry.Its production has been unstable over the years due to climate change induced biotic stresses such as insects,diseases,and weeds,as well as abiotic stresses including drought,salinity,heat,and cold.Traditional breeding methods have been used to breed climate resilient cotton,but it requires a considerable amount of time to enhance crop tolerance to insect pests and changing climatic conditions.A promising strategy for improving tolerance against these stresses is genetic engineering.This review article discusses the role of genetic engineering in cotton improvement.The essential concepts and techniques include genome editing via clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats(CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein 9(CRISPR-Cas9),overexpression of target genes,downregulation using RNA interference(RNAi),and virus-induced gene silencing(VIGS).Notably,the Agrobacterium-mediated transformation has made significant contributions to using these techniques for obtaining stable transgenic plants.

Responses of some landscape trees to the drought and high temperature events during 2006 and 2007 in Yamaguchi, Japan

Extreme weather events were analyzed based on the meteorological data from the year of 1967 to 2007 for Yamaguchi, Japan. The responses from landscape trees were also investigated mainly by the analysis of image pixel and spectral reflectance, Results show that after the dry, hot and windy summer in 2007, many landscape trees in Yamaguchi City tended to respond the extreme weather events by re- ducing their leaf surface area and receiving less radiation energy. Premature leaf discoloration or defoliation appeared on some landscape tree species and leaf necrosis occurred on tip and margin of many Kousa dogwood （Comus kousa） trees at unfavorable sites. Described by image pixel analysis method, the leaf necrotic area percentage （LNAP） of sampled dogwood trees averaged 41.6% and the sampled Sasanqua camellia （Camelia sasanqua） tree also showed fewer flowers in flower season of 2007 than that in 2006. By differential analysis of partial discolored crown, it presented a logistic differential equation of crown color for sweet gum （Liquidambar styraciflua） trees. It suggested that the persistent higher temperature and lower precipitation could be injurious to the sensitive landscape trees at poor sites, even in relative humid area like Yamaguchi.

Measuring leaf necrosis and chlorosis of bamboo induced by typhoon 0613 with RGB image analysis

Symptoms of leaf necrosis or chlorosis of bamboo induced by Typhoon 0613 （T0613） were analyzed using RGB image analysis in Yamaguchi city, Japan. Results showed a closely positive relationship between Green/Red （G/R） value for indoor taking images of bam- boo individual leaves and chlorophyll meter value （SPAD） with regression coefficient of 0.961. The relation between G/R value of room taking images and Necrotic Area Percentage （NAP） for bamboo individual leaves showed an inverse logistic function relationship, with the correlated coefficient equaling to 0.958. Both leaf chlorosis and necrosis can be quantitatively estimated by RGB image analysis. Moreover, the variance of Green/Luminance （G/L） value for the same leaf was less than that of G/R for images taken in the conditions with large light difference, especially for green leaves. G/L value also exhibited a closer relationship with SPAD value of leaves with chlorosis than that of G/R values at the same condition. The relationship between G/L value for bamboo canopies and the Distance from Coastline （DC） was also closer than that of the G/R value for the images taken at field sites with big light difference.

Review of oxidative stress and antioxidative defense mechanisms in Gossypium hirsutum L.in response to extreme abiotic conditions

Oxidative stress occurs when crop plants are exposed to extreme abiotic conditions that lead to the excessive production and accumulation of reactive oxygen species(ROS).Those extreme abiotic conditions or stresses include drought,high temperature,heavy metals,salinity,and ultraviolet radiation,and they cause yield and quality losses in crops.ROS are highly reactive species found in nature that can attack plant organelles,metabolites,and molecules by interrupting various metabolic pathways until cell death occurs.Plants have evolved defense mechanisms for the production of antioxidants to detoxify the ROS and to protect the plant against oxidative damage.Modern researches in crop plants revealed that low levels of ROS act as a signal which induces tolerance to environmental extremes by altering the expression of defensive genes.In this review,we summarized the processes involved in ROS production in response to several types of abiotic stress in cotton plants.Furthermore,we discussed the achievements in the understanding and improving oxidative stress tolerance in cotton in recent years.Researches related to plant oxidative stresses have shown excellent potential for the development of stress-tolerant crops.

Liquefaction Susceptibility of Soils With Clay Particles from Earthquake-induced Landslides

The main reason for earthquake-induced landslides is liquefaction of soil,a process considered to occur mostly in sandy soils.Liquefaction which occurs in clayey soils has also been reported and proven in the recent liters- ture,but liquefaction in clayey soils still remains unclear and there are many questions that need to be addressed.In order to address these questions,an depth study on the liquefaction potential of clayey soils was conducted on the ba- sis of field investigation and a series of laboratory tests on the samples collected from the sliding surface of the land- slides.The liquefaction potential of the'soils was studied by means of undrained cyclic ring-shear tests.Research re- sults show that the liquefaction potential of sandy soils is higher than that of clayey soils given the same void ratio; the soil resistance to liquefaction rises with an increase in plasticity for clayey soils;relation between plasticity index and the liquefaction potential of soil can be used in practical application to estimate the liquefaction potential of

Classification Methods Based on Pattern Discrimination Models for Web-Based Diagnosis of Rice Diseases

Two classification and identification methods based on pattern discrimination models and the majority-vote technique were investigated for implementing a World Wide Web-based system for the identification of rice diseases. The experiment was carried out using color and shape patterns in 425 images of three rice diseases, which were classified into four classes： two classes of leaf blast, and one class each of sheath blight and brown spot. A method consisting of two discrimination steps involving application of multiple discrimination models of a support vector machine gave the best result because of its capacity to evaluate the similarity of disease types. This accuracy of the method was 88% for leaf blast （A-type）, 94% for sheath blight, and 80% for leaf blast （B-type） and brown spot; on average, the accuracy of this method was 5% greater than that of the other method when three classes were used in the model. Although the accuracy of both methods was inadequate, the results of this study show that it is possible to estimate the least number of possible or similar diseases from a large number of diseases. Therefore, we conclude that there is merit in grouping classes into subgroups rather than attempting to discriminate between all classes simultaneously and that these methods are effective in identifying diseases for web-based diagnosis.

Effects of Tinospora tuberculata leaf methanol extract on seedling growth of rice and associated weed species in hydroponic culture

The study was conducted to evaluate the responses of rice and rice weed seedlings （barnyardgrass and weedy rice） at the three-leaf stage toTinospora tuberculata leaf methanol extract （3.12, 6.25 and 12.5 g L–1） under hydroponic culture. It shows that the leaf methanol extract had various degrees effects depending on target plant species and each tested index （biomass, root length, shoot length, transpiration volume, chlorophyla, chlorophylb and carotenoid contents）. The effec-tive concentration of the leaf extract capable of reducing 50% of rice growth was higher than those of target weed species. Moreover, the root length was more tolerant to leaf methanol extract in comparison to the other plant parameters measured. A greater reduction was observed in chlorophyla content compared to chlorophylb and carotenoid. The results revealed that the reduction of transpiration volume closely coincided with the magnitude of growth inhibition of tested plants. Ultra-fast liquid chromatography analysis revealed 11 of 32 peaks in chemical proifle, including benzoic acid, caffeic acid, chlorogenic acid, isoorientin, isovitexin, orientin,p-anisic acid, syringic acid,trans-cinnamic acid,trans-ferulic acid, and vitexin have the same retention time with those peaks of the extract. The amount of compounds was present in the range of between 4817 and 115.5 mg kg–1 dry weight （DW）. The concentration-response bioassay of al 11 individual compounds and their equimolar mixture against the seeds of barnyardgrass revealed their contribution in the alelopahic activity ofT. tuberculata leaf extract. The examined compounds and their combination exhibited various degrees of growth inhibitory effects on the early growth of barnyardgrass. Therefore, the speciifc number, concentration, combination and inhibitory activity of bioactive compounds leads to alelopathy activity ofT. tuberculata leaves which could be employable directly as a natural herbicide and its growth inhibitor compounds can be used as a template for producing new herbicides.

Heritability and correlation analysis of morphological and yield traits in genetically modified cotton

Background:Cotton is known for fiber extraction and it is grown in tropical and sub-tropical areas of the world due to having hot weather.Cotton crop has a significant role in GDP of Pakistan.Therefore,the two-years research was conducted to estimate heritability and association among various yield contributing parameters of cotton,i.e.,plant height,number of bolls per plant,number of sympodial branches per plant,seed cotton yield,boll weight,seed index,ginning outturn(GOT),fiber length,fiber strength,and fiber fineness.Results:Association analysis revealed that seed cotton yield had a significant positive correlation with plant height,number of bolls per plant,number of sympodial branches per plant,GOT,staple length and fiber strength.Staple length and fiber strength were negatively linked with each other.Estimates of heritability were high for all of the traits except the number of sympodial branches per plant and boll weight.Conclusion:The parent IUB-222 was found to be the best for plant height,the number of bolls per plant,boll weight,GOT,seed cotton yield,and seed index.The genotypes namely,NIAB-414 and VH-367 were identified as the best parents for fiber length,strength,and fineness.Among the crosses NIAB-414×IUB-222 was the best for the number of bolls per plant,seed index,seed cotton yield and fiber fineness,whereas,the cross of NIAB-414×CIM-632 was good for plant height.The combination of A555×CIM-632 was the best for the number of sympodial branches per plant,boll weight,fiber length,and strength,and VH-367×CIM-632 proved the best for GOT.

Effect of Polysaccharides Including Elicitors on Organogenesis in Protocorm-like Body （PLB） of Cymbidium insigne in vitro

Among orchids, Cymbidiums have got a very high demand in both cut flower and pot plant trade. In the present study the effect of some polysaccharides such as chitosan and NAG （n-acetyl-glucosamine） on organogenesis in protocorm-like-bodies （PLBs） of C. insigne was studied. Synthetic phytohormones such as BA and TDZ （cytokinins） and NAA （auxin） were used for comparison. PLBs of C. insigne were explanted on modified Murashige and Skoog medium supplemented with the single addition of chitosan and NAG, and the combination of BA （benzyladenine） and NAA （1-naphthaleneacetic acid） also with the combination of NAA and TDZ （thidiazuron） among different concentrations. Combination treatments of auxin and cytokinins, the highest percentage of PLBs formation was 73% and shoot formation was 67% when cultured on the medium supplemented with 1.0 mg L1 BA without NAA. Combination treatment of NAA and TDZ, the PLBs formation was 90% and shoot formation was 60% obtained from medium supplemented with 1.0 mg Lt of NAA ＋ 0.1 mg L^-1 TDZ. Single addition of chitosan and NAG with modified MS medium was more effective for new PLBs and shoot formation. The highest percentage of PLBs formation was 87% and shoot formation was 80% obtained from the medium supplemented with 0.1 mg L^-1 chitosan. On the other hand, the PLBs formation rate reached 93% and shoot formation rate was 87% obtained from the medium supplemented with 0.01 mg L^-1 NAG. Application of polysaccharides to in vitro orchid PLBs allows developing new PLBs and shoot to form plantlet without synthetic phytohormones.

Cold tolerance of Acacia karroo and A.nilotica,two tree species from South Africa,in Beijing

Fynbos plant communities developed under geographic and climatic conditions unique to South Africa. Acacia karroo is the most widespread tree species, well known for its drought tolerance. A. nilotica exudes a good quality gum which is edible and suitable for confectionery. The two species have been introduced to China but little is known about their adaptability under the new environmental conditions. For our present study, the growth potential and physiological and biochemical parameters of the two spe- cies in response to cold stress were investigated. The results, measured as seed qualities （purity, thousand seed weights, germination, etc.） show differences between A. karroo and A. nilotica. The seed germination rate was between 10% and 60%. Seedlings were es- tablished in fields, pots and plugs. Those in the field grew well during the growing season but completely died in the winter. Those in pots or plugs were moved to and managed in the greenhouse. The plants were green in winter. The electrical conductivity of cells, the contents of water soluble sugars, proteins, malondialdehyde （MDA） increased during eight hours of low temperature treatment at 4℃ The activities of superoxide dismutase （SOD）, peroxidase （POD） and catalase （CAT） decreased markedly during the eight hours of 4℃ treatment. We conclude that A. karroo and A. nilotica have little adaptability to the cold winter weather and cannot survive in the outdoors in the Beijing area, but could grow well indoors as ornamentals.

Drought tolerance of Acacia karroo,a native tree species to South Africa,in Beijing

Acacia karroo is an indigenous, strong drought-tolerant and widely planted tree in South Africa. In order to match the plant with its adaptation to forest sites in China, it is important to know the drought-tolerance of this species under Chinese forest site con- ditions. Our study was carried out in cinnamon soils in Beijing and with Platycladus orientalis, the most drought-tolerant tree in Bei- j ing, as control. Physiological parameters of young plants of the trees were measured and divided into three groups in response to soil drying. The first group included root activity, ABA content in roots and peroxidase （POD） activity in leaves. Their values changed similarly to those of P. orientalis and dramatically increased to maximum values when the soil water content （SWC） decreased from its normal level of 20% to 7.6% where the three indices decreased dramatically when SWC was reduced further from 7.6%. The sec- ond group of parameters included the contents of proline, soluble protein and malondialdehyde （MDA）. Their values showed greater variation than those ofP. orientalis and significantly increased when SWC decreased from 20% in response to soil drying. However, the proline and soluble protein contents fluctuated in A. karroo at a lower level than those in P. orientalis. In contrast, the content of MDA in A. karroo was much higher than that in P. orientalis which almost did not increase in the drying soil. The third group of parameters consisted of soluble sugar, superoxide dismutase （SOD） and catalase （CAT）. These parameters showed greater diversity and fluctuations among the three varieties ofA. karroo compared with the control in response to soil drying. These results suggest that A. karroo is characterized as a strong, drought tolerant species in most of physiological parameters but weaker than P orientalis in membrane lipid antioxidation.

Phenolics, fatty acids composition and biological activities of various extracts and fractions of Malaysian Aaptos aaptos

Objective: To investigate phenolics, fatty acids composition and biological activities of various extracts and fractions of Malaysian Aaptos aaptos. Methods: Fatty acid methyl ester was analyzed by gas chromatography-flame ionization detector. Antioxidant activity was determined using 2,2-diphenyl-picrylhydrazyl radical scavenging assay and total phenolics content by Folin-Ciocalteu procedure. Vero cells viability was evaluated using methyl thiazole tetrazolium and the inactivation of herpes simplex virus type 1 by neutral red uptake assay. p-Hydroxybenzamide isolated by column chromatography was characterized by utilizing nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and electron impact mass spectrometry. Results: The chloroform, ethyl acetate and methanol extracts of Aaptos aaptos produced higher portions of straight-chain saturated fatty acid, while hexane extract mainly consisted of unsaturated fatty acid. The five majors of fatty acid methyl ester were identified as behenic acid, cis-10-heptadecenoic acid and cis-10-pentadecenoic acids, palmitic acid and tricosanoic acid. In addition, among all organic extracts, chloroform extract inactivated herpes simplex virus type 1 while exhibited weak cytotoxic activity against normal Vero cells and also exhibited strong cytotoxic activity on HL-60, MCF-7, K562, CEM-SS and WEHI-3 B cells. A phenolic compound, p-hydroxybenzamide was also isolated from the sponge. Conclusions: Aaptos aaptos could be a source to derive the potential antiviral and anticancer agents. However, further studies are needed to determine the mechanism involved in the process.

Inhibitive effects of some treatments on the browning rate during the in vitro culture of Acacia karroo Hayne

Acacia karroo Hayne is an arbor species widely distributed in South Africa with the characteristics of fast growth and drought resistance. The species was introduced to China recently. In vitro culture is an effective method to rapidly produce plants and a strategy to minimize somaclonal variation among regenerated plants. Browning, however, is a problem in establishing the in vitro culture system. The present study diminished the problem by selecting explants, using different browning inhibitors and chilling treatment. Results showed that the use of embryos as explants reduced the browning ratio to 46.7%, whilst stem segment explants were browned up to 56.7%. The adventitious buds were successfully induced in the modified tissue culture medium supplemented with 5.0 mg·L^-1 6-BA and 0.1 mg·L^-1 NAA. The proliferation coefficient of adventitious buds is 2.8.

Decay of Rhizophora apiculata(Blume)and Xylocarpus granatum(Koenig)detrital sources in the Sarawak Mangrove,Malaysia

Decaying mangrove detritus plays a significant role in nutrient cycling and fueling in both the forests and aquatic habitats where the detritus stems from estuarine and coastal food webs.Detrital decay rates partly depend on the type of detritus,but most studies have thus far focused on leaf litter decay and decomposition,whereas other detrital sources(except for roots)have largely been ignored.We compare the decay rates of Rhizophora apiculata and Xylocarpus granatum non-leafy detritus(flowers,propagules,stipules,and twigs)with mangrove leaf litter in field studies,using litter bags during the dry and the wet seasons in the tropical mangrove forest of Sibuti,Sarawak,Malaysia.We observed higher microbial decay rates of stipules,flowers,propagules,and twigs for both the R.apiculata and X.granatumduring the wet months.By contrast,leaf decay rates were higher during the dry months.Decay rates depended on the lignin content of the detrital sources of both species,both during dry and wet months.Accordingly,the half-life(T0.5)and 95%lifespan(T0.95)of non-leaf materials(flowers,propagules,stipules and twigs)for both species were remarkably longer than those of leaf litter.Slowly decaying non-leafy detritus may play a significant role in nutrient and carbon cycling over longer time,when leaf litter is either being decomposing rapidly and/or being washed away by tidal flush and river runoff.Hence,non-leafy(flowers,propagules,stipules and twigs)detritus should be taken into account when budgeting organic matter turnover in mangroves.

Genome editing in cotton:challenges and opportunities

Cotton has enormous economic potential providing high-quality protein,oil,and fibre.A large increase in cotton output is necessary due to the world’s changing climate and constantly expanding human population.In the past,conventional breeding techniques were used to introduce genes into superior cotton cultivars to increase production and to improve quality.The disadvantages of traditional breeding techniques are their time-consuming,reliance on genetic differences that are already present,and considerable backcrossing.To accomplish goals in a short amount of time,contemporary plant breeding techniques,in particular modern genome editing technologies(GETs),can be used.Numerous crop improvement initiatives have made use of GETs,such as zinc-finger nucleases,transcription-activator-like effector nucleases,clustered regularly interspaced palindromic repeats(CRISPR),and CRISPR-associated proteins systems(CRISPR/Cas)-based technologies.The CRISPR/Cas system has a lot of potential because it combines three qualities that other GETs lack:simplicity,competence,and adaptability.The CRISPR/Cas mechanism can be used to improve cotton tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses,alter gene expression,and stack genes for critical features with little possibility of segregation.The transgene clean strategy improves CRISPR acceptability addressing regulatory issues associated with the genetically modified organisms(GMOs).The research opportunities for using the CRISPR/Cas system to address biotic and abiotic stresses,fibre quality,plant architecture and blooming,epigenetic changes,and gene stacking for commercially significant traits are highlighted in this article.Furthermore,challenges to use of CRISPR technology in cotton and its potential for the future are covered in detail.

Isolation,characterization and identification of plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria from the rhizosphere of Acacia mangium at sandy BRIS soil

This study has isolated,characterized,and identified potential plant growthpromoting rhizobacteria(PGPR)with multiple PGP characteristics(N_(2)-fixation,P-and K-solubilization,IAA,and siderophores production)from the rhizosphere BRIS soil of Acacia mangium.A total of 24 pure colonies were isolated and only 8 colonies were selected for further evaluation of the growth rate in 5%organic molasses medium supplemented with 2%KNO_(3).Based on the biochemical,potential PGP characteristics and growth performance,3 superior PGPR strains were selected and identified as Paraburkholderia unamae(UA1),Bacillus amyloliquefaciens(UA6),and Enterobacter asburiae(UAA2)by partial sequencing of the 16S rRNA gene.The selected bacterial strains either in single or mixed(UA1+UA6+UAA2)cultures have shown a significant biochemical estimation of the PGP characteristics.Each strain has its own PGPR traits superiority with UA1 showing the best PGP characteristic followed by UA6 and UAA2.The use of mixed bacterial strains was beneficial as it showed the best performance in N_(2)-fixation,siderophores production,and significant effect on corn phenology,growth and yield compared to using a single strain.These types of microbes showed potential to be used as biofertilizer and should be exploited more.

Rice Heavy Metal P-type ATPase OsHMA6 Is Likely a Copper Efflux Protein

P1B-type heavy metal ATPases(HMAs)are transmembrane metal-transporting proteins that play a key role in metal homeostasis.We here reported the characterization of rice OsHMA6,a member of the P1B-type ATPase family.Phylogenetic tree analysis showed that OsHMA6 belonged to the Cu/Ag subgroup of the HMA family and had a close evolutionary relationship with OsHMA9.Amino acid sequence alignment showed 82.78%consistency between OsHMA6 and OsHMA9.OsHMA6 expressed in all organs at different growth stages,including spikelet,and abundant in leaf blades,however,OsHMA9 most strongly expressed in roots,but very low in spikelet.Excessive Cu^2+can up-regulate the expression of OsHMA6 and OsHMA9 in rice seedlings.The heterologous expression in yeast showed that OsHMA6 can significantly rescue the growth of yeast strain CM52 when supplied with 3 or 6 mmol/L Cu^2+.Compared with the empty vector pYES2,the Cu concentration in OsHMA6-pYES2 decreased by 23.4%and 30.3%under 3 or 6 mmol/L Cu2+,respectively.Subcellular localization revealed that OsHMA6 was located in the plasma membrane.These results suggested that OsHMA6,similar to OsHMA9,is likely a copper efflux protein located in the plasma membrane.

Study on the Topographic Effect on Soil Erosion Using RUSLE Model for Small Size Watershed

Soil erosion and subsequent sedimentation have caused serious environmental and soil degradation problems in Okinawa Prefecture,Japan.This research aims at evaluating an availability of the Revised Universal Soil loss Equation（RUSLE） for predicting the range of soil loss values for the Nago watershed in Okinawa.It shows that climatic conditions substantially influence the rainfall amount as a function of the I30 of the rainfall event.The rate of soil loss is higher with increasing in altitude due to greater slope steepness.By rainfall data analysis,it is concluded that the large difference in soil loss between 2000 and 2001 was due to concentrated heavy rainfall in the rainy season or the typhoon season.