[Research on effects of chemotype and components of Perilla frutescens leaf volatile oil I: different phenological periods].

This experiment researched on three kinds of Perilla frutescens including the widespread PK, PA and rare PL chemotype. The Perilla samples were the mature leaves collected in nutrition, flowering and frutescence three different phenological periods, and at 7 am, 12 pm and 6 pm three day time. The volatile oil was extracted by steam distillationand analyzed by GC-MS, as a result, the three chemotype samples'volatile oil yield was between 0.08% and 0.96%; volatile oil yield of different growth period was as follow: nutrition>flowering>fructescence, and the volatile oil yield of nutrition period: PA type>PK type>PL type. Each chemotype was not affected by the growth and development, indicating that the chemotype is determined by genetic factors. Characteristic and main components of PA and PK type are relatively stable, and the characteristic components of PL type are significantly decreased with the growth. There are still a large number of upstream metabolism components, and the chemical type may have their primitiveness and changeability. The relative content of perillaldehyde, characteristic components of PA type, is basically decreased from morning to night, in all the period. The relative content of perillaketone, characteristic components of PK type, in nutrition and flowering period, when samples were collected at 12 noon is relatively higher than that at 7 am and 6 pm, and contrary to samples collected in frutescence period. The relative content of perillene, characteristic components of PL type, in nutrition and frutescence period are highest at 12 noon, while in flowering period is highest at 6 pm. According to the volatile oil yield and relative content of maincomponents, the best harvest time of PA type is in the morning of the nutrition period; the best harvest time of PK type is in the morning of all the period; and the best harvest time of PL type is at dusk of the nutrition period.

Biological features and quality comprehensive analysis of twelve germplasm resources of the genus Allium from Tibet.

Introduction: Allium is important vegetables and seasonings in China, Tibet is rich in unique resources of the genus Allium, but lacks development and utilization. Methods: We compared the biological features and comprehensively evaluating the quality of twelve germplasm resources of the genus Allium collected from Tibet. Results: The results revealed that nine germplasm resources were bolting and bloom normally except for SC015, SC019, and SC048, all twelve germplasm resources were able to vegetative growth. The individual differences in moisture, soluble sugar, and protein content among the twelve germplasm resources were relatively small, with pyruvic acid content ranging from 0.11 to 1.12 mg/g and a large variation coefficient. A total of 8 categories and 97 volatile compounds were detected in twelve germplasm resources, the majority possessed the highest proportions of aldehydes and organosulfur compounds, but there were certain differences between the different Allium species. Additionally, 11 to 16 types of free amino acids were present in all germplasm resources, proline exhibited the highest content. The total content of essential and non-essential amino acids in SC009 was the highest. Carbon (C) accounted for the largest proportion of all elements, and the contents of other mineral elements varied greatly among the different plants. Conclusion: In conclusion, combined with biological performance and comprehensive evaluation of quality, SC009 is the excellent germplasm resource suitable for growth and capable of reproduction with good quality. These results improved the exploitation and utilization of the genus Allium in Tibet, as well as provided germplasm resources for high-quality breeding of the genus Allium.

Small- and medium-sized rice fields identification in hilly areas using all available sentinel-1/2 images.

BACKGROUND: Mastering the spatial distribution and planting area of paddy can provide a scientific basis for monitoring rice production, and planning grain production layout. Previous remote sensing studies on paddy concentrated in the plain areas with large-sized fields, ignored the fact that rice is also widely planted in vast hilly regions. In addition, the land cover types here are diverse, rice fields are characterized by a scattered and fragmented distribution with small- or medium-sized, which pose difficulties for high-precision rice recognition. METHODS: In the paper, we proposed a solution based on Sentinel-1 SAR, Sentinel-2 MSI, DEM, and rice calendar data to focus on the rice fields identification in hilly areas. This solution mainly included the construction of rice feature dataset at four crucial phenological periods, the generation of rice standard spectral curve, and the proposal of spectral similarity algorithm for rice identification. RESULTS: The solution, integrating topographical and rice phenological characteristics, manifested its effectiveness with overall accuracy exceeding 0.85. Comparing the results with UAV, it presented that rice fields with an area exceeding 400 m2 (equivalent to 4 pixels) exhibited a recognition success rate of over 79%, which reached to 89% for fields exceeding 800 m2. CONCLUSIONS: The study illustrated that the proposed solution, integrating topographical and rice phenological characteristics, has the capability for charting various rice field sizes with fragmented and dispersed distribution. It also revealed that the synergy of Sentinel-1 SAR and Sentinel-2 MSI data significantly enhanced the recognition ability of rice paddy fields ranging from 400 m2 to 2000 m2.

Screening of Early Flowering Lotus (Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn.) Cultivars and Effects of Different Cultivars on Flowering Period.

Flowering time is an important trait that determines the breeding process of ornamental plants. The flowering period of lotus (Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn.) is mainly concentrated in June-August. During this period, the weather is hot and there are few tourists, which made many lotus scenic spots difficult to operate. People have a strong demand for early flowering lotus cultivars. In this paper, 30 lotus cultivars with high ornamental value were selected as materials and their phenological periods were observed for two consecutive years in 2019 and 2020. A number of cultivars with early flowering potential and stable flowering periods, such as 'Fenyanzi', 'Chengshanqiuyue', 'Xianghumingyue' and 'Wuzhilian', were screened by K-Means clustering method. The relationship between accumulated temperature and flowering time of 19 lotus cultivars at different growth stages was analyzed. It was found that lotus cultivars with early flowering traits could adapt well to the changes of early environmental temperature and were not affected by low temperature. On the other hand, by analyzing the relationship between different traits and flowering time of three typical cultivars, such as rhizome weight, phenological period, etc., it shows that the nutrient content of the rhizome and the early morphology of plants will affect the flowering time. These results provide a reference for the formation of a systematic lotus early flowering cultivar breeding mechanism and the establishment of a perfect flowering regulation technology system, which can further improve the ornamental value of lotus and promote industrial development.

Uncovering the complex regulatory network of spring bud sprouting in tea plants: insights from metabolic, hormonal, and oxidative stress pathways.

The sprouting process of tea buds is an essential determinant of tea quality and taste, thus profoundly impacting the tea industry. Buds spring sprouting is also a crucial biological process adapting to external environment for tea plants and regulated by complex transcriptional and metabolic networks. This study aimed to investigate the molecular basis of bud sprouting in tea plants firstly based on the comparisons of metabolic and transcriptional profiles of buds at different developmental stages. Results notably highlighted several essential processes involved in bud sprouting regulation, including the interaction of plant hormones, glucose metabolism, and reactive oxygen species scavenging. Particularly prior to bud sprouting, the accumulation of soluble sugar reserves and moderate oxidative stress may have served as crucial components facilitating the transition from dormancy to active growth in buds. Following the onset of sprouting, zeatin served as the central component in a multifaceted regulatory mechanism of plant hormones that activates a range of growth-related factors, ultimately leading to the promotion of bud growth. This process was accompanied by significant carbohydrate consumption. Moreover, related key genes and metabolites were further verified during the entire overwintering bud development or sprouting processes. A schematic diagram involving the regulatory mechanism of bud sprouting was ultimately proposed, which provides fundamental insights into the complex interactions involved in tea buds.

[Variations of δ13C in water-soluble compounds during spring phenology of typical tree species in the warm temperate zone]. / æš–æ¸©å¸¦å ¸åž‹æ ‘ç§æ˜¥å­£ç‰©å€™æœŸæ°´æº¶æ€§åŒ–åˆç‰©Î´13C变化规律.

In this study, we examined the regularity of phenological rhythmical change of plant water-soluble compound δ13C (δ13Cwsc) in spring for two typical tree species in the warm temperate zone of China, Pinus tabuliformis and Robinia pseudoacacia. The δ13Cwsc in each organ of those two species in the spring phenological period were measured to explore the relationship between δ13Cwsc and related environmental factors. The results showed that there were significant differences in δ13Cwsc values of each organ between P. tabuliformis and R. pseudoacacia, with higher δ13Cwsc(-25.03‰±0.01‰) in the new shoot of P. tabuliformis. The δ13Cwsc value in the non-photosynthetic organs were 0.83‰-1.8‰ higher than that in the photosynthetic organs, while the δ13Cwsc value in the aboveground part was generally lower than that in the underground part. As spring progressing, different carbon storage strategies were found between two species. When the terminal bud of P. tabuliformis opened, the carbon was obtained from the proximal old leaves. At the beginning of leaf development, photosynthetic products accumulated by old leaves could not meet the growth requirements for new leaves and roots, with 90% of which depending on the carbon reserve in branches and stems. When full leaf having developed, the photosynthetic function of both new and old leaves recovered and the carbon consumed by branches and stems was gradually replenished. For R. pseudoacacia, at the beginning of leaf bud opening and leaf spreading, branches were the main carbon source for new leaves and roots. When leaves were fully unfolded, mature leaves with high capacity of carbon sequestration became the primary carbon source. Results of principal component analysis showed that temperature during observation period, ≥10 ℃ accumulated temperature, sunshine duration and solar radiation were the main factors influencing δ13Cwsc, which could explained 86.3% of the total variation. The δ13Cwsc values of both species was negatively correlated with temperature and relative humidity, but positively correlated with the difference of saturated water pressure, ≥10 ℃ accumulated temperature and sunshine duration. The main environmental factors affecting plant δ13Cwsc varied during the phenological process. Our results could provide a reference for more accurate estimation of spring organ carbon distribution pattern of regional typical tree species, and also a theoretical basis for formulating scientific and reasonable forest management strategy.

Effects of Simulated Herbivory on the Vegetative Reproduction and Compensatory Growth of Hordeum brevisubulatum at Different Ontogenic Stages.

The response of plant vegetative reproduction and compensatory growth to herbivory has been widely discussed in biological and ecological research. Most previous research has supported the idea that both vegetative reproduction and compensatory growth are affected by their ontogenic stage. However, in many studies, the effects of foraging at different ontogenic stages was often confounded with the effects of foraging at different phenological periods for perennials. Our experiment was conducted in a natural meadow with a perennial grass, Hordeum brevisubulatum, and four ontogenic stages were chosen as our experimental objects. Three different clipping intensities during three phenological periods were implemented to explore the effects of simulating animal foraging on vegetative reproduction and compensatory plant growth. The results indicated that there were significant effects of ontogenic stage, phenological period, and clipping intensity on vegetative reproduction and compensatory growth. Moderate clipping intensities significantly increased the number of vegetative tillers, the total number of juvenile tillers and buds, and the aboveground biomass at early phenological periods for individuals at early ontogenic stages. Our results suggested that moderate clipping intensities could induce only an over-compensation response in perennial grasses at both the early ontogenic stage and phenological period, and the ability of compensatory growth gradually decreased with the progression of the ontogenic stage. This is of great significance to the primary production of grasslands subjected to herbivory.

Psycho-Physiological Effects of a Peony-Viewing Program on Middle-Aged and Elderly Individuals at Different Phenological Stages.

To address the question of whether the behavior of humans to view different phenological peony flowers has various effects on their physical and mental parameters, we investigated psycho-physiological responses of 74 participants (61.3 ± 10.78 years old) to environments of pre- and post-viewing tree peonies at four stages, including the exhibition leaf stage (ELS), initial bloom stage (IBS), full bloom stage (FBS), and terminal bloom stage (TBS). Physiological factors were examined using systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), heart rate (HR), fingertip pulse (FP), blood oxygen saturation (SpO2), and psychological evaluation, which was carried out using the Profile of Mood States (POMS) and State⁻Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI). The results indicated that the SBP, DBP, HR, and FP levels of participants were significantly reduced after viewing tree peonies, whereas no remarkable alterations in SpO2 were found. The POMS scores of anger⁻hostility (A⁻H), fatigue⁻inertia (F⁻I), tension⁻anxiety (T⁻A), confusion⁻bewilderment (C⁻B), and depression⁻dejection (D⁻D) were significantly lower, but of vigor⁻activity (V⁻A) was higher post-viewing than pre-viewing. Furthermore, participants exhibited markedly decreased anxiety levels according to the STAI. Notably, the changes in measurement indices were more pronounced at the FBS. Our studies demonstrated that a short peony-viewing program, especially at the FBS with completely opened and large tree peony flowers, would be a promising therapeutic method for improving physiological functions as well as an effective psychological relaxation strategy for middle-aged and elderly individuals.

Produção do girassol e teor de óleo nos aquênios em função da temperatura do ar, precipitação pluvial e radiação solar / Yield of sunflower and oil seed content as a function of air temperature, rainfall and solar radiation

O presente estudo teve o objetivo de avaliar o efeito da temperatura do ar, precipitação pluvial e radiação solar, ocorridos em cada fase fenológica da cultura do girassol, na produção de aquênios, no teor de óleo dos aquênios e na produção de óleo do girassol. Foram conduzidos dez experimentos em intervalos de 20 dias, com início em 30/07/2007 e término em 28/01/2008. Cada experimento constituiu uma época de semeadura. Para verificar a normalidade dos erros e homogeneidade das variâncias, inicialmente, realizou-se uma análise individual por experimento para, em seguida, realizar análise conjunta. O delineamento experimental utilizado foi o de blocos ao acaso com quatro tratamentos (cultivares) e quatro repetições, em cada época de semeadura. Houve interação entre épocas de semeadura e cultivares para todas as variáveis estudadas. Foram feitas análises de correlação entre as variáveis meteorológicas e as de produção do girassol. A produção de aquênios, teor de óleo e produção de óleo nas cultivares de girassol foram mais elevados quando ocorreram temperaturas mais baixas na fase vegetativa, maiores precipitações pluviais na floração e maiores índices de radiação solar na fase vegetativa e de enchimento de aquênios.

The objective of this research was to evaluate the effect of air temperature, rainfall and solar radiation occurring during each phonological phase of the sunflower crop, on yield of achenes, on oil content of achenes and on oil yield in sunflower. Ten experiments were carried out at Ponta Grossa, PR, Brazil, with intervals of 20 days, beginning on July 30, 2007 and finishing on January 28, 2008. Each sowing time constituted an experiment. The experiments were arranged in a randomized complete block design, with four treatments (cultivars) and four replicates. It was performed the analysis of variance of each experiment separately and, after that, the joint analysis of all experiments. There was interaction between sowing date and cultivars for all the studied variables. Correlation analysis between meteorological and yield variables of sunflower were performed. The achene yield, oil content and oil yield in sunflower cultivars were higher when there were lower temperatures in the vegetative phase, higher rainfall at flowering and higher levels of radiation in the vegetative and filling of achenes phase.