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A ferredoxin-like protein gene from sweet pepper enhances resistance against soft rot disease on calla lilies (12-14-2006) |
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| Calla lilies produce large, showy flowers spathes and are often grown both as ornamental plants and for cut flowers. Bacterial soft rot disease caused by Erwinia carotovora seriously harmed local calla lily industry. Teng-Yung Feng's group has isolated a ferredoxin-like protein (pflp) from sweet pepper, and found this peptide enhanced resistance against soft rot disease in transgenic Oncidium orchid (Planta 217: 60-65 2003; Transagenic Res 12: 329-336 2003. and tobacco (Physiol Mol Plant Path 64: 103-110 2004). So, they uploaded the pflp gene to calla lily via Agrobacterium-mediated transformation, and found that the transgenic calla lilies exhibited resistance to the soft rot disease caused by Erwinia (Plant Cell Report, in press). Click here to preview the online version of their paper. |
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| Iron Stress Responses in Roots (12-12-2006) |
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| Iron deficiency is a major nutritional disorder, affecting two billion people worldwide. Since plants are the major source of iron in most diets, dysfunctional food systems have striking effects on human health and is an enormous economical burden. This book uses an interdisciplinary approach to provide a comprehensive review on the status of iron nutrition in plants. The reviews summarize a variety of plant species and include both laboratory and field observations. A chapter on "Iron Stress Responses in Roots of Strategy I Plants" by Wolfgang Schmidt summarizes recent knowledge on iron homeostasis in model plants. |
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| Other topics covered in this book include: plants as a source of iron for animals and humans, iron translocation in plants, iron-stimulated activities that influence crop yield and fruit tree productivity, iron uptake by plants as influenced by microorganisms (i.e. free living soil microorganisms, symbiotic nitrogen-fixing and pathogenic bacteria), the role of plant hormones in iron transport, iron-metal competition in phytoremediation, processes in the root zone involving interactions between minerals and organic matter, the role of microbial siderophores in rhizospheric iron cycling, iron storage as phytoferritin, proteomic and metabolic studies associated with iron stress response, methods for studying iron metabolism including stable isotopes, and the correction of iron deficiency through the use of synthetic or natural chelates. |
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| Additionally, chapters summarize the use of Arabidopsis to enhance our understanding of the complex activities associated with iron metabolism in plants. This book should serve to stimulate continued research on iron in plant biology and rhizospheric environments. |
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| Early embryo development of a lady's slipper (11-13-2006) |
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| A detail structural study of embryo proper, suspensor and integument tissues in Paphiopedilum delenatii during seed development was reported from Mei-Chu Chung's group (Lee et al. 2006 Ann Bot. In press; online at www.aob.oxfordjournals.org). The vacuolated suspensor cells have morphological features of typical transfer cells and cuticular material has not been found in the suspensor cell wall. Their findings support the hypothesis that the suspensor is the main organ for nutrient uptake during the early developing stage of an orchid embryo. |
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