OBJECTIVETo study the germination property of the seeds of Achyranthes bidentata from different producing area, providing foundation for choosing the better seed resources.

METHODThe germination rate, germination energy, germination index, vigor and the characteristics of the seeds of A. bidentata from different producing area were compared, and the relative electric conductivity was measured. The characteristics of the seed were recorded through the Anymicro DSS YT-5M microscope digital camera, and the differences were analyzed.

RESULTSeed from Henan Boai and Hebei Anguo showed the better germination rate, germination energy, germination index and vigor.

CONCLUSIONThe seeds from both Henan Boai and Hebei Anguo showed the better quality.

Achyranthes ; metabolism ; physiology ; China ; Geography ; Germination ; physiology ; Seeds ; metabolism ; physiology

A field experiment was conducted to measure the physiological characteristics, yield, active ingredient content, and other indicators of Carthamus tinctorius leaves undergoing 13 sowing date treatments. The principal component analysis(PCA) and redundancy analysis were used to analyze the correlation between these indicators to explore the effect of sowing date on the yield and active ingredient content of C. tinctorius in Liupanshan of Ningxia. The results illustrated that the early sowing in autumn and spring had significant effects on leaf photosynthetic parameters, SPAD value, antioxidant enzyme activity, nitrogen metabolism enzyme activity, filament yield, grain yield, and hydroxy safflower yellow A(HYSA) of C. tinctorius. Sowing in mid-November and late March had the best effect. Leaf transpiration rate, stomatal conductance, nitrate reductase, nitrite reductase, glutamine synthetase, and glutamate synthase increased by 44.9%, 52.4%, 15.9%, 60.8%, 10.3%, and 38.3%, respectively. The activities of superoxide dismutase, peroxidase, and catalase decreased by 10.8%, 4.1%, and 20.9%, respectively. The improvement of photosynthetic physiological characteristics promoted the dry matter accumulation and reproductive growth of C. tinctorius. The yield of filaments and seeds increased by 15.5% and 11.7%, and the yield of HYSA and kaempferol increased by 17.9% and 20.0%. In short, the suitable sowing date can promote the growth and development of C. tinctorius in Liupanshan of Ningxia, and significantly improve the yield and quality, which is conducive to the high quality and efficient production of C. tinctorius.
Carthamus tinctorius ; Seeds ; Peroxidase/metabolism* ; Plant Leaves/metabolism* ; Antioxidants

The effect of temperature on a very high gravity ethanol fermentation using no cook process was investigated. We found that a gradient temperature control strategy could improve the fermentation efficiency significantly, With the assistance of a new raw starch hydrolyzing enzyme and a gradient temperature control strategy, the ethanol concentration could reach up to 20% (V/V) within 90 h using commercially available dry yeast, when sorghum was used as the raw material and the dry substrate concentration was controlled at 35%.
Enzymes ; metabolism ; Ethanol ; analysis ; metabolism ; Fermentation ; Hydrolysis ; Seeds ; metabolism ; Sorghum ; metabolism ; Temperature ; Yeasts ; metabolism

The protocorm-suspension-system of Cremastra appendiculata was founded by liquid-suspension culture. The factors to effect germination rate and seedling conversion rate of C. appendiculata synthetic seeds, such as synthetic coating materials, synthetic endosperm components, storing conditions and germination materials, etc. were studied. The result showed that the germination rate and seedling conversion rate of synthetic seeds were the highest on the MS solid-medium while using 4% sodium alginate + 2% CaCl2 + 2% chitosan as synthetic coating materials, with 1/2 MS liquid-medium + 0.2 mg x L(-1) NAA + 0.1 mg x L(-1) GA3 + 0.5 mg L(-1) BA + 0.4 mg x L(-1) penicillin + 10.0 mg x L(-1) endophyte extract +0.3% carbendazim powder + 0.2% sodium benzoate + 1.0% sucrose as synthetic endosperm. And the germination rate and seedling conversion rate of synthetic seeds could attain to 68% and 65% after 20 days storing at 4 degrees C. The germination rate and seedling conversion rate of synthetic seeds decreased to a great extent with increasing the storing temperature and prolonging storing time.
Culture Media ; metabolism ; Germination ; Orchidaceae ; growth & development ; metabolism ; Seeds ; growth & development ; metabolism ; Tissue Culture Techniques ; methods

LBD(lateral organ boundaries)transcription factors play an important role in the regulation of plant growth, development and secondary metabolism. In order to explore the function of LBD genes in cannabis, the Cannabis sativa genome and transcriptome were used to identify the C. sativa LBD gene family, and analyzed their expression patterns. Our results showed that the cannabis LBD contains 32 members, which were divided into two major categories, seven sub-families. Class Ⅰ was divided into 5 sub-families, named Class Ⅰ_a to Class Ⅰ_e, while Class Ⅱ was divided into 2 sub-families, including Class Ⅱ_a and Class Ⅱ_b. Analysis showed that the number of amino acids encoded LBDs was between 172 and 356, and the isoelectric point was between 4.92 and 9.43. The mole-cular weight of LBD was between 18 862.92 Da and 40 081.33 Da, and most members are located in the nucleus. Chromosome positioning of LBD showed that 32 members were unevenly distributed on 10 chromosomes of C. sativa LBD transcription factor domain, gene structure and motifs are relatively conservative, and the characteristics of different class members are similar. The upstream promoter region of the gene contains a variety of cis-acting elements related to plant hormones and environmental factors, C. sativa LBD genes have different expression patterns in the stems, leaves, and flowers of ZYS varieties(low tetrahydrocannabinol, high cannabidiol). The members of the LBD gene family are mainly expressed in the flowers and stems of ZYS varieties, while members expressed in the leaves very few; Class Ⅱ members CsLBD21 and CsLBD23 are expressed in flowers and stems, and CsLBD8 and CsLBD18 are expressed in flowers, stems and leaves. These genes may participate in the growth and development of cannabis and affect the biosynthesis of cannabinoids. This study laid the foundation for the subsequently functional research of the cannabis LBD gene family.
Cannabis/metabolism* ; Gene Expression Regulation, Plant ; Humans ; Medicine, Chinese Traditional ; Phylogeny ; Plant Proteins/metabolism* ; Seeds/metabolism*

OBJECTIVEThe studies were carried out on the physiologic characteristics of Panax notoginseng seeds during the after--ripening process in order to understand the seed's biochemical and physiological changes and lay the foundation for the germplasm conversation and breeding research of P. notoginseng seeds.

METHODDynamic changes of storage material contents, respiratory rate and protective enzymatic activity were determined by normal biochemical and physiological measuring methods.

RESULTThe respiratory rate increased continuously during the stratification process, the contents of starch, soluble protein, crude fat decreased and the content of water-soluble saccharide increased with the embryo development, activities of CAT, POD and SOD increased with the raise of MDA content.

CONCLUSIONP. notoginseng seed's biochemical and physiological changes interacted with its embryo morphological changes to complete its after-ripening development.

Catalase ; metabolism ; Oxygen Consumption ; Panax notoginseng ; chemistry ; physiology ; Seeds ; growth & development ; Superoxide Dismutase ; metabolism

OBJECTIVE: Although the protective effects of Momordica charantia L. (MC) extract on chemical-induced testicular damage have been studied, the preventive effects of MC extract on functional proteins in the epididymis under chronic stress have never been reported. This study investigated the protective effects of MC fruit extract on protein secretion, especially tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins, in the epididymis of rats exposed to chronic unpredictable stress (CUS). METHODS: Total phenolic compounds (TPC), total flavonoid compounds (TFC) and antioxidant capacities of MC extract were measured. Adult male rats were divided into 4 groups: control group, CUS group, and 2 groups of CUS that received different doses of MC extract (40 or 80 mg/kg). In treated groups, rats were given MC daily, followed by induction of CUS (1 stressor was randomly applied from a battery of 9 potential stressors) for 60 consecutive days. Plasma corticosterone and testosterone levels were analyzed after the end of experiment. Expressions of heat-shock protein 70 (HSP-70) and tyrosine-phosphorylated proteins present in the fluid of the head and tail of the epididymis were quantified using Western blot. RESULTS: MC extract contained TPC of (19.005 ± 0.270) mg gallic acid equivalents and TFC of (0.306 ± 0.012) mg catechin equivalents per gram, and had 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl antioxidant capacity of (4.985 ± 0.086) mg trolox equivalents per gram, radical 50% inhibitory concentration of (2.011 ± 0.008) mg/mL and ferric reducing antioxidant power of (23.697 ± 0.819) µmol Fe(II) per gram. Testosterone level in the epididymis was significantly increased, while the corticosterone level was significantly improved in groups treated with MC extract, compared to the CUS animals. Particularly, an 80 mg/kg dose of MC extract prevented the impairments of HSP-70 and tyrosine-phosphorylated protein expressions in the luminal fluid of the epididymis of CUS rats. CONCLUSION MC fruit extract had antioxidant activities and improved the functional proteins secreted from the head and tail of the epididymis. It is possible to develop the MC fruit extract as a male fertility supplement for enhancing functional sperm maturation in stressed men.
Male ; Rats ; Animals ; Antioxidants/pharmacology* ; Tyrosine/metabolism* ; Plant Extracts/therapeutic use* ; Corticosterone ; Seeds ; Testosterone ; Fruit/metabolism*

Characteristics of fructification and seed ripening of Panax stipuleanatus were studied in this paper with a view to better understand the species' biological characteristics and promote cultivation. Dynamic of fructification and types of fruits were observed in a period of 80 days. The seeds' biological characteristics were evaluated by observing embryo's vitality and changes in form in a period of 225 d. The findings and conclusions were as follows: A plant produces an average of (38.7 +/- 6.5) seeds; Seeds become fully mature 80 days after setting fruit, and fruits grow more rapidly in 0-40 days with an increase of 1 500.83% in fresh weight. Three types of fruits were found, that is mono-seed type, bi-seeds type and triple-seeds type, and the proportion is 9.53%, 58.66%, 1.81%, respectively. The seeds are (5.16-6. 52) mm in length and (3.12-4.95) mm in width. The weight of 1000 seeds is (0.648 +/- 0.014) g with a moisture content of (55.23 +/- 0.49)%. The after-ripening of embryo in Panax stipuleanatus is morphological form, embryos develop 75 days after the seeds' detaching from mother plant and become mature in 165-180 days with the ending of the process of after-ripening. The vitality of embryo reaches 70% , and the length of embryo is (3.217 +/- 0.406) mm and the width (0.872 +/- 0.165) mm. The seeds will germinate in 195 d.
Fruit ; growth & development ; Germination ; physiology ; Kinetin ; biosynthesis ; metabolism ; physiology ; Panax ; chemistry ; physiology ; Physiological Phenomena ; Seeds ; physiology

In order to explore the dormancy physiological and biochemical mechanism of Paris seeds, the seed embryo growth courses, and the dynamic change of 5 enzymes, include SOD, POD, CAT, MDH, G-6-PDH were measured during variable temperature stratification. The results indicated that Paris seeds embryo grew quickly after 40 d in warm-stratification (18 ± 1) °C, at the meantime the metabolic activity was significantly strengthened. These facts showed that Paris seeds turned into physiological after-ripening process. After 60-80 d, the morphological embryo after-ripping process basically completed, and the following cold-stratification (4 ± 1) °C furthered Paris seed to finish physiological after-ripening. After 40 d, the activity of MDH decreased while G-6-PDH increased significantly. This showed that the main respiratory pathway of seed changed from TCA to PPP, which benifited breaking seed dormancy. In the whole period of stratification process, the activity variation of SOD and CAT was insignificantly and the activity of POD was enhanced significantly after shifting the seed in cold stratification process. This showed that SOD, CAT had no direct effects on breaking Paris seed dormancy but keeping the seed vigor, while the POD might involve in the process of Paris seed dormancy breaking.
Germination ; Liliaceae ; chemistry ; embryology ; enzymology ; Plant Proteins ; metabolism ; Seeds ; chemistry ; enzymology ; growth & development ; Temperature

The effect of sowing date on grain protein, hordein fraction content and malting quality of two-rowed spring barley was investigated by using ten commercial cultivars with different grain protein content and the relationships among these traits were examined. The results showed that grain protein content and B hordein content increased as the sowing date postponed and were significantly affected by sowing date, while C and D hordein contents were less influenced by sowing date. There were significant differences in grain protein and hordein fraction content among the ten cultivars. The coefficient of variation of D hordein content was much larger than that of B and C hordein contents, suggesting its greater variation caused by different sowing dates. Beta-amylase activity and diastatic power were also significantly affected by sowing date, with malt extract being less affected. Significant differences in measured malt quality were found among the ten cultivars. Grain protein was significantly correlated with B hordein and malt extract positively and negatively, respectively. There was no significant correlation between beta-amylase activity or diastatic power and grain protein content. B hordein was negatively and significantly correlated with malt extract, but no significant correlations between C hordein, D hordein and malting quality traits.
Edible Grain ; chemistry ; Food Analysis ; Food Technology ; Glutens ; Hordeum ; growth & development ; metabolism ; Plant Proteins ; metabolism ; Seeds ; growth & development ; metabolism