Plant Biology Commons^™

A Specialized Diacylglycerol Acyltransferase Contributes To The Extreme Medium-Chain Fatty Acid Content Of Cuphea Seed Oil, Umidjon Iskandarov, Jillian E. Silva, Hae Jin Kim, Mariette Andersson, Rebecca E. Cahoon, Keithanne Mockaitis, Edgar B. Cahoon

Center for Plant Science Innovation: Faculty Publications

Seed oils of many Cuphea sp. contain .90% of medium-chain fatty acids, such as decanoic acid (10:0). These seed oils, which are among the most compositionally variant in the plant kingdom, arise from specialized fatty acid biosynthetic enzymes and specialized acyltransferases. These include lysophosphatidic acid acyltransferases (LPAT) and diacylglycerol acyltransferases (DGAT) that are required for successive acylation of medium-chain fatty acids in the sn-2 and sn-3 positions of seed triacylglycerols (TAGs). Here we report the identification of a cDNA for a DGAT1-type enzyme, designated CpuDGAT1, from the transcriptome of C. avigera var pulcherrima developing seeds. Microsomes of camelina (Camelina …

Vegetative Rapid Assessment And Habitat Quality Analysis Of Steidtmann Woods, Sarah Mae Bail

Honors Projects

Due to invasive species and the assumption of an unhealthy ecosystem, Steidtmann Woods is an underutilized piece of land owned by Bowling Green State University. However, the property had never been analyzed. The proposed hypothesis was that Steidtmann was indeed in destress and its ecosystem could benefit from intervention—removal of invasive species and supplementation of natives. Through a rapid vegetative analysis, data was collected in several regions of the woods to identify what navies and non-natives were present as well as to identify their proportions. With that data, the species evenness, richness, and diversity was calculated; first, with raw field …

Environmental Data: Canopy Data (Leaf Area Index), Julia I. Chapman, Amy L. Myers, Mitchell J. Kukla, Ryan W. Mcewan

Data Files: Drew Woods Permanent Plots

Leaf area index measurements obtained using a CI-110 Canopy Imager (CID BioScience in 2012 and 2017. Data key is provided in a supplemental file.

Evaluation And Association Analysis Of Cowpea Salt Tolerance, Waltram Second Ravelombola

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cowpea [Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.] (2n=2x=22) is a leguminous crop providing inexpensive protein for human consumption that can be grown worldwide. Salinity is one of the major threats to cowpea production, particularly in semi-arid regions of Africa. Salinity significantly affects seed germination and decreases pod yield in cowpea. However, little has been done to provide farmers salt-tolerant cowpea cultivars. Knowledge on the genetics of cowpea salt tolerance is very limited. This study aimed to:(1) evaluate cowpea salt tolerance at germination stage, (2) evaluate cowpea salt tolerance at seedling stage, (3) conduct an association study for cowpea salt tolerance at germination …

Range-Wide Prevalence And Impacts Of Pseudocercosporella Inconspicua On Lilium Grayi And An Assessment Of L. Superbum And L. Michauxii As Reservoirs, Cindy L. Barrett

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Lilium grayi (Gray’s Lily), a southern Appalachian endemic species, is threatened by a Lilium-specific fungal pathogen, Pseudocercosporella inconspicua. The disease is characterized by tan lesions that can cause early senescence, while also lowering seed production and viability. This project tested for P. inconspicua conidia and accessed health at nine locations. The disease was present and ubiquitous across the range of L. grayi. Through identification of P. inconspicua conidia in the field, L. superbum (Turk’s Cap Lily) was identified as an additional host, while L. michauxii (Michaux’s Lily) was disease-free. However, infection was inducible in both species. With …

The Effect Of Insects On Seed Set Of Ozark Chinquapin, Castanea Ozarkensis, Colton Zirkle

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Ozark chinquapin (Castanea ozarkensis), once found throughout the Interior Highlands of the United States, has been decimated across much of its range due to accidental introduction of chestnut blight, Cryphonectria parasitica. Efforts have been made to conserve and restore C. ozarkensis, but success requires thorough knowledge of the reproductive biology of the species. Other Castanea species are reported to have characteristics of both wind and insect pollination, but pollination strategies of Ozark chinquapin are unknown. Experiments were conducted to determine the influence of insects on successful pollination of C. ozarkensis, as measured by production of burs and seeds. Exclosure treatments …

Pengaruh Pemberian Berbagai Konsentrasi Benzyl Amino Purine (Bap) Terhadap Pertumbuhan Tiga Kultivar Tanaman Kamboja Jepang (Adenium Arabicum), Yayat Rochayat Suradinata, Ine Elisa Putri, Kusumiyati

Jurnal Kultivasi

Adenium arabicum disebut sebagai mawar gurun. Tanaman ini memiliki bonggol. Bonggol dapat diperbesar dengan bantuan benzil amino purine (BAP). Tujuan dilakukannya penelitian ini adalah untuk mengetahui pengaruh interaksi antara tiga kultivar Kamboja Jepang (Adenium arabicum) dengan lima konsentrasi (BAP) yang digunakan, untuk memperoleh kultivar diuji yang memiliki pertumbuhan paling baik dengan perlakuan berbagai konsentrasi BAP. Penelitian dilakukan dari bulan April 2016 sampai dengan Juli 2016 di rumah kaca Ciparanje Fakultas Pertanian Univesitas Padjadjaran, dengan ketinggian tempat 700 meter di atas permukaan laut (mdpl). Percobaan dilakukan dengan Rancangan Acak Kelompok Faktorial (RAK Faktorial) yang terdiri atas dua faktor, faktor pertama yaitu …

Biology: Weird Science?, Ao Liu, Elizabeth Stephenson, Audrey Hendrickson

Collin College Undergraduate Interdisciplinary Student Research Conference

Papers Presented:

"The Relationship of the Second Light Treatment to Cell Germination and Polarization in Ceratopteris Fern Spores" by Ao Liu

Abstract: This research about the Ceratopteris richardii fern spores, which is part of the Discovery Lab in Plant Biology course at UT Austin led by Dr. Stan Roux. We focused on the relationship between the second light treatment and germination as well as polarization of the spores. Several groups of students tested different amounts of light and darkness on the influence of germination rate and the gravity response of the germinated spores.

"A Mathematical Model of Skeletal Muscle Regeneration" …

Overestimasi Penggukuran Gas Exchange Tanaman Dengan Menggunakan Photosynthesis Analyzer Li-6400, Mochamad Arief Soleh

Jurnal Kultivasi

Salah satu tujuan penelitian adalah dihasilkannya data penelitian yang valid dan terpercaya. Semuanya itu tentu memerlukan usaha keras dalam memahami topik penelitian, serta memahami cara kerja alat penelitian yang akan digunakan. Beberapa kesalahan yang penulis temui dalam mengukur laju fotosintesis tanaman atau gas exchange dengan alat LI-6400 adalah ditemukannya overestimasi pengukuran. Seperti ditemukan pada dua publikasi jurnal, misalnya laju fotosintesis tanaman bawang merah mencapai 97-158 μmol CO2 m-2 s-1 dan laju fotosintesis jangung mencapai 85 – 100 μmol CO2 m-2 s-1. Secara umum tanaman C4 (Jagung) memiliki laju fotosintesis jauh lebih tinggi dibanding tanaman C3 (Bawang). Ada dua faktor kemungkinan …

Predicting Trait-Environment Relationships For Venation Networks Elong An Andes-Amazon Elevation Gradient, Benjamin Blonder, Norma Salinas, Lisa Patrick Bentley, Alexander Shenkin, Percy O. Chambi Porroa, Yolvi Valdez Tejeira, Cyrille Violle, Nikolaos M. Fyllas, Gregory R. Goldsmith, Roberta E. Martin, Gregory P. Asner, Sandra Diaz, Brian J. Enquist, Yadvinder Malhi

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Understanding functional trait-environment relationships (TERs) may improve predictions of community assembly. However, many empirical TERs have been weak or lacking conceptual foundation. TERs based on leaf venation networks may better link individuals and communities via hydraulic constraints. We report measurements of vein density, vein radius, and leaf thickness for more than 100 dominant species occurring in ten forest communities spanning a 3,300 m Andes-Amazon elevation gradient in Peru. We use these data to measure the strength of TERs at community scale and to determine whether observed TERs are similar to those predicted by physiological theory. We found strong support for …

Ultramafic Geoecology Of South And Southeast Asia, M.L. Galey, A. Van Der Ent, M.C.M. Iqbal, N. Rajakaruna

Biological Sciences

Globally, ultramafic outcrops are renowned for hosting foras with high levels of endemism, including plants with specialised adaptations such as nickel or manganese hyperaccumulation. Soils derived from ultramafic regoliths are generally nutrient-deficient, have major cation imbalances, and have concomitant high concentrations of potentially phytotoxic trace elements, especially nickel. The South and Southeast Asian region has the largest surface occurrences of ultramafic regoliths in the world, but the geoecology of these outcrops is still poorly studied despite severe conservation threats. Due to the paucity of systematic plant collections in many areas and the lack of georeferenced herbarium records and databased information, …

Abiotic Conditions Of Rare Pitcher's Thistle Attract Selection By An Invasive Weevil, Monica Paniagua Montoya

Lawrence University Honors Projects

Plant associations occur when host selection of a focal plant is reduced or increased by the presence of another plant species. Larinus planus is an invasive weevil whose larvae feed in the flower heads of native and federally threatened Pitcher’s thistle (Cirsium pitcheri). Studies have linked the presence of neighboring plants to increased host selection of Pitcher’s thistle by the weevil, but the factors contributing to host selection remain unknown. In our study, we determined if there were differences among abiotic factors, host selection and weevil behavior at Pitcher’s thistles surrounded by beach grass, sand and at high …

High Throughput In Vivo Analysis Of Plant Leaf Chemical Properties Using Hyperspectral Imaging, Piyush Pandey, Yufeng Ge, Vincent Stoerger, James C. Schnable

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The possibility of predicting plant leaf chemical properties using hyperspectral images was studied. Sixty maize and 60 soybean plants were used, and two experiments were conducted: one with water limitation and the second with nutrient limitation, with the purpose of creating wide ranges of these chemical properties in plant leaf tissues. A hyperspectral imaging system with a spectral range from 550 to 1700 nm was used to acquire plant images in a high throughput fashion (plants placed on an automated conveyor belt). Leaf chemical properties were measured in the laboratory. Partial least squares regression was implemented on spectral data to …

The Arabidopsis Kinesin-4, Fra1, Requires A High Level Of Processive Motility To Function Correctly, Anindya Ganguly, Logan Demott, Ram Dixit

Biology Faculty Research

Processivity is important for kinesins that mediate intracellular transport. Structure–function analyses of N-terminal kinesins (i.e. kinesins comprising their motor domains at the N-terminus) have identified several non-motor regions that affect processivity in vitro. However, whether these structural elements affect kinesin processivity and function in vivo is not known. Here, we used an Arabidopsis thaliana kinesin-4, called Fragile Fiber 1 (FRA1, also known as KIN4A), which is thought to mediate vesicle transport, to test whether mutations that alter processivity in vitro lead to similar changes in behavior in vivo and whether processivity is important for the function of FRA1. We …

The Taxonomy, Reproduction, And Distribution Of Rare Plants: A Study Of Magnolia Sp. In The Río Zuñac Reserve, Ecuador, Alyssa Kullberg

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Ecuadorian cloud forests are biodiversity hotspots and centers of unprecedented levels of endemism, but they are also under-researched and under-protected. This study took place in the Río Zuñac Reserve, which is a reserve of about 850 ha located in the Tungurahua province of Ecuador, and is home to at least 20 endemic plant species. Three new species of Magnolia have been discovered in this reserve in the past five years: Magnolia llanganates, Magnolia vargasiana, and one species that has yet to be formally described. This study dealt with accurately locating and describing new individuals of these species over the …

Investigation De Regeneración Natural De Plantas Vasculares En La Reserva Madrigal Del Podocarpus / Investigation Of Natural Regeneration Of Vascular Plants In The Madrigal Reserve Of The Podocarpus, Sy Baker

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

En el Sur de Ecuador, hay una historia larga de incendio que está asociada con la historia de la agricultura y ganadería a causa de las técnicas de tala y quema para despejar áreas para campos y también quemaduras intencionales para fertilizar los suelos y mejorar productividad agrícola (Fernandez et al 2015). En los últimos días de Noviembre de 2016, un incendio quemó campos, la Reserva Madrigal de Podocarpus, y parte del Parque Nacional Podocarpus en Loja, Ecuador—el enfoque de este estudio. En este estudio: (1) se registraron las especies y distribución de plantas pioneras y sobrevivientes, (2) la se …

Emergence, Competition, And Management Of Glyphosate-Resistant Common Ragweed (Ambrosia Artemisiifolia L.) In Nebraska Soybean, Ethann R. Barnes

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Common ragweed (Ambrosia artemisiifolia L.) is a competitive annual broadleaf weed in soybean (Glycine max) production fields throughout North America. The recent confirmation of glyphosate-resistant common ragweed in Nebraska justified the need to assess the emergence pattern and competitive ability of common ragweed in soybean and to evaluate alternative herbicide programs for effective management. The objectives of this research were to: 1) evaluate the effect of tillage and develop a predictive model for the emergence pattern of common ragweed in Nebraska; 2) model the competitive interaction between soybean and common ragweed as influenced by density and irrigation …

Modeling Gross Primary Production Of Midwest Maize And Soybean Croplands With Satellite And Gridded Weather Data, Gunnar Malek-Madani

Department of Geography: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The gross primary production (GPP) metric is useful in determining trends in the terrestrial carbon cycle. Models that determine GPP utilizing the light use efficiency (LUE) approach in conjunction with biophysical parameters that account for local weather conditions and crop specific factors are beneficial in that they combine the accuracy of the biophysical model with the versatility of the LUE model. One such model developed using in situ data was adapted to operate with remote sensing derived leaf area index (LAI) data and gridded weather datasets. The model, known as the Light Use Efficiency GPP Model (EGM), uses a four …

Hydraulic Mechanisms Of Fungal-Induced Dieback In A Keystone Chaparral Species During Unprecedented Drought In California, Natalie M. Aguirre, Marissa E. Ochoa, Helen I. Holmlund, Frank E. Ewers, Stephen D. Davis

Seaver College Research And Scholarly Achievement Symposium

Between 2012-2016, southern California experienced unprecedented drought that caused dieback in Malosma laurina, a keystone species of chaparral shrub communities. Dieback was especially severe in coastal exposures of the Santa Monica Mountains, leading to whole plant mortality exceeding 50% at some sites. We hypothesized that the endophytic fungus causing the dieback, Botryosphaeria dothidea, was successful in invading the xylem tissue of M. laurina because of protracted water stress, carbon starvation, or a combination of the two. We tested these possibilities in a controlled pot experiment by comparing three treatments, each inoculated with the fungus: (1) irrigated controls (2) …

Development Of Molecular Tools For Identification Of Prairie Terrestrial And Wetland Algae, Esther Mundembo Kapinga

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Algae are a diverse group of photosynthetic protists. Green algae are typically unicellular, though some may occur as multicellular colonies, and they are found across a wide range of habitats, including marine, freshwater, and terrestrial environments. As photosynthetic producers and sometimes symbionts, algae can occupy important roles in an ecosystem; in other circumstances they can have negative impacts on environmental quality. Estimations of the number of green algal species range from eight thousand to over fifteen thousand. The identification of individual algal species can be problematic due to their small size and typically simple cell anatomy. For this reason, molecular …

Small Scale Heterogeneity In Vegetation Structure In A Patch-Burn-Grazing Landscape, Eric G. Behrens

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Disturbances are drivers of spatial change in the plant communities of the tallgrass prairie ecosystem. Fire and large herbivore grazing are prevalent disturbances that maintain the vegetation structure and create spatial heterogeneity in vegetation at various scales. The fire-grazing disturbance interaction occurs when areas that have been recently burned are followed by intense grazing due to the high quality of forage regrowth. This interaction has been managed in tallgrass prairies in a homogenous method using uniform burning and grazing and a heterogeneous method using patch-burn-grazing (PBG). Vegetation heterogeneity at a large scale has been studied in PBG and uniformly managed …

The Lx Report Of The Bean Improvement Cooperative No. 60, March 2017.

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

CONTENTS

LX Annual Report of the Bean Improvement Cooperative xi

BIC Coordinating Committee Membership - 1957 to 2017 . xii

BIC Meritorious Service and Distinguished Achievement Award Recipients - 1957 to 2015 xiii

BIC Awards Nomination Request for 2017 xvi

BIC/NAPIA Meeting in 2017 . xix

In Memory of Guillermo E. Galvez-Enriquez xx

RESEARCH PAPERS FOR 2017

OPTIMIZING SPORULATION OF Pseudocercospora griseola IN VITRO • Paula F. de Pádua1, Rafael Pereira1, Luanna B. W. Gomes1 and Elaine A. de Souza1* 1

FINE MAPPING THE BROAD SPECTRUM ANTHRACNOSE RESISTANCE GENE IN AMENDOIM CAVALO 3 • Gilio, T.A.S.1, Oscar P. Hurtado-Gonzales2, Giseli …

Invasive Species Control And Perennial Plant Establishment In Antelope Pasture, Pocatello, Blm, Kari E. Veblen

Funded Research Records

No abstract provided.

Towards The Development Of A Sustainable Soya Bean-Based Feedstock For Aquaculture, Hyunwoo Park, Steven Weier, Fareha Razvi, Pamela A. Peña, Neil A. Sims, Jennica Lowell, Cory Hungate, Karma Kissinger, Gavin Key, Paul Fraser, Jonathan Napier, Edgar B. Cahoon, Thomas Clemente

Center for Plant Science Innovation: Faculty Publications

Soya bean (Glycine max (L.) Merr.) is sought after for both its oil and protein components. Genetic approaches to add value to either component are ongoing efforts in soya bean breeding and molecular biology programmes. The former is the primary vegetable oil consumed in the world. Hence, its primary usage is in direct human consumption. As a means to increase its utility in feed applications, thereby expanding the market of soya bean coproducts, we investigated the simultaneous displacement of marine ingredients in aquafeeds with soya bean-based protein and a high Omega-3 fatty acid soya bean oil, enriched with alpha-linolenic …

Novel Gene-Sequence Markers For Isolate Tracking Within Monilinia Fructicola Lesions, Madeline E. Dowling, Guido Schnabel, Harriet G. Boatwright, Sydney E. Everhart

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

Background: Monilinia fructicola is a diverse pathogen of pome and stone fruits that causes severe economic losses each year. However, little is known about inoculum flow within or between orchards and pathogen establishment in an orchard, because few methods exist for detecting diversity or tracking isolates over time. SSR loci are an effective option, but may be confounded by a high degree of mutability and potential sensitivity to abiotic stress.

Results: Through transcriptome analysis, we identified novel markers mrr1, DHFR and MfCYP01 and validated stability of these markers under fungicide stress in natural infection sites. Nucleotide variation …

Microbial Interactions In The Phyllosphere Increase Plant Performance Under Herbivore Biotic Stress, Muhammad Saleem, Nicole Meckes, Zahida H. Pervaiz, Milton B. Traw

Plant and Soil Sciences Faculty Publications

The phyllosphere supports a tremendous diversity of microbes and other organisms. However, little is known about the colonization and survival of pathogenic and beneficial bacteria alone or together in the phyllosphere across the whole plant life-cycle under herbivory, which hinders our ability to understand the role of phyllosphere bacteria on plant performance. We addressed these questions in experiments using four genetically and biogeographically diverse accessions of Arabidopsis thaliana, three ecologically important bacterial strains (Pseudomonas syringae DC3000, Xanthomonas campestris, both pathogens, and Bacillus cereus, plant beneficial) under common garden conditions that included fungus gnats (Bradysia spp.). …

Corn Residue Use By Livestock In The United States, Marty R. Schmer, Rachael M. Brown, Virginia L. Jin, Robert B. Mitchell, Daren D. Redfearn

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Corn (Zea mays L.) residue grazing or harvest provides a simple and economical practice to integrate crops and livestock, but limited information is available on how widespread corn residue utilization is practiced by US producers. In 2010, the USDA Economic Research Service surveyed producers from 19 states on corn grain and residue management practices. Total corn residue grazed or harvested was 4.87 million ha. Approximately 4.06 million ha was grazed by 11.7 million livestock (primarily cattle) in 2010. The majority of grazed corn residue occurred in Nebraska (1.91 million ha), Iowa (385,000 ha), South Dakota (361,000 ha), and Kansas …

The Magnaporthe Oryzae Nitrooxidative Stress Response Suppresses Rice Innate Immunity During Blast Disease, Margarita Marroquin-Guzman, David E. Hartline, Janet D. Wright, Christian G. Elowsky, Travis J. Bourret, Richard A. Wilson

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

Understanding how microorganisms manipulate plant innate immunity and colonize host cells is a major goal of plant pathology. Here, we report that the fungal nitrooxidative stress response suppresses host defenses to facilitate the growth and development of the important rice pathogen Magnaporthe oryzae in leaf cells. Nitronate monooxygenases encoded by NMO genes catalyze the oxidative denitrification of nitroalkanes. We show that the M. oryzae NMO2 gene is required for mitigating damaging lipid nitration under nitrooxidative stress conditions and, consequently, for using nitrate and nitrite as nitrogen sources. On plants, the Δnmo2 mutant strain penetrated host cuticles like wild type, …

The Morphogenesis-Related Ndr Kinase Pathway Of Colletotrichum Orbiculare Is Required For Translating Plant Surface Signals Into Infection-Related Morphogenesis And Pathogenesis, Sayo Kodama, Junya Ishizuka, Ito Miyashita, Takaaki Ishii, Takumi Nishiuchi, Hideto Miyoshi, Yasuyuki Kubo

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

Plant infection by pathogenic fungi involves the differentiation of appressoria, specialized infection structures, initiated by fungal sensing and responding to plant surface signals. How plant fungal pathogens control infection-related morphogenesis in response to plant-derived signals has been unclear. Here we showed that the morphogenesis-related NDR kinase pathway (MOR) of the cucumber anthracnose fungus Colletotrichum orbiculare is crucial for appressorium development following perception of plant-derived signals. By screening of random insertional mutants, we identified that the MOR element CoPag1 (Perish-in-theabsence-of-GYP1) is a key component of the plant-derived signaling pathway involved in appressorium morphogenesis. Constitutive activation of the NDR kinase …

Lsp Family Proteins Regulate Antibiotic Biosynthesis In Lysobacter Enzymogenes Oh11, Ruping Wang, Huiyong Xu, Yangyang Zhao, Juan Zhang, Gary Y. Yuen, Guoliang Qian, Fengquan Liu

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

Ax21 family proteins have been shown to play regulatory roles in plant- and animal-pathogenic species in the bacterial family Xanthomonadaceae, but the protein have not been investigated previously in the non-pathogenic members of this bacterial family. Lysobacter enzymogenes, is a non-pathogenic species known for its capacity as a biocontrol agent of plant pathogens. It is also noted for the production of antimicrobial secondary metabolites, heat stable antifungal factor (HSAF) and WAP-8294A2, that have potential for agricultural and pharmaceutical applications. The species also displays type IV pili-dependent twitching motility and the production of multiple extracellular lytic enzymes as additional biocontrol-related traits. …