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Key messageImproved compact shoot architecture of Osteospermum fruticosum Ri lines obtained through Rhizobium rhizogenes transformation reduces the need for chemical growth retardants.Compactness is for many ornamental crops an important commercial trait that is usually obtained through the application of growth retardants. Here, we have adopted a genetic strategy to introduce compactness in the perennial shrub Cape daisy (Osteospermum fruticosum Norl.). To this end, O. fruticosum was transformed using six different wild type Rhizobium rhizogenes strains. The most effective R. rhizogenes strains Arqua1 and ATCC15834 were used to create hairy root cultures from six Cape daisy genotypes. These root cultures were regenerated to produce transgenic Ri lines, which were analyzed for compactness. Ri lines displayed the characteristic Ri phenotype, i.e., reduced plant height, increased branching, shortened internodes, shortened peduncles, and smaller flowers. Evaluation of the Ri lines under commercial production conditions showed that similar compactness was obtained as the original Cape daisy genotypes treated with growth retardant. The results suggest that the use of chemical growth retardants may be omitted or reduced in commercial production systems of Cape daisy through implementation of Ri lines in future breeding programs.

The aim of the conducted experiments was to determine the impact of the differentiated composition of spectral radiation on the development of spring barley. The experiment was conducted in laboratory conditions using artificial sources of radiation. The habit of the barley was dependent on the spectral composition of the radiation in the growth chambers in which the red to far-red values were in the range of 0.92-10.0. Barley grown with an increased share of far red light produced decidedly longer internodes and taller shoots than the plants radiated with a smaller amount. The leaves of the barley grown in a high red to far-red ratio were positioned less vertically and the plants formed a more dense canopy than in the chambers with a lower red to far-red ratio. The plants grown in the chamber with a low red to far-red ratio produced a greater mass of stems with ears and a lower mass of infertile stems in comparison with the plants grown in radiation with a lower share of far-red. In summary, in these condition it was found that an increase in the number and mass of grains, in the grain weight to stem weight ratio, in the total mass of straw and plants as well as in an increase in the 1 000 grain weight. A low red to far-red ratio is an indicator of the existence of competition but observed differences in barley development and yield showed that in these conditions the plants demonstrated adaptive responses to shading.

Hemiepiphytes have captured the attention of biologists since they seemingly hold clues to the evolution of epiphytes themselves. Hemiepiphytes are known to occur sporadically in the leptosporangiate ferns, but our understanding of their evolution remains limited by the relatively small number of detailed observations. This study adds to our knowledge by documenting seven species previously assumed to be holoepiphytes. This finding was based on fieldwork conducted in the Baining Mountains of Papua New Guinea that resulted in 319 collections representing 206 species. Approximately 3% of these species were hemiepiphytes: Asplenium acrobryum, A. amboinense, A. scandens, A. scolpendropsis, Crepidomanes aphlebioides, Leptochilus macrophyllus, and Sphaerostephanos scandens. All started growth as low-trunk epiphytes, and later, as larger climbing plants, exhibited strongly dimorphic roots consisting of short clasping ones that affixed the rhizome to the trunks and long feeding roots that entered the soil. Most of the seven hemiepiphyte species that we found exhibited distichous phyllotaxy and dorsiventrally flattened rhizomes, suggesting morphological convergence associated with this habit in four families. These new records suggest that large hemiepiphytic clades occur in Asplenium and Leptochilus. Our observations expand the geographic and taxonomic breadth of hemiepiphytic ferns, provide a baseline estimate of their diversity within a tropical flora, and offer morphological and phylogenetic clues to uncover additional records.

Background Peanut ( Arachis hypogaea L.) is a grain legume crop that originated from South America and is now grown around the world. Peanut growth habit affects the variety’s adaptability, planting patterns, mechanized harvesting, disease resistance, and yield. The objective of this study was to map the quantitative trait locus (QTL) associated with peanut growth habit-related traits by combining the genome-wide association analysis (GWAS) and bulked segregant analysis sequencing (BSA-seq) methods. Results GWAS was performed with 17,223 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 103 accessions of the U.S. mini core collection genotyped using an Affymetrix version 2.0 SNP array. With a total of 12,342 high-quality polymorphic SNPs, the 90 suggestive and significant SNPs associated with lateral branch angle (LBA), main stem height (MSH), lateral branch height (LBL), extent radius (ER), and the index of plant type (IOPT) were identified. These SNPs were distributed among 15 chromosomes. A total of 597 associated candidate genes may have important roles in biological processes, hormone signaling, growth, and development. BSA-seq coupled with specific length amplified fragment sequencing (SLAF-seq) method was used to find the association with LBA, an important trait of the peanut growth habit. A 4.08 Mb genomic region on B05 was associated with LBA. Based on the linkage disequilibrium (LD) decay distance, we narrowed down and confirmed the region within the 160 kb region (144,193,467–144,513,467) on B05. Four candidate genes in this region were involved in plant growth. The expression levels of Araip.E64SW detected by qRT-PCR showed significant difference between ‘Jihua 5’ and ‘M130’. Conclusions In this study, the SNP (AX-147,251,085 and AX-144,353,467) associated with LBA by GWAS was overlapped with the results in BSA-seq through combined analysis of GWAS and BSA-seq. Based on LD decay distance, the genome range related to LBA on B05 was shortened to 144,193,467–144,513,467. Three candidate genes related to F-box family proteins ( Araip.E64SW , Araip.YG1LK , and Araip.JJ6RA ) and one candidate gene related to PPP family proteins ( Araip.YU281 ) may be involved in plant growth and development in this genome region. The expression analysis revealed that Araip.E64SW was involved in peanut growth habits. These candidate genes will provide molecular targets in marker-assisted selection for peanut growth habits.

Control of plant growth is an important aspect of crop productivity and yield in agriculture. Overexpression of the AtCHR12/23 genes in Arabidopsis thaliana reduced growth habit without other morphological changes. These two genes encode Snf2 chromatin remodelling ATPases. Here, we translate this approach to the horticultural crop tomato (Solanum lycopersicum). We identified and cloned the single tomato ortholog of the two Arabidopsis Snf2 genes, designated SlCHR1. Transgenic tomato plants (cv. Micro‐Tom) that constitutively overexpress the coding sequence of SlCHR1 show reduced growth in all developmental stages of tomato. This confirms that SlCHR1 combines the functions of both Arabidopsis genes in tomato. Compared to the wild type, the transgenic seedlings of tomato have significantly shorter roots, hypocotyls and reduced cotyledon size. Transgenic plants have a much more compact growth habit with markedly reduced plant height, severely compacted reproductive structures with smaller flowers and smaller fruits. The results indicate that either GMO‐based or non‐GMO‐based approaches to modulate the expression of chromatin remodelling ATPase genes could develop into methods to control plant growth, for example to replace the use of chemical growth retardants. This approach is likely to be applicable and attractive for any crop for which growth habit reduction has added value.

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) released from plants are known to mediate indirect defense against herbivores and trigger intra- and interplant signaling. While systemic defense response can be mediated both via volatile and vascular signals, it is not clear whether common ancestry and/or plant growth forms influence the choice of either mode in planta. We hypothesize that larger woody plants with a complex anatomy should rely more on volatile-mediated signaling, apparently to circumvent vascular restrictions that slow down the communication over a large distance. On the other hand, in smaller herbaceous plants faster systemic response can be achieved via vascular signaling. To investigate whether plant VOCs emission is related to plant phylogeny or growth form, we studied the composition of herbivory-induced plant volatiles in 13 Brassicaceae species representing all four evolutionary lineages, because this family is characterized by both a well-resolved phylogeny and highly diverse growth forms. Our results revealed that woody species consistently emitted a more complex blend of volatiles than herbaceous species. However, phylogenetic relatedness of the species did not explain the observed volatile emission patterns. This emphasizes the influence of growth form, rather than phylogenetic relationships on the variation in plant volatile emissions. Our findings suggest that woody, perennial plant species emit diverse VOCs, likely because these compounds comprise a more efficient mode of defense response in these large, anatomically complex plants.

Plant growth habit is an important and complex agronomic trait and is associated with yield, disease resistance, and mechanized harvesting in peanuts. There are at least two distinct growth habits (erect and prostrate) and several intermediate forms existing in the peanut germplasm. A recombinant inbred line population containing 188 individuals was developed from a cross of \"Jihua 5\" and \"M130\" for genetically dissecting the architecture of the growth habit. A new high-density genetic linkage map was constructed by using specific locus amplified fragment sequencing technology. The map contains 2,808 single-nucleotide polymorphism markers distributed on 20 linkage groups with a total length of 1,308.20 cM and an average inter-marker distance of 0.47 cM. The quantitative trait locus (QTL) analysis of the growth habit-related traits was conducted based on phenotyping data from seven environments. A total of 39 QTLs for growth habit-related traits was detected on 10 chromosomes explaining 4.55-27.74% of the phenotypic variance, in which 6 QTLs were for lateral branch angle, 8 QTLs were for extent radius, 7 QTLs were for the index of plant type, 11 QTLs were for main stem height, and 7 QTLs were for lateral branch length. Among these QTLs, 12 were co-localized on chromosome B05 spanning an approximately 0.17 Mb physical interval in comparison with the allotetraploid reference genome of \"Tifrunner.\" Analysis of the co-localized genome region has shown that the putative genes are involved in light and hormones and will facilitate peanut growth habit molecular breeding and study of peanut domestication.

The goal of this study is to characterize the weed phytosociology in some major erect and prostrate cowpea cultivars in Brazil, in the Northern growing conditions of Minas Gerais state. The test was conducted in Janaúba, Minas Gerais state. The treatments consisted in five erect cultivars (BRS Guariba, BRS Tumucumaque, BRS Novaera, BRS Itaim and BRS Cauamé) and four prostrate ones (BRS Marataoã, BRS Pajeú, BRS Pujante and BRS Xiquexique). The plots were composed of four five meter rows, spaced 0.5 m apart, for erect cultivars and 1.0 m for the prostrated ones. Weed sampling was performed 50 days after sowing by standard Square Method. The species were identified and quantified, and then dried at 65 oC for 72 hours and weighed. The frequency, absolute and relative density and abundance, the importance value index (IVI) and the similarity index were evaluated. In the erect cultivars, the Amaranthaceae, Euphorbiaceae, Asteraceae and Convolvulaceae families stood out with higher IVI’s. In prostrate cultivars, the Amaranthaceae, Asteraceae and Malvaceae families stood out. Portulaca oleracea and Amaranthus spp. were the species with the highest IVI. The similarity index between erect and prostrate cultivars was 72%; nine of the 16 families occurred in both cultivars. BRS Tumucumaque, erect, and BRS Pujante, prostrate had lower weed infestation.

Lateral branch angle (LBA) is an important agronomic trait that represents the plant’s growth habit in peanuts ( Arachis hypogaea L.), and obtaining the ideotype is the goal of breeders. Although numerous studies have been conducted in the past few decades on both spreading (prostrate) and erect growth habits, the underlying mechanism governing the LBA remains elusive. In this study, bulked segregant analysis coupled with next-generation sequencing (BSA‐seq) was employed to map major quantitative trait loci (QTL) controlling LBA. Spreading (S) and erect (E) bulks from progenies of a recombinant inbred line (RIL) population (Xuhua 13 × F458) were sequenced. Through Δ(SNP‐index) analysis, we identified eight regions on chromosome B05 among 152,650,001–159,955,000 bp and one region on chromosome B09 corresponding to the genomic interval of 154,908,001 to 154,918,000 bp. The regions on chromosome B05 were further narrowed down using single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers, and the gene associated with peanut LBA was mapped around the marker 15‐156 (156,921,591 bp) containing one annotated gene named Arahy.XAW92V , which may play a role in regulating cell growth. The results presented herein not only demonstrate the efficacy of BSA‐seq as a rapid strategy for mapping quantitative traits, such as LBA, but also provide compelling evidence supporting Arahy.XAW92V as a promising candidate gene associated with LBA in peanuts.

The healthy lifestyle and appropriate nutrition are stressed nowadays. New foodstuffs are still investigated with the aim to improve the diet and conduce to a better health state of the population. Pseudocereals (amaranth, buckwheat, quinoa) are convenient for this purpose. Their high nutritious and dietary quality meets the demands of the food industry and consumers. Our article deals with quinoa, a commodity from the Andean region, because quinoa is a good source of essential amino acids such as lysine and methionine. Quinoa contains relatively high quantities of vitamins (thiamin, vitamin C) and minerals.