Yongsong Zhang

Effects of Nitrogen Levels and Nitrate/Ammonium Ratios on Oxalate Concentrations of Different Forms in Edible Parts of Spinach

ABSTRACT Two hydroponic experiments were carried out to investigate the effects of nitrogen (N) levels and forms on the oxalate concentrations of different form in edible parts of spinach. Nitrogen was supplied at five levels (4, 8, 12, 16, 20 mM) in Experiment 1 and five ratios of nitrate (NO3 −) to ammonium (NH4 +) (100/0, 75/25, 50/50, 25/75, 0/100) at a total N of 8 mM in Experiment 2. Biomass of spinach increased markedly from 4 mM to 8 mM N and reached the flat with further increase in N. The total oxalate and soluble oxalate in leaves and shoots (edible parts) increased significantly with increasing N levels from 4 to 12 mM, while the total oxalate and insoluble oxalate decreased markedly when N level was further increased from 12 to 20 mM. Oxalates of different forms in petioles increased first and then decreased and elevated again with increasing nitrogen levels. In the second experiment, decreasing NO3 −/NH4 + ratios markedly increased at first and then significantly decreased the biomass of spinach plants and the maximum biomass was recorded in the treatment of the NO3 −/NH4 + ratio of 50:50. The oxalate concentrations of different form in leaves and shoots were all decreased obviously as the ratio of NO3 −/NH4 + decreased from 100:0 to 0:100. Concentrations of total oxalate and soluble oxalate in petioles could be reduced by increasing ammonium proportion and were the lowest as the ratio of NO3 −/NH4 + was 50:50 and insoluble oxalate decreased as nitrate/ammonium ratio decreased. The concentrations of oxalate forms in leaves were all higher than those in petioles and soluble oxalate was predominant form of oxalates in both trials. It is evident that high biomass of spinach can be achieved and oxalate concentrations of different forms can be reduced by modulating N levels and NO3 −/NH4 + ratio, so this will benefit for human health especially for those people with a history of calcium oxalate kidney stones.

Auxin modulates the enhanced development of root hairs in Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. under elevated CO2

Root hairs may play a critical role in nutrient acquisition of plants grown under elevated CO(2) . This study investigated how elevated CO(2) enhanced the development of root hairs in Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh. The plants under elevated CO(2) (800 µL L(-1)) had denser and longer root hairs, and more H-positioned cells in root epidermis than those under ambient CO(2) (350 µL L(-1)). The elevated CO(2) increased auxin production in roots. Under elevated CO(2) , application of either 1-naphthoxyacetic acid (1-NOA) or N-1-naphthylphthalamic acid (NPA) blocked the enhanced development of root hairs. The opposite was true when the plants under ambient CO(2) were treated with 1-naphthylacetic acid (NAA), an auxin analogue. Furthermore, the elevated CO(2) did not enhance the development of root hairs in auxin-response mutants, axr1-3, and auxin-transporter mutants, axr4-1, aux1-7 and pin1-1. Both elevated CO(2) and NAA application increased expressions of caprice, triptychon and rho-related protein from plants 2, and decreased expressions of werewolf, GLABRA2, GLABRA3 and the transparent testa glabra 1, genes related to root-hair development, while 1-NOA and NPA application had an opposite effect. Our study suggests that elevated CO(2) enhanced the development of root hairs in Arabidopsis via the well-characterized auxin signalling and transport that modulate the initiation of root hairs and the expression of its specific genes.

Effect of elevated CO2 on phosphorus nutrition of phosphate-deficient Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh under different nitrogen forms

Phosphorus (P) nutrition is always a key issue regarding plants responses to elevated CO2. Yet it is unclear of how elevated CO2 affects P uptake under different nitrogen (N) forms. This study investigated the influence of elevated CO2 (800 µl l–1) on P uptake and utilization by Arabidopsis grown in pH-buffered phosphate (P)-deficient (0.5 µM) hydroponic culture supplying with 2mM nitrate (NO3 −) or ammonium (NH4 +). After 7 d treatment, elevated CO2 enhanced the biomass production of both NO3 −- and NH4 +-fed plants but decreased the P amount absorbed per weight of roots and the P concentration in the shoots of plants supplied with NH4 +. In comparison, elevated CO2 increased the amount of P absorbed per weight of roots, as well as the P concentration in plants and alleviated P deficiency-induced symptoms of plants supplied with NO3 −. Elevated CO2 also increased the root/shoot ratio, total root surface area, and acid phosphatase activity, and enhanced the expression of genes or transcriptional factors involving in P uptake, allocation and remobilization in P deficient plants. Furthermore, elevated CO2 increased the nitric oxide (NO) level in roots of NO3 −-fed plants but decreased it in NH4 +-fed plants. NO scavenger 2-(4-carboxyphenyl)-4,4,5,5-tetramethylimidazoline-1-oxyl-3-oxide (cPTIO) inhibited plant P acquisition by roots under elevated CO2. Considering all of these findings, this study concluded that a combination of elevated CO2 and NO3 − nutrition can induce a set of plant adaptive strategies to improve P status from P-deficient soluble sources and that NO may be a signalling molecule that controls these processes.

Sorption and Dissipation of Tetracyclines in Soils and Compost

Abstract Two agricultural soils were collected from Dahu and Pinchen counties and swine manure compost (SMC) from Ping-tung County in Taiwan, China to investigate the sorption and dissipation of three tetracyclines (TCs), i.e. , oxytetracycline (OTC), tetracycline (TC) and chlortetracycline (CTC), in compost, soils and soil/compost mixtures with different organic carbon (OC) contents. There were seven treatments in total. TCs were most strongly adsorbed to SMC in all treatments due to the high OC content. When SMC was present in the soils, the sorption of TCs was significantly enhanced, which might be attributed to the increased OC content and CEC. The adsorption of TCs showed non-linear adsorption isotherms and fitted well to the Freundlich model. After 49 d of incubation at 25 °C in soils and soil/compost mixtures in the dark, TCs elapsed in all substrates, with the time required for 50% degradation (DT 50 ) between 20 and 41 d, and the time for 90% degradation (DT 90 ) between 68 and 137 d. Soil amended with compost enhanced the stability of TCs and reduced their mobility. The dissipation of TCs in a soil environment was slow, indicating that these compounds might be persistent in soil.

Effects of root temperature on leaf gas exchange and xylem sap abscisic acid concentrations in six Cucurbitaceae species

Roots of six Cucurbitaceae species were exposed to low (14 °C), middle (24 °C), and high (34 °C) temperatures while aerial parts of plants were maintained at ambient temperatures between 23 and 33 °C. The highest dry mass (DM), photon-saturated rate of net photosynthesis (PNsat), and stomatal conductance (gs) were found at 14 °C in figleaf gourd and turban squash plants, at 24 °C in cucumber and melon plants, while bitter melon and wax gourd plants had lower DM, PNsat, and gs at 14 °C than at 24 or 34 °C. Sub-or supra-optimum root temperatures did not induce photoinhibition but induced slight changes in the quantum efficiency of photosystem 2, PS2 (ΦPS2) and photochemical quenching (qp). Meanwhile, xylem sap abscisic acid (ABA) concentration followed a contrasting change pattern to that of gs. Thus the change in PNsat was mainly due to the change in gs and roots played an important role in the regulation of stomatal behaviour by delivering increased amount of ABA to shoots at sub-or supra-optimum root temperatures.

Nitric oxide enhances development of lateral roots in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) under elevated carbon dioxide

Elevated carbon dioxide (CO2) has been shown to enhance the growth and development of plants, especially of roots. Amongst them, lateral roots play an important role in nutrient uptake, and thus alleviate the nutrient limitation to plant growth under elevated CO2. This paper examined the mechanism underlying CO2 elevation-induced lateral root formation in tomato. The endogenous nitric oxide (NO) in roots was detected by the specific probe 4-amino-5-methylamino-2′,7′-difluorofluorescein diacetate (DAF-FM DA). We suggest that CO2 elevation-induced NO accumulation was important for lateral root formation. Elevated CO2 significantly increased the activity of nitric oxide synthase in roots, but not nitrate reductase activity. Moreover, the pharmacological evidence showed that nitric oxide synthase rather than nitrate reductase was responsible for CO2 elevation-induced NO accumulation. Elevated CO2 enhanced the activity of nitric oxide synthase and promoted production of NO, which was involved in lateral root formation in tomato under elevated CO2.

Effect of CO2 Elevation on Root Growth and Its Relationship with Indole Acetic Acid and Ethylene in Tomato Seedlings

Abstract A hydroponic experiment was carried out to study the effect of elevated carbon dioxide (CO 2 ) on root growth of tomato seedlings. Compared with the control (350 μLL −1 ), CO 2 enrichment (800 μLL −1 ) significantly increased the dry matter of both shoot and root, the ratio of root to shoot, total root length, root surface area, root diameter, root volume, and root tip numbers, which are important for forming a strong root system. The elevated CO 2 treatment also significantly improved root hair development and elongation, thus enhancing nutrient uptake. Increased indole acetic acid concentration in plant tissues and ethylene release in the elevated CO 2 treatment might have resulted in root growth enhancement and root hair development and elongation.

Bioorganic fertilizer enhances soil suppressive capacity against bacterial wilt of tomato.

Tomato bacterial wilt caused by Ralstonia solanacearum is one of the most destructive soil-borne diseases. Many strategies have been taken to improve soil suppressiveness against this destructive disease, but limited success has been achieved. In this study, a novel bioorganic fertilizer revealed a higher suppressive ability against bacterial wilt compared with several soil management methods in the field over four growing seasons from March 2011 to July 2013. The application of the bioorganic fertilizer significantly (P<0.05) reduced disease incidence of tomato and increased fruit yields in four independent trials. The association among the level of disease incidence, soil physicochemical and biological properties was investigated. The soil treated with the bioorganic fertilizer increased soil pH value, electric conductivity, organic carbon, NH4 +-N, NO3 --N and available K content, microbial activities and microbial biomass carbon content, which were positively related with soil suppressiveness. Bacterial and actinomycete populations assessed using classical plate counts were highest, whereas R. solanacearum and fungal populations were lowest in soil applied with the bioorganic fertilizer. Microbial community diversity and richness were assessed using denaturing gel gradient electrophoresis profile analysis. The soil treated with the bioorganic fertilizer exhibited higher bacterial community diversity but lower fungal community diversity. Redundancy analysis showed that bacterial community diversity and richness negatively related with bacterial wilt suppressiveness, while fungal community richness positively correlated with R. solanacearum population. We concluded that the alteration of soil physicochemical and biological properties in soil treated with the bioorganic fertilizer induced the soil suppressiveness against tomato bacterial wilt.

Phosphorus and magnesium interactively modulate the elongation and directional growth of primary roots in Arabidopsis thaliana (L.) Heynh

Highlight Phosphorus and magnesium interactively affect root elongation and skewing by a pathway that is largely dependent upon the signalling function of auxin, which leads to accelerated cell expansion and division.

Changes in plant growth and photosynthetic performance of Zizania latifolia exposed to different phosphorus concentrations under hydroponic condition

The effects of phosphate concentration on plant growth and photosynthetic performance were examined in leaves of Zizania latifolia. Plants were grown for four weeks in a solution containing 0, 0.16, 0.64, and 2.56 mM orthophosphate. The results showed that the highest net photosynthetic rate (PN) was achieved at 0.64 mM orthophosphate, which corresponded to the maximum content of organic phosphorus in leaves. Low phosphorus (low-P) content in the culture solution inhibited plant growth, affecting plant height, leaf length, leaf number, tiller number, and fresh mass of leaf, sheath, culm, root, and total plant. In addition, we observed that low-P (0.16 mM) did not hinder the growth of roots but increased the root:shoot ratio, and significantly decreased the chlorophyll content, PN, stomatal conductance, and transpiration rate, but increased the intercellular CO2 concentration. Additionally, low-P significantly decreased the maximum carboxylation rate of Rubisco, the maximum rate of ribulose-1,5-bisphosphate regeneration, the effective quantum yield of PSII photochemistry, photochemical quenching coefficient, and electron transport rate, but increased the nonphotochemical quenching. However, the maximal quantum yield of PSII photochemistry was not significantly affected by low-P. High phosphorus (2.56 mM) caused only a slight decrease in gas-exchange parameters. Therefore, the decrease in growth of P-deficient Z. latifolia plants could be attributed to the lowered photosynthetic rate.