Both sorbitol and sucrose are imported into apple fruit from leaves. The metabolism of sorbitol and sucrose fuels fruit growth and development, and accumulation of sugars in fruit is central to the edible quality of apple. However, our understanding of the mechanisms controlling sugar metabolism and accumulation in apple remains quite limited. We identified members of various gene families enco...

It has been proposed that fw2.2 encodes a negative fruit-growth regulator that underlies natural fruit-size variation in tomato (Lycopersicon spp.) via heterochronic allelic variation of fw2.2 expression, rather than by variation in the structural protein itself. To further test the negative regulator and the transcriptional control hypotheses, a gene dosage series was constructed, which produc...

Brassinosteroids (BRs) play important roles in plant growth, development, and stress responses through the receptor, Brassinosteroid-insensitive 1 (BRI1), which perceives BRs and initiates BR signaling. There is considerable potential agricultural value in regulating BR signaling in crops. In this study, we investigated the effects of overexpressing the tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) BRI1 gene, ...

Specific binding of 1-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) to crude membrane preparations from cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) was demonstrated. This in vitro binding had a pH optimum of 3.75 and an equilibrium dissociation constant of 10 to 20 micromolar with 1250 picomoles binding sites per gram fresh weight. The NAA-binding sites were pronase sensitive. The supernatant from the fruit partially inhibit...

The effects of pre-sowing magnetic treatments on the growth and yield of tomatoes (cv. Vyta), cultivated late in the season, were studied under field conditions. Tomato seeds were exposed either to a 120 mT dynamic magnetic field (induced by an experimental electromagnet) for 10 min or to a 80 mT field for 5 min. Non-treated seeds were used as controls. Plants were grown in experimental plots (...

Naturally occurring polyamines in plants have been implicated in cell division, metabolic activity, floral initiation, and fruit development. The plant growth regulator BM was formulated to stimulate seed production and fruit growth. In this study, it was hypothesized that the addition of BM would increase levels of polyamines for seed induction and have a direct benefit of improving fertilizat...

The initiation of tomato fruit growth, fruit set, is very sensitive to environmental conditions. Therefore, an understanding of the mechanisms that regulate this process can facilitate the production of this agriculturally valuable fruit crop. Over the years, it has been well established that tomato fruit set depends on successful pollination and fertilization, which trigger the fruit developme...

Genetic modification of crop plants to introduce desirable traits such as nutritional enhancement, disease and pest resistance, and enhanced crop productivity is increasingly seen as a promising technology for sustainable agriculture and boosting food production in the world. Independently, cultural practices that utilize alternative agriculture strategies including organic cultivation subscrib...