Reproducible and efficient high-throughput phenotyping approaches, combined with advances in genome sequencing, are facilitating the discovery of genes affecting plant performance. Salinity tolerance is a desirable trait that can be achieved through breeding, where most have aimed at selecting for plants that perform effective ion exclusion from the shoots. To determine overall plant performanc...

Banana production is severely hindered by plant-parasitic nematodes in acidic, sandy soil. This study investigated the possibility of applying a novel fumigation agent based on ammonium bicarbonate as a strategy for controlling plant-parasitic nematodes under sealed conditions. Moreover, its effects on the nematode community in pot and field experiments were also measured using morphology and f...

Plants have to fine-tune their signals to optimise the trade-off between herbivore deterrence and pollinator attraction. An important mechanism in mediating plant-insect interactions is the regulation of gene expression via DNA methylation. However, the effect of herbivore-induced DNA methylation changes on pollinator-relevant plant signalling has not been systematically investigated. Here, we ...

The plant vacuole is a central organelle that is involved in various biological processes throughout the plant life cycle. Elucidating the mechanism of vacuole biogenesis and maintenance is thus the basis for our understanding of these processes. Proper formation of the vacuole has been shown to depend on the intracellular membrane trafficking pathway. Although several mutants with altered vacu...

Objective: To investigate the physico-chemical parameter, preliminary phytochemical screening, fluorescence and Thin Layer Chromatographic analysis of the leaves of the plant Lasia spinosa (Lour) Thwaites. Methods: The fresh and powder leaves of the plant Lasia spinosa (Lour) Thwaites (Araceae) were studied by morphology, preliminary phytochemical screening, and florescence analysis of powdered...

The independent origins of associations between morphology and ecology are often viewed as evidence of adaptation (e.g., Larson and Losos, 1996). There are many examples of morphological and ecological convergence among bats that are linked to diet. One of the most widely cited instances of trophic convergence is the independent evolution of plant-visiting in the families Pteropodidae (Old Worl...

We studied the effects on plant growth from insertion of five cisgenes that encode proteins involved in gibberellin metabolism or signalling. Intact genomic copies of PtGA20ox7, PtGA2ox2,Pt RGL1_1, PtRGL1_2 and PtGAI1 genes from the genome-sequenced Populus trichocarpa clone Nisqually-1 were transformed into Populus tremula × alba (clone INRA 717-1B4), and growth, morphology and xylem cell size...