Lutein is a health promoting xanthophyll that may be extracted from marigold flowers. But the plant is known also for biosynthesis of phototoxic polythiophenes. Extracts of flowers of some Tagetes species grown in Belgorod (RF) T. erecta L. (cv. Gavaii) , T. patula L. (cv. Petit orange), T. tenuifolia Cav. (unknown cv.), and T. lucida Cav. were investigated by thin layer chromatography (TLC) an...

Gibberellin (GA) signalling during pumpkin male flower development is highly regulated, including biosynthetic, perception, and transduction pathways. GA 20-oxidases, 3-oxidases, and 2-oxidases catalyse the final part of GA synthesis. Additionally, 7-oxidase initiates this part of the pathway in some cucurbits including Cucurbita maxima L. (pumpkin). Expression patterns for these GA-oxidase-enc...

Flowering plants employ a wide variety of signals, including scent, to attract the attention of pollinators. In this study we investigated the role of floral scent in mediating differential attraction between two species of monkeyflowers (Mimulus) reproductively isolated by pollinator preference. The emission rate and chemical identity of floral volatiles differ between the bumblebee-pollinated...

An overview is given of 18 Thysanoptera species found on Ethiopian cut flowers, cuttings and vegetables during import inspection in the Netherlands. Consignments consisted mostly of cut flowers, in total belonging to twelve plant genera. Details on geographical distribution and host plants of the thrips encountered are given, and two are newly described: T. cacuminis sp. n. and T. dezeeuwi sp. ...

In recent years Petunia has become a promising model system for studying the genetics and evolution of pollination syndromes. Here we provide a brief introduction to the issue of pollination syndromes, explain why Petunia is a suitable model for its study, present useful background information about pollinators and plants, review recent studies, and discuss questions related to the genetics and...

On a global scale, people are demanding more attractive and tasty food. Both the quality of foodstuffs and aesthetic aspects contribute to the appearance of consumed meals. The attraction and appeal of individual dishes could be enhanced by edible flowers. New information concerning the composition and nutritional value of edible flowers is also important and represents a sufficient reason for ...

Australian crab spiders Thomisus spectabilis ambush pollinating insects, such as honeybees (Apis mellifera) on flowers, and can change their body colour between yellow and white. It is traditionally assumed that the spiders change their colour to match the flower colour, thus rendering them cryptic to insect prey. Here, we test this assumption combining state-of-the-art knowledge of bee vision ...

Quantitative real-time reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) is the most commonly used and powerful method for gene expression analysis due to its high sensitivity, specificity, and high throughput, and the accuracy of this approach depends on the stability of reference genes used for normalization. Taihangia rupestris Yu and Li (Rosaceae), an andromonoecious plant, produces...

The present investigation was carried out to determine the nutritional and functional properties of T. cucumerina. Water extracts of freeze dried flowers, fruits, and leaves of T. cucumerina were evaluated for their total phenolic content (TPC), total flavonoid content (TFC), antioxidant activity, α-amylase inhibitory activity, and fiber and mineral contents. Antioxidant activity, TPC, and TFC ...

honeybees like the other animal creatures require proteins, fats, carbohydrates, minerals vitamins and water for their maintenance, growth and reproduction. normally they obtain their nutritional requirements from flowers but there are times when there aren’t sufficient flowers within reach they become in need of supplemental feeding. some such nutritional substances as soybeans, glutens, yeast...