Chemotypic diversity of bioprotective grass endophytes based on genome analyses, with new insights from a Mediterranean-climate region in Isfahan Province, Iran.

species are systemic, often seed-transmissible symbionts (endophytes) of cool-season grasses (Poaceae subfam. Poöideae) that produce up to four classes of bioprotective alkaloids. Whereas haploid species may reproduce sexually and transmit between host plants (horizontally), many species are polyploid hybrids that are exclusively transmitted via seeds (vertically).

Physiological and antioxidant responses of synthetic hexaploid wheat germplasm under drought.

Background: As a result of the world population and climate change impact increases (especially in arid environments), there is a critical need for high-yield, drought-tolerant wheat. Synthetic hexaploid wheat derived lines (SHW-DL), were created artificially by crossing different durum wheat cultivars (AABB) with accessions of Aegilops tauschii (DD), a beneficial source of new genes for common bread wheat (Triticum aestivum L). Here, we studied the response of a panel of 91 SHW-DL for drought tolerance based on physiological, antioxidant enzyme activities, and drought tolerance indices.

Quality assessment of flax advanced breeding lines varying in seed coat color and their potential use in the food and industrial applications.

Background: With the increasing consumer awareness of the strong relationship between food and health, flax became a promising functional food due to its bioactive nutraceutical composition. Intra-specific crosses of eight contrasting flax genotypes were performed previously, and within segregating F6 progeny families, we investigated a close-up composition of phytochemicals derived from whole seeds.

Results: The considerable genetic variation among the flax F6 families suggested that intra-specific hybridization is essential in flax breeding to obtain and broaden genetic variability and largely affirmed the opportunity for selecting promising lines.

Characterization of 14 Triticum species for the NAM-B1 gene and its associated traits.

Background: Wheat grain protein, zinc (Zn), and iron (Fe) content are important wheat qualities crucial for human nutrition and health worldwide. Increasing these three components simultaneously in wheat grains by a single gene came into the picture through NAM-B1 cloning. NAM-B1 gene and its association with the mentioned grain quality traits have been primarily studied in common and durum wheat and their progenitors T.

Water Stress and Seed Color Interacting to Impact Seed and Oil Yield, Protein, Mucilage, and Secoisolariciresinol Diglucoside Content in Cultivated Flax ( L.).

Flaxseed ( L.) is a plant with a wide range of medicinal, health, nutritional, and industrial uses. This study assessed the genetic potential of yellow and brown seeds in thirty F4 families under different water conditions concerning seed yield, oil, protein, fiber, mucilage, and lignans content.

Drought adaptability of different subspecies of tetraploid wheat (Triticum turgidum) under contrasting moisture conditions: Association with solvent retention capacity and quality-related traits.

Few prior efforts have been made to investigate the genetic potential of different subspecies of Triticum turgidum for drought tolerance and their quality-related traits compared with common wheat (Triticum aestivum) and to identify the association among agronomic, micronutrients, and quality-related traits, especially under climate change conditions. In this research, grain quality, technological properties of flour, and some agronomic traits were studied in 33 wheat genotypes from six different subspecies of Triticum turgidum along with three cultivars of Triticum aestivum in the field, applying a well-watering (WW) and a water stress (WS) environment during two growing seasons. A high degree of variation was observed among genotypes for all evaluated traits, demonstrating that selection for these traits would be successful.

Association analysis revealed loci linked to post-drought recovery and traits related to persistence of smooth bromegrass (Bromus inermis).

Association analysis has been proven as a powerful tool for the genetic dissection of complex traits. This study was conducted to identify association of recovery, persistence, and summer dormancy with sequence related amplified polymorphism (SRAP) markers in 36 smooth bromegrass genotypes under two moisture conditions and find stable associations. In this study, a diverse panel of polycross-derived progenies of smooth bromegrass was phenotyped under normal and water deficit regimes for three consecutive years.

Potentials of synthetic hexaploid wheats to improve drought tolerance.

Synthetic hexaploid wheat-derived lines (SHW-DL) offers new hope for breeders to restore genes lost during the evolutionary bottleneck. The study of adaptability, variation, and the possibility of selection in SHW-DL for drought tolerance is poorly understood in arid environments. The potential of 184 SHW-DL and their variation for agro-morphological traits were assessed under normal and water stress conditions for 2 years.

Revealing seed color variation and their possible association with yield and quality traits in a diversity panel of flax ( L.).

Seed color is a vital quality determinant of flax, significant for consumers' acceptability, and determines the commercial values of seeds. Also, seed color as a phenotypic marker may be a convenient way to select the plants with desired traits. This study assessed a diversity panel representing 144 flax genotypes from diverse geographical origins for the existence of genetic variability for luminosity (L*) and chromaticity (a* and b*) seed color parameters, seed yield, and quality traits over two years.

Combined foliar application of Zn and Fe increases grain micronutrient concentrations and alleviates water stress across diverse wheat species and ploidal levels.

This study aimed to examine the reaction of several wheat species with different ploidy levels to foliar application of zinc (Zn) and iron (Fe) under different water regimes. Thirty-five wheat genotypes, including nineteen tetraploids from ten different species, ten hexaploids from five species, and six diploids from three species, were evaluated in the field over two moisture regimes with the following four treatments: control, foliar Zn application, foliar Fe application, and foliar Zn + Fe application. The experiments were conducted according to a split-plot scheme in a randomized complete block design with two replications in each moisture regime.

Overexpression of Gene in Three Filial Generations of Rice Transgenic Lines.

Background: Glycinebetaine (GB) accumulation in many halophytic plants, animals, and microorganisms confers abiotic stress tolerance to salinity, drought, and extreme temperatures. Although there are a few genetic and biochemical pathways to synthesize GB, but isolation of a single gene () from spp. have opened a new hatch to engineer the susceptible plants.

Water stress intensified the relation of seed color with lignan content and seed yield components in flax (Linum usitatissimum L.).

This study aimed to investigate the effect of yellow and brown seed coat color of flax on lignan content, seed yield, and yield components under two contrasting environments of non-stress and water stress conditions. The water stress environment intensified the discrimination between the two seed color groups as the yellow seeded families had lower values for seed yield components under the water stress. Heritability and the genetic advance for seed yield were significantly higher in brown-seeded families than those of yellow-seeded ones at water stress conditions.

Evolution of species revealed through sequence analyses of the gene family.

The diversity of 11 fatty acid desaturase () genes has not been investigated between cultivated and wild species in the genus. In this study, 17 accessions and 28 accessions from other species were subjected to sequence analyses of this gene family. Results showed that among these genes, - had a major role in the conversion of oleic acid to linoleic acid.

Proteomics analysis of Medicago truncatula response to infection by the phytopathogenic bacterium Ralstonia solanacearum points to jasmonate and salicylate defence pathways.

The infection of the model legume Medicago truncatula with Ralstonia solanacearum GMI1000 gives rise to bacterial wilt disease via colonisation of roots. The root and leaf responses to early infection (1 and 3 days post infection) were characterised to investigate the molecular mechanisms of plant resistance or susceptibility. A proteomics approach based on pools of susceptible and resistant recombinant inbred lines was used to specifically target the mechanisms for tolerance.

Assessment of the Genetic Diversity Among Potato Cultivars from Different Geographical Areas Using the Genomic and EST Microsatellites.

Background: Potato has a narrow genetic base which is due to its development, as it takes its genetic root from a few genotypes originated from South America.

Objectives: The objective of this study was to assess the genetic relationships among potato ( L.) genotypes originated from different geographical regions.

Protein engineering of Bacillus thermocatenulatus lipase via deletion of the α5 helix.

Lipases from Bacillus thermocatenulatus are a member of superfamily of α/β hydrolase, but there are structural differences between them. In this work, we focused on the α5 helix of B. thermocatenulatus lipase (BTL2) which is absent in canonical α/β hydrolase fold.

Discrimination between two rice metallothionein isoforms belonging to type 1 and type 4 in metal-binding ability.

Metallothioneins (MTs) are a superfamily of low-molecular-weight, cysteine (Cys)-rich proteins that are believed to play important roles in protection against metal toxicity and oxidative stress. Plants have several MT isoforms, which are classified into four types based on the arrangement of Cys residues. In this study, two rice (Oryza sativa) MT isoforms, OsMTI-1b and OsMTII-1a from type 1 and type 4, respectively, were heterologously expressed in Escherichia coli as carboxy-terminal extensions of glutathione-S-transferase (GST).

Heterologous expression and metal-binding characterization of a type 1 metallothionein isoform (OsMTI-1b) from rice (Oryza sativa).

Metallothioneins (MTs) are ubiquitous, low molecular mass and cysteine-rich proteins that play important roles in maintaining intracellular metal homeostasis, eliminating metal toxification and protecting the cells against oxidative damages. MTs are able to bind metal ions through the thiol groups of their cysteine residues. Plants have several MT isoforms which are classified into four types based on the arrangement of cysteine residues.

Molecular evidence for Neotyphodium fungal endophyte variation and specificity within host grass species.

Host specificity of Neotyphodium species symbiotic with three grass species, Festuca arundinacea, Festuca pratensis and Lolium perenne, was studied based on comparisons of amplified fragment length polymorphisms (AFLP) between hosts and their corresponding endophytes. Endophytic fungi were isolated from 24 accessions of host plants. Neotyphodium identity was determined based on morphological characteristics observed in cultures and polymerase chain reaction analysis using specific primers.

Effect of endophytic fungi on cadmium tolerance and bioaccumulation by Festuca arundinacea and Festuca pratensis.

Endophytic fungi are a group of fungi that live asymptomatically inside plant tissue. These fungi may increase host plant tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses. The effect of Neotyphodium endophytes in two grass species (Festuca arundinacea and Festuca pratensis) on cadmium (Cd) tolerance, accumulation and translocation has been our main objective.

Widespread occurrence of Neotyphodium-like endophyte in populations of Bromus tomentellus Boiss. in Iran.

Neotyphodium species occur as endophytic fungi in cool-season grasses around the world. The beneficial aspects of grass-Neotyphodium associations have provoked researchers to look for a novel association in plant species where this symbiotum has not been reported. We surveyed Russian bromegrass (Bromus tomentellus Boiss.