Rapid metabolic discrimination and prediction of dioscin content from African yam tubers using Fourier transform-infrared spectroscopy combined with multivariate analysis.

To determine whether or not FT-IR spectroscopy could be used for taxonomic and metabolic discrimination of African yam lines, tuber samples from African and Asian yam species were subjected to FT-IR. Most remarkable spectral differences between African and Asian yams were found in the 1750-1700 cm(-1) region, polysaccharide (1200-900 cm(-1)) and protein/amide I and II (1700-1500 cm(-1)) regions of FT-IR spectra. A hierarchical dendrogram based on partial least square-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) of FT-IR data from 7 African yam species show phylogenetic relationship.

Discrimination of cultivation ages and cultivars of ginseng leaves using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy combined with multivariate analysis.

To determine whether Fourier transform (FT)-IR spectral analysis combined with multivariate analysis of whole-cell extracts from ginseng leaves can be applied as a high-throughput discrimination system of cultivation ages and cultivars, a total of total 480 leaf samples belonging to 12 categories corresponding to four different cultivars (Yunpung, Kumpung, Chunpung, and an open-pollinated variety) and three different cultivation ages (1 yr, 2 yr, and 3 yr) were subjected to FT-IR. The spectral data were analyzed by principal component analysis and partial least squares-discriminant analysis. A dendrogram based on hierarchical clustering analysis of the FT-IR spectral data on ginseng leaves showed that leaf samples were initially segregated into three groups in a cultivation age-dependent manner.

Successful genetic transformation of Chinese cabbage using phosphomannose isomerase as a selection marker.

A mannose selection system was adapted for use in the Agrobacterium-mediated transformation of Chinese cabbage. This system makes use of the pmi gene that encodes phosphomannose isomerase, which converts mannose-6-phosphate to fructose-6-phosphate. Hypocotyl explants from 4-5-day-old seedlings of Chinese cabbage inbred lines were pre-cultured for 2-3 days and then infected with Agrobacterium.

Development of a molecular marker specific to a novel CMS line in radish (Raphanus sativus L.).

In this study, we have investigated the cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) of a novel male sterile radish line, designated NWB CMS. The NWB CMS was crossed with 16 fertile breeding lines, and all the progenies were completely male sterile. The degree of male sterility exhibited by NWB CMS is more than Ogura CMS from the Cruciferae family.

PPI1: a novel pathogen-induced basic region-leucine zipper (bZIP) transcription factor from pepper.

We have isolated a full-length cDNA, PPI1 (pepper-PMMV interaction 1), encoding a novel basic region-leucine zipper (bZIP) DNA-binding protein, from expressed sequence tags differentially expressed in Capsicum chinense P1257284 infected with Pepper mild mottle virus (PMMV). PPI1 encodes a predicted protein of 170 amino acids and contains a putative DNA-binding domain that shares significant amino acid identity with ACGT-binding domains of members of the bZIP DNA-binding protein family. PPI1 was localized in the nucleus and had transcriptional activation activity in yeast.