Chloroplast arrangement in finger millet under low-temperature conditions.

Background: Finger millet, a C plant with mesophyll and bundle sheath cells, has been cultivated at high altitudes in the Himalayas owing to its adaptability to stressful environments. Under environmental stresses such as high light and drought, finger millet mesophyll chloroplasts move toward the bundle sheath, a phenomenon known as aggregative arrangement.

Methods: To investigate the effect of low temperatures on mesophyll chloroplast arrangement in finger millet, we conducted microscopic observations and photochemical measurements using leaves treated at different temperatures in light or darkness, with or without pharmacological inhibitors.

Absorption of acylated anthocyanins from purple yam extract in rats.

Purple yam (Dioscorea alata L.) is a tuber widely distributed in the tropics and subtropics. We previously isolated several acylated anthocyanins from purple yam.

The cytokinin efflux transporter ABCC4 participates in Arabidopsis root system development.

The directional and sequential flow of cytokinin in plants is organized by a complex network of transporters. Genes involved in several aspects of cytokinin transport have been characterized; however, much of the elaborate system remains elusive. In this study, we used a transient expression system in tobacco (Nicotiana benthamiana) leaves to screen Arabidopsis (Arabidopsis thaliana) transporter genes and isolated ATP-BINDING CASSETTE TRANSPORTER C4 (ABCC4).

Direct plasma treatment of caryopses after flowering in brewer's rice cultivar Yamadanishiki enhanced those grain qualities through "Smart Agriculture System".

In present investigation, the effort is done to enhance the grain quality in brewer's rice cultivar Yamadanishiki with the plasma treatment of caryopsis (rice fruit) on ripening process. Seedlings transplanted from a paddy field into pots were grown in a greenhouse, and each caryopsis was treated with plasma on 1, 5, 10 and 15 days after flowering (DAF). The ratio of white-core grains to total number of grains was decreased in the grains treated on DAF1, same level on DAF5, and increased on DAF10 and 15, respectively, compared with control grains.