Host Suitability of Lettuce and Bean Germplasm for and Isolates from Spain.

spp. are an important threat to horticulture and cause substantial yield losses. Plant resistance is an alternative control method for chemical nematicides.

Regulation of Carotenoid Biosynthesis and Degradation in Lettuce ( L.) from Seedlings to Harvest.

Lettuce ( L.) is one of the commercially important leafy vegetables worldwide. However, lettuce cultivars vary widely in their carotenoid concentrations at the time of harvest.

Thermal disruption of the food matrix of biofortified lettuce varieties modifies absorption of carotenoids by Caco-2 cells.

Amongst green leafy vegetables, new varieties of lettuce enriched in lutein and β-carotene are being developed to provide increased supply of dietary carotenoids. We investigated the effect of lettuce genotypes (varieties) and thermal treatments on lutein and β-carotene bioaccessibility to the micellar fraction (and also carotenoid bioavailability) using a human Caco-2 cell model system. Carotenoid absorption by mammalian cells is not correlated with initial carotenoid concentration in fresh lettuce leaves.

New insights into tomato microRNAs.

Cultivated tomato, Solanum lycopersicum, is one of the most common fruits in the global food industry. Together with the wild tomato Solanum pennellii, it is widely used for developing better cultivars. MicroRNAs affect mRNA regulation, inhibiting its translation and/or promoting its degradation.

Combining ability of summer-squash lines with different degrees of parthenocarpy and PRSV-W resistance.

The aim was to assess heterosis in a set of 16 summer-squash hybrids, and evaluate the combining capacity of the respective parental lines, which differed as to the degree of parthenocarpy and resistance to PRSV-W (Papaya Ringspot Virus-Watermelon strain). The hybrids were obtained using a partial diallel cross design (4 × 4). The lines of parental group I were 1 = ABX-037G-77-03-05-01-01-bulk, 2 = ABX-037G-77-03-05-03-10-bulk, 3 = ABX-037G-77-03-05-01-04-bulk and 4 = ABX-037G-77-03-05-05-01-bulk, and of group II, 1' = ABX-037G-77-03-05-04-08-bulk, 2' = ABX-037G-77-03-05-02-11-bulk, 3' = Clarice and 4' = Caserta.

Yield and post-harvest quality of tomato hybrids heterozygous at the loci alcobaça, old gold-crimson or high pigment.

The effects of the fruit ripening mutant gene alcobaça (alc) and color development mutants, old gold-crimson (ogc) and high pigment (hp), on yield and post-harvest quality of tomato fruits were investigated. Five tomato hybrids were obtained by crossing near isogenic lines with Flora-Dade background [Flora-Dade (alc+/alc+ ogc+/ogc+ hp+/hp+), TOM-559 (alc/alc ogc+/ogc+ hp+/hp+), TOM-591 (alc/alc ogc/ogc hp+/hp+), TOM-593 (alc/alc ogc+/ogc+ hp/hp), and TOM-589 (alc/alc ogc/ogc hp/hp)] with the pollen parent line Mospomorist (alc+/alc+ ogc+/ogc+ hp+/hp+). Hybrid fruit was harvested at the breaker stage and stored on shelves at 15oC and 60% relative humidity for 16 days, and then evaluated for firmness, development of red color, and carotenoid contents.

Inheritance of resistance to the root-knot nematode Meloidogyne javanica in lettuce.

Resistance to the root-knot nematodes Meloidogyne spp. would be a valuable attribute of lettuce Lactuca sativa L. cultivars grown in tropical regions.