Plant seed production of biopharmaceuticals: Bridging red and green biotechnology

Calyptrogyne ghiesbreghtiana Linden ex. H. Wendl. is an understorey palm that occurs at La Selva Biological Station, Costa Rica. In this paper I combine analysis of natural variation and results of experimental manipulations to ask (1) what limits seed production? and (2) what processes cause variation in seed production by C. ghiesbreghtiana? The number of seed produced per inflorescence ofC. ghiesbreghtiana was limited substantially by the loss of female flowers to floral herbivores. Much variation in the number of seed produced perinflorescence of C. ghiesbreghtiana was due to losses of developing fruits to predators. Together these phenomena illustrate the influential role of natural enemies in the reproductive success of this plant. Seed-set efficiency (number of seeds/number of female flowers) was highly variable in this species, and such high levels of variation appear to be common in other species. For species with highly variable seed-set efficiency, the role of resource allocation to flower production in determining differences in seed production among individual plants is likely to be relatively small.

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Inter-annual variation in seed production has increased over time (1900–2014)

Proceedings of The Royal Society B Biological Sciences ◽

10.1098/rspb.2017.1666 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 284 (1868) ◽

pp. 20171666 ◽

Cited By ~ 30

Author(s):

Ian S. Pearse ◽

Jalene M. LaMontagne ◽

Walter D. Koenig

Keyword(s):

Seed Production ◽

Seed Set ◽

Global Climate ◽

Mast Seeding ◽

Plant Seed ◽

Subtle Change ◽

Animal Populations ◽

Wide Range ◽

Seed Crops ◽

Over Time

Mast seeding, or masting, is the highly variable and spatially synchronous production of seeds by a population of plants. The production of variable seed crops is typically correlated with weather, so it is of considerable interest whether global climate change has altered the variability of masting or the size of masting events. We compiled 1086 datasets of plant seed production spanning 1900–2014 and from around the world, and then analysed whether the coefficient of variation (CV) in seed set, a measure of masting, increased over time. Over this 115-year period, seed set became more variable for plants as a whole and for the particularly well-studied taxa of conifers and oaks. The increase in CV corresponded with a decrease in the long-term mean of seed set of plant species. Seed set CV increased to a greater degree in plant taxa with a tendency towards masting. Seed set is becoming more variable among years, especially for plant taxa whose masting events are known to affect animal populations. Such subtle change in reproduction can have wide-ranging effects on ecosystems because seed crops provide critical resources for a wide range of taxa and have cascading effects throughout food webs.

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Allelopathic effect of two medicinal plants on seed germination, seedling growth and grain production of purslane (Portulaca oleraceae L.) weed

Acta agriculturae Slovenica ◽

10.14720/aas.2018.111.2.05 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 111 (2) ◽

pp. 293

Author(s):

Seyed Nader MOUSAVIAN ◽

Hamdollah ESKANDARI

Keyword(s):

Seed Germination ◽

Seed Production ◽

Plant Species ◽

Seedling Growth ◽

Dry Mass ◽

Stem Length ◽

Plant Residues ◽

Allelopathic Effect ◽

Plant Seed ◽

Artemisia Sieberi

A laboratory factorial (2 × 5) experiment was carried out based on completely randomized block in four replications to evaluate the effect of plant species and concentration of their allelopathic extracts on seed germination and seedling growth of purslane weed (Portulaca oleraceae L.). The first factor studied was plant species (Artemisia sieberi and Salvia syriaca) and the second one the concentration percentage of plant ethanol extract (0.0, 5 %, 10 %, 15 % and 20 %). The effect of Artemisia on germination reduction of purslane was stronger compared to Salvia. The results indicated that higher extract concentration led to decreased germination percentage, germination speed and seedling growth indices of purslane including leaf length, leaf number, leaf width, leaf dry mass, stem mass and stem length. The effect of Artemisia was higher than that of Salvia. In a complementary experiment, the effect plant residues of Artemisia and Salvia (0.0, 1, 2, 3 and 4 g kg-1 soil) were evaluated in a factorial experiment base on completely randomized block design with three replications. The results of field experiment showed that plant residues significantly (P ≤ 0.01) reduced capsule number per plant, seed number per capsule, seed production and shoot dry mass, while its effect on 1000-seed mass was not substantial. The effect of plant species and the interaction of plant species and their allelopathic extracts concentration had no major impact on the above-mentioned properties. The increase in plant residues in soil, led to the reduction of growth and seed production of purslane induced by plant number per unit area and capsule per plant. Artemisia sieberi Bess. and Salvia syriaca L. residues can be successfully used for non-chemical control of purslane weed.

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Dynamics of Subeconomic Threshold Populations of Sicklepod (Cassia obtusifolia) in a Peanut-Cotton-Corn Rotation

Weed Science ◽

10.1017/s0043174500076633 ◽

1994 ◽

Vol 42 (3) ◽

pp. 364-368 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

W. Carroll Johnson ◽

John Cardina ◽

Benjamin G. Mullinix

Keyword(s):

Seed Production ◽

Weed Management ◽

Cropping System ◽

First Year ◽

Experimental Site ◽

Plant Seed ◽

Economic Thresholds ◽

Native Populations ◽

Summer Fallow ◽

Rotation Sequence

Studies were conducted from 1987 to 1990 to measure the dynamics of sicklepod established at subeconomic threshold populations in a peanut-cotton-corn cropping system. The experimental site had no native populations of sicklepod prior to initiation of the study. Main plots were crops in the rotation sequence plus continuous summer fallow (no crop). Subplots were: sicklepod established in the initial year of the study, sicklepod established every year of the study, and no sicklepod. Sicklepod was established at subeconomic threshold densities to simulate weed survival and seed production in fields where economic thresholds were the basis for weed management decisions. Sicklepod growing alone in fallow plots produced more seed per plant, resulting in significantly more seedlings throughout the study than sicklepod growing with crops. Sicklepod growing in corn produced the fewest seed per plant. Seed produced from subeconomic threshold densities established only in the first year caused 7-, 21-, and 20-fold increases in sicklepod populations during the next three seasons compared to the nontreated control.

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The interplay between ovule number, pollination and resources as determinants of seed set in a modular plant

PeerJ ◽

10.7717/peerj.5384 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 6 ◽

pp. e5384 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

Marina M. Strelin ◽

Marcelo A. Aizen

Keyword(s):

Resource Allocation ◽

Seed Production ◽

Seed Set ◽

Pollen Limitation ◽

Rubus Idaeus ◽

Physiological Integration ◽

Open Pollination ◽

Plant Resources ◽

Plant Seed ◽

Ovule Number

BackgroundA classical dichotomous perspective proposes that either pollination or plant resources limit seed production. However, ovule number could also be limiting when pollination results in complete ovule fertilization and there are more plant resources available than needed to develop seeds. Moreover, this dichotomous view assumes that all flowers of a plant have equal access to a shared pool of resources, although these are frequently compartmentalized within plant modules, for example, inflorescences. How ovule number, pollination and resources affect seed production in physiologically-compartmentalized rather than physiologically-integrated plants has yet to be explored. We used raspberry (Rubus idaeus) to address this question.MethodsWe first assessed if ovule number affected the fraction of ovules that develop into seed (i.e., seed set) and whether this effect related to the extent of physiological integration among flowers within plants. This was achieved by statistically testing predictions on the sign and level of plant organization (i.e., among flowers within inflorescences, among inflorescences within ramets, and among ramets) of the relation between ovule number and seed set given different degrees of physiological integration. We then explored whether the relation between ovule number and seed set was affected by plant age (used here as a surrogate of resource availability) and pollination intensity (open-pollination vs. exclusion).ResultsWithin inflorescences, flowers with more ovules set a larger fraction of seeds. On the other hand, seed set at the inflorescence level was negatively related to the average number of ovules per flower. Seed set increased with ovule number and open-pollination, and decreased with ramet age. However, ovule number explained more variation in seed set than ramet age and pollination treatment. Ramet age affected the strength of the relation of seed set to ovule number, which was stronger in old than young ramets. Pollination did not alter the strength of this relation to any significant extent.DiscussionResults reveal the importance of ovule number as an overriding factor affecting seed set. Within inflorescences, resources appear to be differentially allocated to developing fruits from flowers with many ovules. This is consistent with the fact that in the raspberry a large proportion of the carbon invested in fruit development is fixed by the inflorescence subtending leaf. Differential resource allocation to flowers with many ovules is not affected by pollinator exclusion, being stronger in resource-exhausted ramets. This suggests that the effects of pollen limitation and resource allocation are compartmentalized at the inflorescence level. Consequently, modular plants can be viewed as reproductive mosaics where either ovule number, pollination or resources limit the number of seeds set by different flowers, so that improvements in any of them could increase plant seed production.

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Reproductive allometry in four annual weeds

Australian Journal of Botany ◽

10.1071/bt18087 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 67 (2) ◽

pp. 99

Author(s):

A. C. Guglielmini ◽

A. M. C. Verdú ◽

E. H. Satorre

Keyword(s):

Seed Production ◽

Weed Management ◽

Plant Biomass ◽

Cropping Systems ◽

Quantitative Relationship ◽

Linear Functions ◽

Seed Number ◽

Weed Species ◽

Plant Seed ◽

Biomass Plant

Differences in plant biomass/plant seed production relationship imply that plants suppressed by competition to the same extent, may not suffer the same reduction in seed number setting. This size-dependent process evidenced by the quantitative relationship between plant growth and allocation to reproductive structures can be considered from an allometric perspective. The aim of this study was to describe the reproductive allometry of four annual weed species of the Pampas cropping systems by modelling the plant biomass/plant seed production relationship in Digitaria sanguinalis, Amaranthus hybridus, Setaria verticillata and Chenopodium album. To achieve this goal, two experiments developed during two consecutive growing periods (Experiments 1 and 2) were set up under greenhouse conditions. Weed species were grown in monocultures and in binary mixtures, with each other and with soybean crop, to obtain plants of different size after the effect of intra and interspecific competition. Data per plant regarding biomass versus seed number production considering monocultures and mixtures from Experiments 1 and 2 were analysed for each species using linear regression. Parameters of the linear functions fitted for C. album, S. verticillata and D. sanguinalis did not differ between experiments and data were pooled. Thus, three single specific models were obtained with the same intercept of zero (y-axis intercept when x = 0 was zero) and different slopes, 1122, 69 and 130 seeds g plant biomass–1 respectively. In the case of A. hybridus, the slopes were different in Experiments 1 (123 seeds g plant biomass–1) and 2 (74 seeds g plant biomass–1). Moreover, reproductive allocation changed allometrically under highly competitive stress since small plants failed to set seeds, unless a plant biomass threshold was attained (x-axis intercept when y = 0 was positive). Besides the ecological interpretation in reproductive output, implications in weed management are considered.

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Using Plant Volume to Quantify Interference in Corn (Zea mays) Neighborhoods

Weed Science ◽

10.1017/s0043174500081698 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 43 (4) ◽

pp. 586-594 ◽

Cited By ~ 25

Author(s):

Brett H. Bussler ◽

Bruce D. Maxwell ◽

Klaus J. Puettmann

Keyword(s):

Seed Production ◽

Volume Ratio ◽

Weed Species ◽

Plant Seed ◽

Weed Population ◽

Canopy Area ◽

Independent Variable ◽

Interference Models ◽

The Relationship ◽

Target Plant

Measurements of above-ground plant volume were used to quantify corn interference with common cocklebur and velvetleaf. Separate experiments were carried out for each weed species in which neighborhoods with a radius of 50 cm were established around target plants of both species, selected from a range of corn plus cocklebur or velvetleaf densities. Height and canopy area of target plants and neighbor corn and weed populations were measured periodically during the growing season. Target plant (corn, cocklebur, or velvetleaf) size as well as corn and weed population size within each neighborhood were quantified as cylindrical volumes. Regression analysis was used to quantify the relationship between target plant seed production and cylindrical volumes of the target and neighbor species. Both target and neighbor plant volumes were correlated with target plant seed production for all species. The ratio of target plant volume to total neighborhood plant volume (volume ratio) was the independent variable that accounted for the most variation in target plant seed production. These volume-based variables may be used to develop competitive indices in physico-empirical based interference models.

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Moist-soil Plant Seed Production for Waterfowl at Chautauqua National Wildlife Refuge, Illinois

The American Midland Naturalist ◽

10.1674/0003-0031(2005)154[0331:mpspfw]2.0.co;2 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 154 (2) ◽

pp. 331-341 ◽

Cited By ~ 33

Author(s):

MATTHEW W. BOWYER ◽

JOSHUA D. STAFFORD ◽

AARON P. YETTER ◽

CHRISTOPHER S. HINE ◽

MICHELLE M. HORATH ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Seed Production ◽

Moist Soil ◽

National Wildlife Refuge ◽

Plant Seed ◽

Wildlife Refuge

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Widespread vulnerability of flowering plant seed production to pollinator declines

Science Advances ◽

10.1126/sciadv.abd3524 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 7 (42) ◽

Author(s):

James G. Rodger ◽

Joanne M. Bennett ◽

Mialy Razanajatovo ◽

Tiffany M. Knight ◽

Mark van Kleunen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Seed Production ◽

Flowering Plant ◽

Plant Seed ◽

Pollinator Declines

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Seed production potentiality in yield and quality of eggplant (Solanum melongena L.) Grown under summer and winter seasons

Bangladesh Journal of Agricultural Research ◽

10.3329/bjar.v42i3.34502 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 42 (3) ◽

pp. 437-446

Author(s):

MB Rahman ◽

MM Hossain ◽

MM Haque ◽

NA Ivy ◽

S Ahmad

Keyword(s):

Seed Production ◽

Seed Yield ◽

Field Experiments ◽

Fruit Set ◽

Seed Quality ◽

Winter Season ◽

Solanum Melongena ◽

Seasonal Effect ◽

Plant Seed

Two separate field experiments were conducted at the Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Agricultural University, Gazipur during April to October 2012 (summer season) and October 2012 to March 2013 (winter season) to evaluate and compare the seasonal effect on fruit set, seed yield and seed quality of eggplant. Six eggplant varieties (BARI Begun-1, BARI Begun-5, BARI Begun- 6, BARI Begun-8, BARI Begun-9 and Khotkhotia) were grown separately with proper isolation in both the seasons. Significant variation in fruit set per plant, seed yield per fruit and seed quality of eggplant were observed due to execution of growing seasons. The highest seed yield per fruit was obtained from BARI Begun-6 in both the seasons. Number of fruits per plant, seeds per fruit and 1000-seed weight showed the highest in winter season (October to March) as a result the highest seed yield was obtained from the same season. Winter season also showed the best seed quality attributes like germination (%), co-efficient of germination and vigour index irrespective of variety used. Based on seed yield and seed quality, winter season (October to March) found to be more favourable for quality seed production of eggplant in Bangladesh condition.Bangladesh J. Agril. Res. 42(3): 437-446, September 2017

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