Determination of perfluoroalkyl acids in different tissues of graminaceous plants

A method for the determination of 12 perfluoroalkylacids (PFAA) in vegetal samples was proposed. The analytical procedure was developed to optimize the detention of short-chain PFAA (C<8) due to their...

Understanding the Complexity of Iron Sensing and Signaling Cascades in Plants

Under iron-deficient conditions, plants induce the expression of a set of genes involved in iron uptake and translocation. This response to iron deficiency is regulated by transcriptional networks mediated by transcription factors (TFs) and protein-level modification of key factors by ubiquitin ligases. Several of the basic helix–loop–helix TFs and the HRZ/BTS ubiquitin ligases are conserved across graminaceous and non-graminaceous plants. Other regulators are specific, such as IDEF1 and IDEF2 in graminaceous plants and FIT/FER and MYB10/72 in non-graminaceous plants. IMA/FEP peptides positively regulate the iron-deficiency responses in a wide range of plants by unknown mechanisms. Direct binding of iron or other metals to some key regulators, including HRZ/BTS and IDEF1, may be responsible for intracellular iron-sensing and -signaling events. In addition, key TFs such as FIT and IDEF1 interact with various proteins involved in signaling pathways of plant hormones, oxidative stress and metal abundance. Thus, FIT and IDEF1 might function as hubs for the integration of environmental signals to modulate the responses to iron deficiency. In addition to local iron signaling, root iron responses are modulated by shoot-derived long-distance signaling potentially mediated by phloem-mobile substances such as iron, iron chelates and IMA/FEP peptides.

Endophytes and Their Role in Phytoremediation and Biotransformation Process

This chapter discusses the endophytic bacteria and their role in agriculture. The endophytes help in the plant growth by various mechanisms and also help in disease control. The capability of colonizing internal host tissues of plant has made endophytic bacteria valuable for agriculture to improve crop performance. Various endophytic diazotrophic bacteria colonize primarily the root interior of graminaceous plants. The review also discusses the role of endophytes in phytoremediation and induced systemic resistance. Endophytes have found important role in the production of many bioactive compounds, which have various applications (e.g., antibiotics, antimicrobial compounds). The contributions of this research field will have economic and environmental impacts.

THE INFLUENCE OF ROAD MAINTENANCE SUBSTANCES ON THE GROWTH OF GRAMINACEOUS PLANTS

The article describes the experimental research on the effect of road maintenance materials on three species of graminaceous plants. The experiment was carried out using technical granular sodium chloride (NaCl) treated with potassium hexacyanoferrate – a road maintenance material most widely applied in wintertime in Lithuania. As an alternative, an organic material obtained on the basis of molasses, patented under the name of Safecote in Europe, was selected for the experiment. Three species of gramineous plants, most frequently used for roadside planting in Lithuania when building new and reconstructing or renovating the existing motor roads, were analysed: perennial ryegrass(Lolium perenne L.), meadow fescue (Festuca pratensis Huds.), and common meadow-grass (Poa pratensis L.).The paper presents experimental findings regarding the effect of road maintenance materials on the parameters of graminaceous plants – the height of the above-ground part and phytomass.

The release of copper-induced phytosiderophores in barley plants is decreased by cadmium stress

A variety of factors affect the release of the mugineic acid family of phytosiderophores (PS) from the roots of graminaceous plants. We investigated the effects of copper (Cu) toxicity with or without cadmium (Cd) toxicity on PS release in barley (Hordeum vulgare L. cv. Minorimugi). To characterise the effect of Cu toxicity on PS release, 10 μmol·L−1 Cu (a 100-fold higher concentration than the control condition) was added to the plant culture medium. The results showed that PS release from the roots was stimulated in response to Cu toxicity. In a second experiment, 5 μmol·L−1 Cu was added to the medium with or without the addition of 5 μmol·L−1 Cd. In this experiment, the release of PS was drastically reduced in response to Cd. We suggest that Cu toxicity in barley is a signal that activates PS release by plant roots, whereas PS release induced by Cu toxicity is strongly attenuated by Cd toxicity. We propose that inhibition of PS release could be one of the harmful effects of Cd toxicity in plants. Our results provide new information about one of the responses of graminaceous plants to heavy metal stress.