Phytotoxicity of Silver Nanoparticles with Different Surface Properties on Monocots and Dicots Model Plants

The aim of the research was to evaluate the effect of three types of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) with different physicochemical properties and silver ions delivered in the form of silver nitrate (AgNO3) at the concentration of 50 mg L−1 on germination and initial growth of monocots (common wheat, sorghum) and dicots (garden cress, white mustard). The AgNPs were prepared using trisodium citrate (TCSB-AgNPs), tannic acid (TA-AgNPs), and cysteamine hydrochloride (CHSB-AgNPs). They exhibited comparable shape, size distribution, and an average size equal to 15 ± 3 nm which was confirmed with the use of transmission electron microscopy. The electrokinetic characteristics revealed that CHSB-AgNPs have positive, whereas TCSB-AgNPs and TA-AgNPs negative surface charge. First, toxicity of the silver compounds was assessed using the Phytotestkit test. Next, after transferring seedlings to pots, shoot length, leaf surface, shoot dry mass, electrolyte leakage measurement, and photosystem II (PSII) efficiency were determined. AgNPs and silver ions delivered in the form of AgNO3 reduced root and shoots length of common wheat, sorghum, and garden cress; leaves surface of garden cress and white mustard; and shoots dry mass of white mustard. The positively charged CHSB-AgNPs and silver ions delivered in the form of AgNO3 showed the greatest inhibition effect. Moreover, silver ions and positively charged CHSB-AgNPs were more toxic to PSII of model plants than negatively charged TCSB-AgNPs and TA-AgNPs. AgNPs impact differed in the case of monocots and dicots, but the size of the changes was not significant, so it concerned individual parameters. The results revealed the interaction strength, which was generally similar in all tested plants, i.e., increasing negative effect in sequence TCSB-AgNPs < TA-AgNPs < silver ions delivered in the form of AgNO3 < CHSB-AgNPs.

Introgression of the Powdery Mildew Resistance Genes Pm60 and Pm60b from Triticum urartu to Common Wheat Using Durum as a ‘Bridge’

Powdery mildew, caused by the fungus Blumeria graminis f. sp. tritici (Bgt), has limited wheat yields in many major wheat-production areas across the world. Introducing resistance genes from wild relatives into cultivated wheat can enrich the genetic resources for disease resistance breeding. The powdery mildew resistance gene Pm60 was first identified in diploid wild wheat Triticum urartu (T. urartu). In this study, we used durum as a ‘bridge’ approach to transfer Pm60 and Pm60b into hexaploid common wheat. Synthetic hexaploid wheat (SHW, AABBAuAu), developed by crossing T. urartu (AuAu) with durum (AABB), was used for crossing and backcrossing with common wheat. The Pm60 alleles were tracked by molecular markers and the resistance to powdery mildew. From BC1F1 backcross populations, eight recombinant types were identified based on five Pm60-flanking markers, which indicated different sizes of the introgressed chromosome segments from T. urartu. Moreover, we have selected two resistance-harboring introgression lines with high self-fertility, which could be easily used in wheat breeding system. Our results showed that the durum was an excellent ‘bridge’ for introducing the target gene from diploid T. urartu into the hexaploid cultivated wheat. Moreover, these introgression lines could be deployed in wheat resistance breeding programs, together with the assistance of the molecular markers for Pm60 alleles.

The current state of the plant nomenclature in crop production on the example of dissertation titles

Aim. The aim of this article is to analyze the current state of plant nomenclature in agricultural practice. Methods. The analysis of literary sources, mathematical analysis. Results. In the titles of 1760 analyzed dissertations for the scientific degrees in agricultural sciences (2000–2019), 90.3% of the plant names are presented in Ukrainian, 5.6% are a combination of Ukrainian and Latin names, and 4.1% are in Latin. In the titles of 680 dissertations for the scientific degrees in biological sciences, the main part is made up of the Latin names of taxa of a generic and species rank and below — 45.2%, names in Ukrainian are 35.1%, and combinations of Ukrainian and Latin names are 19.7%. Despite the fact that the same groups of organisms are studied in both groups agricultural and biological, there are significant differences in the use of names. The scientific style of the Ukrainian language is inherent in the direct word order when the adjective precedes the noun. This is how crop names were coined: miaka pshenytsia (common wheat), tverda pshenytsia (durum wheat), ozyma pshenytsia (winter wheat), yara pshenytsia (spring wheat), tsukrovi buriaky (sugar beet), etc., while in the names of botanical taxa the word order is opposite: pshenytsia miaka (common wheat), pshenytsia tverda (durum wheat), buriak zvychainyi (beet), etc. In the last quarter of the twentieth century, unmotivated inversion occurred in the catalogues of zoned cultivars of agricultural crops, when the word order in the crop names changed to the opposite. In the International Convention for the Protection of Rights of New Varieties of Plants, the term variety is associated with the term taxon, and not agricultural crop. Therefore, the concepts of agricultural crop and botanical taxon that are not identical are confused in the State Register of Plant Varieties of Ukraine. Agrarians have been in a state of ambiguity and uncertainty regarding the proper use of plant names. The attempts to assimilate the agrobiological nomenclature to the botanical one led to an unreasonable replacement of the names of cultons, which acquired a chaotic and mass character. At the beginning of the 20th century, in the vast majority of dissertations in the agricultural field, the spelling of the names of traditional crops corresponded to the scientific style, but gradually it changed and now in most dissertations the reverse word order dominates, mistakenly identifying the crop names with specific names. At the same time, in biological dissertation, the names of both cultons and taxa correspond to the scientific style. Conclusions. The titles of many dissertations for the scientific degrees in Agricultural and Biological Sciences use Ukrainian and Latin names of plants. Latin names are regulated by the ICN, but the Ukrainian ones belong to two unregulated terminological systems. The first botanical system reflects the scientific botanical nomenclature and manages the names of taxon, the second agrobiological system is based on the names of cultons. Generic names and crop names often coincide, while species names and crop names differ in word order. In the verbose crop names, the word order is direct with the adjective precedes the noun, in the species names the word order is reversed, a generic name followed by a specific epithet. The phenomenon of replacing crop names with names inheriting the species names has become rampant over the past twenty years. They destroy the system of agrobiological nomenclature and contradict the scientific standards of the literary Ukrainian language. The identification of this negative phenomenon will allow us to overcome it faster.

Allelic Variation Analysis at the Vernalization Response and Photoperiod Genes in Russian Wheat Varieties Identified Two Novel Alleles of Vrn-B3

Heading time is an important agronomic trait affecting the adaptability and productivity of common wheat. In this study, 95 common wheat varieties from Russia and the late-maturing breeding line ‘Velut’ were tested for allelic diversity of genes having the strongest effect on heading. In this research, allelic variation at the Ppd-D1, Vrn-A1, Vrn-B1, Vrn-D1, and Vrn-B3 loci was tested. The Vrn-B1 and Vrn-B3 loci provided the largest contribution to genetic diversity. We found two novel allelic variants of the Vrn-B3 gene in the studied varieties. Ten varieties carried a 160 bp insertion in the promoter region, and the breeding line ‘Velut’ carried a 1617 bp insertion. These alleles were designated Vrn-B3e and Vrn-B3d, respectively. The analysis of the sequences showed the recent insertion of a retrotransposon homologous to the LTR retrotransposon (RLX_Hvul_Dacia_ RND-1) in the Vrn-B3d allele. Plants with the Vrn-B3e and the ‘Velut’ line with the Vrn-B3d allele headed later than the plants with the wild-type allele; among these plants, ‘Velut’ is the latest maturing wheat variety. Analysis of the gene expression of two groups of lines differing by the Vrn-B3 alleles (Vrn-B3d or vrn-B3) from the F2 population with ‘Velut’ as a parental line did not reveal a significant difference in the expression level between the groups. Additional research is required to study the reasons for the late maturation of the ‘Velut’ line. However, the studied wheat varieties could be used as a potential source of natural variation in genes controlling heading times.

Identification and Validation of Stable Quantitative Trait Loci for SDS-Sedimentation Volume in Common Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Sodium dodecyl sulfate-sedimentation volume is an important index to evaluate the gluten strength of common wheat and is closely related to baking quality. In this study, a total of 15 quantitative trait locus (QTL) for sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-sedimentation volume (SSV) were identified by using a high-density genetic map including 2,474 single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) markers, which was constructed with a doubled haploid (DH) population derived from the cross between Non-gda3753 (ND3753) and Liangxing99 (LX99). Importantly, four environmentally stable QTLs were detected on chromosomes 1A, 2D, and 5D, respectively. Among them, the one with the largest effect was identified on chromosome 1A (designated as QSsv.cau-1A.1) explaining up to 39.67% of the phenotypic variance. Subsequently, QSsv.cau-1A.1 was dissected into two QTLs named as QSsv.cau-1A.1.1 and QSsv.cau-1A.1.2 by saturating the genetic linkage map of the chromosome 1A. Interestedly, favorable alleles of these two loci were from different parents. Due to the favorable allele of QSsv.cau-1A.1.1 was from the high-value parents ND3753 and revealed higher genetic effect, which explained 25.07% of the phenotypic variation, mapping of this locus was conducted by using BC3F1 and BC3F2 populations. By comparing the CS reference sequence, the physical interval of QSsv.cau-1A.1.1 was delimited into 14.9 Mb, with 89 putative high-confidence annotated genes. SSVs of different recombinants between QSsv.cau-1A.1.1 and QSsv.cau-1A.1 detected from DH and BC3F2 populations showed that these two loci had an obvious additive effect, of which the combination of two favorable loci had the high SSV, whereas recombinants with unfavorable loci had the lowest. These results provide further insight into the genetic basis of SSV and QSsv.cau-1A.1.1 will be an ideal target for positional cloning and wheat breeding programs.