Phytoalexin response is elicited by a pathogen (Rhizoctonia solani) but not by a mycorrhizal fungus (Glomus mosseae) in soybean roots

Summary A container system was constructed to study the response of soybean roots to infection by mycorrhizal or pathogenic fungi. The system allows a rapid and synchronous inoculation byGlomus mosseae orRhizoctonia solani. The phytoalexin glyceollin was measured in roots of inoculated and uninoculated plants for a period of 30 days. A significantly increased content of phytoalexin was found inR. solani-infected roots as compared to uninfected control roots. However, there was no difference in the glyceollin contents of the mycorrhizal and the control roots for up to 23 days after inoculation. The accumulation of glyceollin inR. solani-infected roots was not influenced by a subsequent inoculation withG. mosseae. Moreover glyceollin accumulated in mycorrhizal plants to the same extent as in control plants when they were inoculated withR. solani. The two fungi did not mutually influence the course of infection when they were inoculated together.     

Calcium-sodium interaction in the pod development of the peanut,Arachis hypogaea L.

Zusammenfassung Natrium Chloratum (0,006M) hemmt das vegetative Wachstum der Erdnusspflanze nicht, wohl aber die Entwicklung der Hülsenfrüchte selber. Es wird angenommen, dass die Natrium-Ionen die Calciumaufnahme an der Wurzel nicht stören, dass sie aber von den sich entwickelnden Hülsen in der Nähe der Natrium-Ionen direkt gehemmt wird.     

The roots of predictivism

In The Paradox of Predictivism (2008, Cambridge University Press) I tried to demonstrate that there is an intimate relationship between predictivism (the thesis that novel predictions sometimes carry more weight than accommodations) and epistemic pluralism (the thesis that one important form of evidence in science is the judgments of other scientists). Here I respond to various published criticisms of some of the key points from Paradox from David Harker, Jarret Leplin, and Clark Glymour. Foci include my account of predictive novelty (endorsement novelty), the claim that predictivism has two roots, the prediction per se and predictive success, and my account of why Mendeleev’s predictions carried special weight in confirming the Periodic Law of the Elements.     

Cytological consequences of decapitation in onion roots

Résumé En décapitant des racines d'Oignon en culture aqueuse, on a pu mettre en évidence tous les stades de la mitose à diplochromosomes dans les cellules différenciées du parenchyme cortical et du cylindre central (la plupart de celles du péricycle, généralement diploïdes, exclues).En se basant sur ces observations et sur d'autres relatives à l'action cytologique du 2,4-dichlorophénoxyacétate de Sodium (D'Amato, 1948), on arrive a conclure en faveur de l'existence de noyaux à diplochromosomes dans les cellules différenciées de la racine d'Oignon.     

Regeneration of feline ventral roots

Résumé On démontre la capacité de régénération des racines ventrales des nerfs spinaux dont la résection a été pratiquée dans une série de 23 chats. Il y a eu récupération anatomique et fonctionnelle après l'anastomose des racines ventrales innervant des muscles striés et lisses.     

Regeneration of feline dorsal roots

Résumé La régénération des racines postérieures, précédemment sectionées, a lieu exclusivement dans leur parties neurilemmales. Se servant d'une méthode modifiée d'anastomose des racines, leur régénération fonctionelle est démonstrée par des techniques électrophysiologiques.     

Amylases of the lentil roots

Résumé Les amylases de la racine deLens culinaris sont éluées en un seul pic par chromatographie sur gel de Sephadex G-50 et G-100. Par contre, l'électrophorèse en plaque de gel de polyacrylamide révèle 3 zones d'activité amylasique. Deux d'entre elles sont constituées d'isozymes d' -amylase; la troisième pourrait être une -amylase, bien qu'elle ne possède pas toutes les propriétés généralement attribuées à cette enzyme.     

Microorganisms and ion absorption by roots

Résumé Les comparaisons des taux d'absorption de K par des racines d'orge stériles et non-stériles,Hordeum vulgare, dans l'ordre de concentration de 0,02–50 mM, ont montré que le double mode de transport d'ion décrit auparavant pour des racines non-stériles, s'applique également aux racines stériles. La microflore de la racine n'a influencé que légèrement les taux d'absorption de K.

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I thankD. L. Fredrickson for assistance with these experiments andF. E. Broadbent for advice. This research was supported by a grant from the Office of Saline Water, United States Department of the Interior.     

Acquisition of nutrients from organic resources by mycorrhizal autotrophic plants

Summary Evidence exists to suggest that mycorrhizal fungi are capable of producing enzymes allowing them to access carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus from complex organic resources in soil. This facility is mainly demonstrated in ectomycorrhizal and ericaceous endomycorrhizal fungi associated with highly organic soils and climatically stressed environments. These data support a direct nutrient cycling hypothesis proposed for tropical ectomycorrhizal forests. In terms of forest succession, the evidence agrees with a major contribution of the mycorrhizal symbiosis in late stages of the succession, where elemental cycling becomes increasingly more conservative and process rates limited by biotic factors. Here, tree growth benefits from direct nutrient cycling mediated by their mycorrhizal symbionts.     

Diuretic activity of roots ofClitoria ternatea L. in dogs

Zusammenfassung ZermahleneClitoria ternatea-Wurzeln oder deren Extrakt in 95% Alkohol zeigten bei oraler Verabreichung in nicht-toxischer Dosis keine nennenswerte diuretische oder natriuretische Wirkung beim Hund. Intravenöse Gaben des Extraktes führten zu mässiger Steigerung der Ausscheidung von Natrium und Kalium im Harn, zeigten aber gleichzeitig auch Anzeichen von Nierenschädigung.     

Cytokinesis in onion roots: Inhibition by vanadate and caffeine

Summary The effect of vanadate ions on plant cytokinesis has been studied inAllium cepa root meristematic cells. Vanadate induces binucleate cells by inhibiting cell plate formation. Moreover, vanadate and caffeine have additive effects in the induction of binucleate cells.     

Regulation of mycorrhizal infection by hormonal factors produced by hosts and fungi

Summary An overview of current research on hormonal factors produced by plants and fungi in mycorrhizal associations is presented. On the one hand, growth hormones in roots and their exudates influence the metabolism and growth of fungi. On the other, fungal hormones influence root morphology, metabolic changes and the growth of the entire plant.     

Influence of phosphorus supply and light intensity on mycorrhizal response inPisum-Rhizobium-Glomus symbiosis

The influence of mycorrhizal colonization withGlomus mosseae on parameters of N₂ fixation and plant growth was studied in pot experiments with pea plants (Pisum sativum L.) infected withRhizobium leguminosarum and supplied with varied levels of phosphorus (P) and nitrogen (N). Reduced light intensities were used to evaluate the dependence of the microsymbionts on assimilate supply. In plants grown with low P supply, mycorrhization increased the concentration of P in shoots, and thus N₂ fixation. Reduced light intensity significantly depressed mycorrhizal colonization and nodule growth in low-P plants. When P supply did not limit plant growth and N₂ fixation, however, the percentage of mycorrhizal colonization was reduced due to the higher P status, and the microsymbionts were not impaired by low light intensities. To maximize carbohydrate supply, another experiment was carried out at high light intensity of 900 mol m^–2s^–1 and with non-limiting P supply. Nitrogen fertilization, given as starter N, enhanced plant growth, but delayed nodule formation. Towards flowering, nodulation rapidly increased, but less so inGlomus inoculated plants. After 28 days mycorrhizal plants were lower in shoot dry weight, nodule dry weight and nitrogenase activity. The results suggest that under many, but not all, environmental conditions the host plant is able to restrict mycorrhizal colonization and, thus, to prevent impairment ofRhizobium symbiosis.deceased in May 1994     

Response of maize to different inoculum densities of vesicular arbuscular mycorrhizal endophytes

Summary The effect of the inoculum density of vesicular arbuscular mycorrhizal endophytes on growth and development in maize was investigated in sterilized soil under glass-house conditions. Mycorrhizal plants grew robust and produced three times more dry weight than non-mycorrhizal plants. 40 or more endophytes per plant produced the highest mycorrhizal association and the maximum growth in maize. The uninoculated plants exhibited the symptoms of chlorosis.