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BACKGROUND: Tissue engineering has brought new hope to the clinical challenge of liver failure, and the preparation of plant-derived decellularized fiber scaffolds holds significant importance in liver tissue engineering. OBJECTIVE: To prepare apple tissue decellularized scaffold material by using fresh apple slices and a solution of sodium dodecyl sulfate, and assess its biocompatibility. METHODS: Fresh apples were subjected to decellularization using phosphate buffer saline and sodium dodecyl sulfate solution, separately. Afterwards, the decellularized apple tissues and apple decellularized scaffold materials were decontaminated with phosphate buffer saline. Subsequently, scanning electron microscopy was used to assess the effectiveness of decellularization of the apple materials. Adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells were extracted from the inguinal fat BALB/C of mice, and their expression of stem cell-related markers (CD45, CD34, CD73, CD90, and CD105) was identified through flow cytometry. The cells were then divided into a scaffold-free control group and a scaffold group. Equal amounts of adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells were seeded onto both groups. The biocompatibility of the decellularized scaffold with adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells was evaluated using CCK-8 assay, hematoxylineosin staining, and phalloidine staining. Cell adhesion and growth on the scaffold were observed under light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Furthermore, the scaffold was subdivided into the non-induced group and the hepatogenic-induced group. Adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells were cultured on the decellularized apple scaffold, and they were cultured for 14 days in regular culture medium or hepatogenic induction medium for comparison. Immunofluorescent staining using liver cell markers, including albumin, cytokeratin 18, and CYP1A1, was performed. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay was used to detect the secretion of alpha fetoprotein and albumin. Additionally, scanning electron microscopy was employed to observe the morphology of the induced cells on the scaffold, verifying the expression of liver cell-related genes on the decellularized scaffold material. Finally, the cobalt-60 irradiated and sterilized decellularized apple scaffolds were transplanted onto the surface of mouse liver and the degradation of the scaffold was observed by gross observation and hematoxylin-eosin staining after 28 days. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: (1) The scanning electron microscopy results revealed that the decellularized apple scaffold material retained a porous structure of approximately 100 μm in size, with no residual cells observed. (2) Through flow cytometry analysis, the cultured cells were identified as adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells. (3) CCK-8 assay results demonstrated that the prepared decellularized apple tissue scaffold material exhibited no cytotoxicity. Hematoxylin-eosin staining and phalloidine staining showed that adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells were capable of adhering and proliferating on the decellularized apple tissue scaffold. (4) The results obtained from immunofluorescence staining and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay revealed that adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells cultured on the decellularized apple scaffolds exhibited elevated expression of liver-specific proteins, including albumin, alpha-fetoprotein, cytokeratin 18, and CYP1A1. These results suggested that they were induced differentiation into hepatocyte-like cells possessing functional characteristics of liver cells. (5) The decellularized apple scaffold implanted at 7 days has integrated with the liver, with partial degradation of the scaffold observed. By 28 days, the decellularized apple scaffold has completely degraded and has been replaced by newly-formed tissue. (6) The results indicate that the decellularized scaffold material derived from apple tissue demonstrates favorable biocompatibility, promoting the proliferation, adhesion, and hepatic differentiation of adipose-derived mesenchymal stem cells. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Aquilaria sinensis is a significant resin-producing plant worldwide that is crucial for agarwood production. Agarwood has different qualities depending on the method with which it is formed, and the microbial community structures that are present during these methods are also diverse. Furthermore, the microbial communities of plants play crucial roles in determining their health and productivity. While previous studies have investigated the impact of microorganisms on agarwood formation, they lack comprehensiveness, particularly regarding the properties of the microbial community throughout the entire process from seedling to adult to incense formation. We collected roots, stems, leaves, flowers, fruits and other tissues from seedlings, healthy plants and agarwood-producing plants to address this gap and assess the dominant bacterial species in the microbial community structures of A. sinensis at different growth stages and their impacts on growth and agarwood formation. The bacteria and fungi in these tissues were classified and counted from different perspectives. The samples were sequenced using the Illumina sequencing platform, and sequence analyses and species annotations were performed using a range of bioinformatics tools to assess the plant community compositions. An additional comparison of the samples was conducted using diversity analyses to assess their differences. This research revealed that Listeria, Kurtzmanomyces, Ascotaiwania, Acinetobacter, Sphingobium, Fonsecaea, Acrocalymma, Allorhizobium, Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Peethambara, and Debaryomyces are potentially associated with the formation of agarwood. Overall, the data provided in this article help us understand the important roles played by bacteria and fungi in the growth and agarwood formation process of A. sinensis, will support the theoretical basis for the large-scale cultivation of A. sinensis, and provide a basis for further research on microbial community applications in agarwood production and beyond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Aquilaria sinensis is a significant resin-producing plant worldwide that is crucial for agarwood production. Agarwood has different qualities depending on the method with which it is formed, and the microbial community structures that are present during these methods are also diverse. Furthermore, the microbial communities of plants play crucial roles in determining their health and productivity. While previous studies have investigated the impact of microorganisms on agarwood formation, they lack comprehensiveness, particularly regarding the properties of the microbial community throughout the entire process from seedling to adult to incense formation. We collected roots, stems, leaves, flowers, fruits and other tissues from seedlings, healthy plants and agarwood-producing plants to address this gap and assess the dominant bacterial species in the microbial community structures of A. sinensis at different growth stages and their impacts on growth and agarwood formation. The bacteria and fungi in these tissues were classified and counted from different perspectives. The samples were sequenced using the Illumina sequencing platform, and sequence analyses and species annotations were performed using a range of bioinformatics tools to assess the plant community compositions. An additional comparison of the samples was conducted using diversity analyses to assess their differences. This research revealed that Listeria, Kurtzmanomyces, Ascotaiwania, Acinetobacter, Sphingobium, Fonsecaea, Acrocalymma, Allorhizobium, Bacillus, Pseudomonas, Peethambara, and Debaryomyces are potentially associated with the formation of agarwood. Overall, the data provided in this article help us understand the important roles played by bacteria and fungi in the growth and agarwood formation process of A. sinensis, will support the theoretical basis for the large-scale cultivation of A. sinensis, and provide a basis for further research on microbial community applications in agarwood production and beyond.

Interest in improving plant nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) in conjunction with reduced usage of nitrogen (N) fertilizers in forestry management is growing. Although biochar amendment is widely applied to increase soil nutrient availability and NUE, the mechanism underlying their positive effects remains little understood. We treated the economically important eucalypt species with biochar (BC), N-enriched fertilizer with 15N isotope labeling (NF), and biochar plus 15N-labeled fertilizer (NFB). Moreover, we determined plant N absorption and soil N availability, soil bacterial community composition and its putative keystone taxa, and plant NUE and competition index under different treatments. Our results indicated that NF and NFB significantly increased plant atom % 15N in both eucalypt stem, root, and foliar, as well as the competition index of eucalypt to forbs for acquiring N. NF and BC increased the network complexity of keystone taxa by shifting putative keystone taxa, including phylum Proteobacteria, Chloroflexi, Actinobacteria, Acidobacteria, and Firmicutes. Piecewise structural equation modeling indicated that variations in plant performance were best directly and positively predicted by soil Proteobacteria. This study highlights the importance of interactive effects between biochar and N fertilizer on plant performance mediated by soil microbial community. The change in soil putative keystone taxa has the potential to be a suitable predictor for plant performance in terms of biochar. Our findings may provide important implications for improving fertilization and afforestation management. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Introduction: Auxin estimation in plant tissues is a crucial component of auxin signaling studies. Despite the availability of various high‐throughput auxin quantification methods like LC‐MS, GC‐MS, HPLC, biosensors, and DR5‐gus/gfp‐based assays, auxin quantification remains troublesome because these techniques are very expensive and technology intensive and they mostly involve elaborate sample preparation or require the development of transgenic plants. Objectives: To find a solution to these problems, we made use of an old auxin detection system to quantify microbe derived auxins and modified it to effectively measure auxin levels in rice plants. Materials and methods: Auxins from different tissues of rice plants, including root samples of seedlings exposed to IAA/TIBA or subjected to different abiotic stresses, were extracted in ethanol. The total auxin level was measured by the presently described colorimetric assay and counterchecked by other auxin estimation methods like LC‐MS or gus staining of DR5‐gus overexpressing lines. Results: The presented colorimetric method could measure (1) the auxin levels in different tissues of rice plants, thus identifying the regions of higher auxin abundance, (2) the differential accumulation of auxins in rice roots when auxin or its transport inhibitor was supplied exogenously, and (3) the levels of auxin in roots of rice seedlings subjected to various abiotic stresses. The thus obtained auxin levels correlated well with the auxin levels determined by other methods like LC‐MS or gus staining and the expression pattern of auxin biosynthesis pathway genes. Conclusions: The auxin estimation method described here is simple, rapid, cost‐effective, and sensitive and allows for the efficient detection of relative auxin abundances in plant tissues. Estimation of plant auxins is a vital component of many auxin‐signaling studies. The present study describes a colorimetric method of auxin estimation from plant tissue samples where total auxin is readily extracted in ethanol and determined spectrophotometrically at 540 nm after a brief period of incubation in a solution containing sulfuric acid and ferric chloride. The given colorimetric method was found to be a simple, rapid, sensitive, and cost‐effective way of auxin estimation from plant tissues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Practicum is an important component in biology learning and it helps students to gain hands-on experience. Practicum activities can be provided with the help of student worksheets. Based on observations, the student worksheets used have inadequate quality. This study aims to analyze and reconstruct the student worksheets. The research method applied in this study is a qualitative descriptive method. With the following flow: Analysis, Try, and Reconstruction. The results of the analysis using the Laboratory Activity Analysis Form show that there are problems in the student worksheets Plant Tissue Structure from a structural aspect. Problems were also found in conceptual, practical specifications and knowledge construction specs through vee diagram analysis. Therefore, reconstruction was carried out on the student worksheets Structure and Function of Plant Tissues. The reconstructed worksheets were developed according to the demands of an independent curriculum that emphasizes students' literacy and numerical reasoning skills. The practical aspect of the worksheets aimed to guide students in discovering factual objects and phenomena through hands-on activities, thereby facilitating the construction of knowledge.

Positive relationships have been documented between the amount of biochar added to soils and various aspects of plant growth and fertility such as root, shoot, and fruit production. However, these effects depend on biochar source materials, soil characteristics and species of plant examined. This makes it impossible to systematically compare and generalize findings across previous studies that have used different soils and biochar. We conducted a novel investigation to assess the effects of a single source of biochar (hazelnut wood), in a constructed organic soil, on the different plant tissues in three functionally distinct species: tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicon), green beans (Phaseolus vulgaris), and willow (Salix sp.). Five levels of biochar soil amendment were assessed: 0% (control), 3, 9, and 26% by dry weight. We found a highly significant positive relationship between biochar concentration and total plant biomass (roots + shoots + fruits) in all species, with no significant difference in total biomass response among species. Fruit production increased with increased biochar in both beans and tomatoes. However, tomatoes exhibited significant differences in response among plant tissues; fruit production and shoot biomass increased significantly with biochar, but root tissue did not. Bean germination success increased significantly with biochar concentration. Date of first flowering was earlier with increasing soil biochar in beans but not in tomatoes. Control over both sources of biochar and soil composition in this experiment enables us to conclude that biochar addition can have different impacts on different plants and, in some cases, species-specific impacts on different plant tissues and other measures of fertility. Our results are contrary to prior research that found inhibiting effects of biochar at levels comparable to our 26% treatment. Biochar impacts on soil properties such as CEC and percent base cation saturation do not explain our findings, leading us to conclude that microbial interaction with biochar is an important factor that may explain the positive impacts of soil biochar on plant fertility observed. Further research that repeats this experiment in other soil types, with other biochar sources, and with other plant species is necessary to determine the generalizability of these important findings. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Positive relationships have been documented between the amount of biochar added to soils and various aspects of plant growth and fertility such as root, shoot, and fruit production. However, these effects depend on biochar source materials, soil characteristics and species of plant examined. This makes it impossible to systematically compare and generalize findings across previous studies that have used different soils and biochar. We conducted a novel investigation to assess the effects of a single source of biochar (hazelnut wood), in a constructed organic soil, on the different plant tissues in three functionally distinct species: tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicon), green beans (Phaseolus vulgaris), and willow (Salix sp.). Five levels of biochar soil amendment were assessed: 0% (control), 3, 9, and 26% by dry weight. We found a highly significant positive relationship between biochar concentration and total plant biomass (roots + shoots + fruits) in all species, with no significant difference in total biomass response among species. Fruit production increased with increased biochar in both beans and tomatoes. However, tomatoes exhibited significant differences in response among plant tissues; fruit production and shoot biomass increased significantly with biochar, but root tissue did not. Bean germination success increased significantly with biochar concentration. Date of first flowering was earlier with increasing soil biochar in beans but not in tomatoes. Control over both sources of biochar and soil composition in this experiment enables us to conclude that biochar addition can have different impacts on different plants and, in some cases, species-specific impacts on different plant tissues and other measures of fertility. Our results are contrary to prior research that found inhibiting effects of biochar at levels comparable to our 26% treatment. Biochar impacts on soil properties such as CEC and percent base cation saturation do not explain our findings, leading us to conclude that microbial interaction with biochar is an important factor that may explain the positive impacts of soil biochar on plant fertility observed. Further research that repeats this experiment in other soil types, with other biochar sources, and with other plant species is necessary to determine the generalizability of these important findings.

Interest in improving plant nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) in conjunction with reduced usage of nitrogen (N) fertilizers in forestry management is growing. Although biochar amendment is widely applied to increase soil nutrient availability and NUE, the mechanism underlying their positive effects remains little understood. We treated the economically important eucalypt species with biochar (BC), N-enriched fertilizer with 15N isotope labeling (NF), and biochar plus 15N-labeled fertilizer (NFB). Moreover, we determined plant N absorption and soil N availability, soil bacterial community composition and its putative keystone taxa, and plant NUE and competition index under different treatments. Our results indicated that NF and NFB significantly increased plant atom % 15N in both eucalypt stem, root, and foliar, as well as the competition index of eucalypt to forbs for acquiring N. NF and BC increased the network complexity of keystone taxa by shifting putative keystone taxa, including phylum Proteobacteria, Chloroflexi, Actinobacteria, Acidobacteria, and Firmicutes. Piecewise structural equation modeling indicated that variations in plant performance were best directly and positively predicted by soil Proteobacteria. This study highlights the importance of interactive effects between biochar and N fertilizer on plant performance mediated by soil microbial community. The change in soil putative keystone taxa has the potential to be a suitable predictor for plant performance in terms of biochar. Our findings may provide important implications for improving fertilization and afforestation management.

Vacuum impregnation (VI) stands as a diffusion-driven food processing method that has found recent application within the food industry, particularly for the cold formulation of fortified food products. Pulsed electric field (PEF) treatment can affect the food structure, influencing therefore the mass transfer phenomena during the further processing. Thus, the study aimed at investigating the effect of PEF treatment on selected physicochemical properties of vacuum-impregnated apples. Apple slices were vacuum impregnated with aloe vera juice solution with or PEF treatment at different intensities (125, 212.5 or 300 V/cm). The PEF was applied as a pretreatment—applied before the VI process as well as posttreatment—applied after the VI process. The VI process with aloe vera juice resulted in a sample weight increase of over 24% as well as structural changes, partial cell viability loss and color alteration. In addition, the decrease of bioactive compounds was observed, while antioxidant activity remained at a similar level as in raw material. PEF treatment adversely affected vacuum impregnation efficiency, causing microstructural changes and cell viability loss. Additionally, chemical composition modifications were evident through thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and Fourier Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) analyses. Tissue hardness decreased significantly due to structural damage and caused high leakage from plant tissue, which resulted in hindering saturation with aloe vera juice during the VI process. Additionally, reduced bioactive substance content after PEF treatment was observed and the VI process did not restore apple samples of the bioactive compounds from aloe vera juice. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has been repeatedly found that plant biology is less attractive for students than other biology fields. We, therefore, focused on the opposite and, through an online questionnaire, we asked biology teachers at gymnasia throughout Slovakia how they teach plant biology and where they experience problems. Almost 30% of teachers characterized technical equipment as insufficient but use some visual aids for ca. 50% of lessons. Despite the dominant use of microscopy, teachers admit that students' biggest shortcomings are found in the anatomy of organs, photosynthesis, ontogenesis and its regulation by exogenous/endogenous factors, or when connecting knowledge about tissues with their functions. About half of the teachers rate their knowledge of plant anatomy and physiology as sufficient, but these teachers rate only about 20% of their students in the same way. Based on the negative correlation between the use of aids and the lack of student knowledge, and, at the same time, the positive correlation between the activity of teachers and better technical equipment, we conclude that the mainly neglected technical infrastructure does not allow for a better practical education (e.g., only 13.7% of gymnasia have analytical balances and only 1.6% a spectrophotometer). Furthermore, almost 90% of teachers mentioned that online education during COVID-19 pandemic negatively affected students' knowledge. We hope that our research can contribute to changes in the Slovak educational curriculum focused on plant biology in a more scientific direction and inspire research in other countries, with the aim of exchanging knowledge regarding the species diversity of plants around the world and their importance for people and the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Smut fungi display a uniform life cycle including two phases: a saprophytic phase in vitro and a parasitic phase in host plants. Several apathogenic smut fungi are found, lacking suitable hosts in their habitat. Interestingly, MT-type Ustilago esculenta was found to maintain a parasitic life, lacking the saprophytic phase. Its long period of asexual proliferation in plant tissue results in severe defects in certain functions. In this study, the growth dynamics of U. esculenta in plant tissues were carefully observed. The mycelia of T- and MT-type U. esculenta exhibit rapid growth after karyogamy and aggregate between cells. While T-type U. esculenta successfully forms teliospores after aggregation, the aggregated mycelia of MT-type U. esculenta gradually disappeared after a short period of massive proliferation. It may be resulted by the lack of nutrition such as glucose and sucrose. After overwintering, infected Zizania latifolia plants no longer contained diploid mycelia resulting from karyogamy. This indicated that diploid mycelia failed to survive in plant tissues. It seems that diploid mycelium only serves to generate teliospores. Notably, MT-type U. esculenta keeps the normal function of karyogamy, though it is not necessary for its asexual life in plant tissue. Further investigations are required to uncover the underlying mechanism, which would improve our understanding of the life cycle of smut fungi and help the breeding of Z. latifolia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phosphogypsum (PG) is a by-product of phosphorus fertilizer that is typically stacked near production sites. Phosphogypsum contains trace elements and naturally occurring radioactive materials which may be hazardous to the surrounding environment. Phosphogypsum stack reclamation typically involves placing a soil cap and seeding grass to create a barrier for reducing environmental impacts; using woody species is uncommon. This study used three soil treatments with grass and woody species to determine whether mixing PG with soil affects soil chemical properties, and metal and radionuclide concentrations in tissue. None of the elements in soil was above Canadian guidelines for industrial land use. Aluminum, beryllium, chromium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, nickel, and vanadium were significantly higher in both study and reference sites than in pure PG; cadmium, calcium, fluoride, and strontium were significantly higher in pure PG. There was a poor correlation between soil and plant concentrations for most elements indicating trace elements were not in a bioavailable form. Trace elemental concentrations in plant tissue generally differed significantly with vegetation type but not within similar species. Trace elements and isotopes in PG were not high enough to affect plant growth. Among the isotopes, 222Ra emissions differed significantly with vegetation covers; activity of 226Ra in pure PG was above Canadian guidelines, but lower in vegetation tissue. This study suggests 15 cm soil mixed with PG can be used for PG stack revegetation when fast-growing Salix and Populus species are used in reclamation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract The aim of this report is to provide general information on the molecular structure and synthesis of arabinogalactan proteins (AGPs) in association to their physiological significance. Assessment of genetic modifications of the activity of enzymes involved in the AGP biosynthesis is an efficient tool to study AGP functions. Thus, P4H (prolyl 4 hydroxylase) mutants, GLCAT (β-glucuronosyltransferase) mutants, and GH43 (glycoside hydrolase family 43) mutants have been described. We focused on the overview of AGPs modifications observed at the molecular, cellular, and organ levels. Inhibition of the hydroxylation process results in an increase in the intensity of cell divisions and thus, has an impact on root system length and leaf area. In turn, overexpression of P4H genes stimulates the density of root hairs. A mutation in GLCAT genes responsible for the transfer of glucuronic acid to the AGP molecule revealed that the reduction of GlcA in AGP disrupts the substantial assembly of the primary cell wall. Furthermore, silencing of genes encoding GH43, which has the ability to hydrolyze the AGP glycan by removing incorrectly synthesized β-1,3-galactans, induces changes in the abundance of other cell wall constituents, which finally leads to root growth defects. This information provides insight into AGPs as a crucial players in the structural interactions present in the plant extracellular matrix.

Due to the emerging danger to the life of animals and people, today there is a turn to safe technologies for controlling weeds by physical methods, both from the point of view of ecology and food safety, which include the destruction of plants using an electric current, in particular, high-voltage electrical pulses. The purpose of the study presented in the article is to identify and evaluate the effect of high-voltage electrical pulses on the irreversible damage to the intracellular structures of the plant tissue of weeds and unwanted grasses during their electric weed control, characterizing and evaluating the parameters and modes associated with such processing. Experimental studies were carried out using a laboratory experimental setup that consists of a pulse voltage generator, a control circuit for a spherical forming spark gap, and schemes for measuring the electrical resistance of the plant tissue of the weed sample. The lesion level made it possible to control the depth of irreversible damage to the internal structure of the plant tissue of weeds by measuring its tolerance (the conductivity of the tissue increased with increasing damage to the cellular components of the tissue).The irreversible damage to the plant tissues of weeds for weeds of various biological groups, which is characterized by reaching the value of at least 4.0–7.5 degrees of damage to their tissues, can be acted on them with high-voltage electrical pulses in the treated tissue of an electric field intensity of at least 3.74 kV/cm, while ensuring specific processing electric energy for the reliable processing of weeds: for Euphórbia virgáta, thise quals 5.2...17.5 J/cm3; for Amaránthus retrofléxus, it is 3.5...7.7 J/cm3; for Cirsium arvense, it is 2.7...10.9 J/cm3;for Sónchus arvénsis, it is 3.7...15.8 J/cm3; and for Lactúca tatárica, it is 3.3...8.1 J/cm3. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drying is one of the oldest methods of obtaining a product with a long shelf-life. Recently, this process has been modified and accelerated by the application of pulsed electric field (PEF); however, PEF pretreatment has an effect on different properties—physical as well as chemical. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the effect of pulsed electric field pretreatment and air temperature on the course of hot air drying and selected chemical properties of the apple tissue of Gloster variety apples. The dried apple tissue samples were obtained using a combination of PEF pretreatment with electric field intensity levels of 1, 3.5, and 6 kJ/kg and subsequent hot air drying at 60, 70, and 80 °C. It was found that a higher pulsed electric field intensity facilitated the removal of water from the apple tissue while reducing the drying time. The study results showed that PEF pretreatment influenced the degradation of bioactive compounds such as polyphenols, flavonoids, and ascorbic acid. The degradation of vitamin C was higher with an increase in PEF pretreatment intensity level. PEF pretreatment did not influence the total sugar and sorbitol contents of the dried apple tissue as well as the FTIR spectra. According to the optimization process and statistical profiles of approximated values, the optimal parameters to achieve high-quality dried apple tissue in a short drying time are PEF pretreatment application with an intensity of 3.5 kJ/kg and hot air drying at a temperature of 70 °C. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The impact of nanoparticles (NPs) on the morphological characteristics, functional groups, and chemical and microstructural features of plant tissues were evaluated using common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) plants. Beans plants were grown for 90 days in an agricultural soil amended with TiO2, ZnO, and Fe2O3 NPs at 150 or 300 mg kg-1. Controls consisted of soil without NPs amendments. After 60 days of sowing (DAS), TiO2 NPs significantly reduced stem and root length compared to control treatments. Additionally, changes were observed in the FTIR- ATR spectra signals, mainly in the root spectra at 30 and 90 DAS. Significant differences were observed in the different plant structures regarding Ti, Zn, and Fe absorption and accumulation. A higher accumulation of Ti was observed in the roots at 90 DAS. Moreover, plants had a higher accumulation of Zn and Fe in leaves, stems, and roots when grown in soil amended with ZnO or Fe2O3 NPs, respectively, at 30 and 90 DAS. In the microstructural analysis of tissue showed no evidence of absorption or translocation of NPs. Therefore, the accumulation of ionic forms of Ti, Zn, and Fe in the plant can be explained by the dissociation and dissolution of the NPs in the rhizosphere, facilitating their adsorption. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The chemical analysis of vineyards is an essential tool for the early detection of risks, such as excessive fertilization and heavy metal and pesticide contamination in farm management. Soil and plant samples were collected in summer and winter from six different vineyards with varying agricultural practices in the Cape Winelands of the Western Cape Province, South Africa. The samples were pretreated in a microwave using CEM MARS 6™ Microwave Digestion and Extraction System (CEM Corporation, Matthews, NC, USA). Chemical element data were obtained using an inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometer (ICP-OES) (ICP Expert II, Agilent Technologies 720 ICP-OES). The data will be valuable for selecting and improving farming practices and gaining insights into the influence of seasonal variation and agricultural practices on the elemental accumulation in farmlands.

This research developed electronic student worksheet (e-student worksheet) based on POE (Predict, Observe, and Explain) using the Liveworksheets feature. The research method was RD (Research and Development) with a 4-D model, namely define, design, develop, and disseminate. There were three data collection techniques in this research, namely interview, questionnaire, and N-gain from the pretest and posttest scores. The analyzed data using qualitative descriptive analysis. The results showed that (1) the average percentage of e-student worksheet feasibility obtained was 92.90% with material expert validators of 94.23%, media expert validators of 88.23%, and practitioner validators of 96.25%. Therefore, the POE-based e-student worksheet can be used with a very valid or very feasible category. (2) The percentage obtained from student responses was 85% with a very good category. (3) The N-Gain value obtained was 0.39 with a medium category. Thus, the development of e-student worksheet based on POE (Predict, Observe, and Explain) on plant tissue material for the eleventh-grade students can be used with a very feasible category. ABSTRAK: Penelitian ini bertujuan mengembangkan lembar kerja siswa elektronik (e-student worksheet) berbasis POE (Predict, Observe, and Explain) dengan menggunakan fitur Liveworksheets. Metode penelitian yang digunakan adalah RD (Research and Development) dengan model 4-D, yaitu define, design, develop, dan distribute. Ada tiga teknik pengumpulan data dalam penelitian ini, yaitu wawancara, angket, dan N-gain dari nilai pretest dan posttest. Teknik analisis yang digunakan deskriptif kualitatif. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa (1) rata-rata persentase kelayakan LKS yang diperoleh adalah 92,90% dengan validator ahli materi 94,23%, validator ahli media 88,23%, dan validator praktisi 96,25%. Oleh karena itu, LKS e-student berbasis POE dapat digunakan dengan kategori sangat valid atau sangat layak. (2) Persentase yang diperoleh dari respon siswa sebesar 85% dengan kategori sangat baik. (3) Nilai N-Gain yang diperoleh sebesar 0,39 dengan kategori sedang. Dengan demikian, pengembangan LKS berbasis POE (Predict, Observe, and Explain) pada materi jaringan tumbuhan untuk siswa kelas XI dapat digunakan dengan kategori sangat layak.

Fusarium wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. niveum (Fon) is the most serious soil-borne disease in the world and has become the main limiting factor of watermelon production. Reliable and quick detection and quantification of Fon are essential in the early stages of infection for control of watermelon Fusarium wilt. Traditional detection and identification tests are laborious and cannot efficiently quantify Fon isolates. In this work, a real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay has been described to accurately identify and quantify Fon in watermelon plants and soil. The FONRT-18 specific primer set which was designed based on identified specific sequence amplified a specific 172 bp band from Fon and no amplification from the other formae speciales of Fusarium oxysporum tested. The detection limits with primers were 1.26 pg/μl genomic DNA of Fon, 0.2 pg/ng total plant DNA in inoculated plant, and 50 conidia/g soil. The PCR assay could also evaluate the relationships between the disease index and Fon DNA quantity in watermelon plants and soil. The assay was further used to estimate the Fon content in soil after disinfection with CaCN2. The real-time PCR method is rapid, accurate and reliable for monitoring and quantification analysis of Fon in watermelon plants and soil. It can be applied to the study of disease diagnosis, plant-pathogen interactions, and effective management.

The aim of this report is to provide general information on the molecular structure and synthesis of arabinogalactan proteins (AGPs) in association to their physiological significance. Assessment of genetic modifications of the activity of enzymes involved in the AGP biosynthesis is an efficient tool to study AGP functions. Thus, P4H (prolyl 4 hydroxylase) mutants, GLCAT (β-glucuronosyltransferase) mutants, and GH43 (glycoside hydrolase family 43) mutants have been described. We focused on the overview of AGPs modifications observed at the molecular, cellular, and organ levels. Inhibition of the hydroxylation process results in an increase in the intensity of cell divisions and thus, has an impact on root system length and leaf area. In turn, overexpression of P4H genes stimulates the density of root hairs. A mutation in GLCAT genes responsible for the transfer of glucuronic acid to the AGP molecule revealed that the reduction of GlcA in AGP disrupts the substantial assembly of the primary cell wall. Furthermore, silencing of genes encoding GH43, which has the ability to hydrolyze the AGP glycan by removing incorrectly synthesized β-1,3-galactans, induces changes in the abundance of other cell wall constituents, which finally leads to root growth defects. This information provides insight into AGPs as a crucial players in the structural interactions present in the plant extracellular matrix. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Matrix-assisted laser desorption ionization mass spectrometry imaging (MALDIMSI) can visualize the spatial distribution characteristics of molecules in tissues in situ, in which the matrix plays a key role. In this paper, we propose a platinum nanomaterial pre-coated matrix, which can be prepared in bulk by sputtering platinum nanoparticles onto slides using an ion sputterer and then used for MALDIMS analysis by placing tissue sections on the matrix. We used this matrix for MALDIMS imaging analysis of corn kernels and germinated wheat sections, and the results show that triacylglycerides were mainly distributed in the embryo of corn kernels and germinated wheat, and sugars were mainly distributed in the endosperm, with the highest content of disaccharides. It provides a simple and reliable experimental condition for analyzing the distribution of oligosaccharide and lipid components in plant tissues. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Rheum palmatum, a well-known Traditional Chinese Medicines (TCM), has been used for medical purposes for thousand years in China. However, endophyte diversity of R. palmatum among different tissues and ages is still not revealed. In this study, we used 16S and ITS amplicon sequencing and combined with PICRUSt and FUNGuild to compare endophyte diversity and ecological function among different tissues and ages of R. palmatum. The results showed that the diversity and OTUs (Operational taxonomic units) abundance of endophytic fungi and bacteria of R. palmatum differed among different tissues and ages. The predictive function analysis showed that metabolism was main function of endophytic bacteria in different tissue and year samples, while saprotroph was dominant trophic mode of endophytic fungi in different year samples. The dominant trophic modes of endophytic fungi were saprotroph, pathotroph-symbiotroph and symbiotroph, and relative abundances differed in the different tissue samples. Our results elucidated the comprehensive diversity and composition profiles of endophytes in different tissues and year of R. palmatum. Our data offered pivotal information to clarify the role of endophytes in the production of R. palmatum and its important metabolites. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Drought stress is one of the most significant abiotic stresses on the sustainability of global agriculture. The finding of natural resources is essential for decreasing the need for artificial fertilizers and boosting plant growth and yield under water stress conditions. This study used a factorial experimental design to investigate the effects of oak leaf extract, biofertilizer, and soil containing oak leaf powder on the growth and biochemical parameters of four tomato genotypes under water stress throughout the pre-flowering and pre-fruiting stages of plant development. The experiment had two components. The first component represented the genotypes (two sensitive and two tolerant), while the second component represented the treatment group, which included irrigated plants (SW), untreated and stressed plants (SS), treated plants with oak leaf powder and stressed (SOS), treated plants with oak leaf powder and oak leaf extract and stressed (SOES), and treated plants with oak leaf powder and biofertilizers and stressed (SOBS). When compared with irrigated or control plants, drought stress under the treatments of SS, SOS, SOES, and SOBS conditions at two stages and their combination significantly lowered shoot length (12.95%), total fruit weight per plant (33.97%), relative water content (14.05%), and total chlorophyll content (26.30%). The reduction values for shoot length (17.58%), shoot fresh weight (22.08%), and total fruit weight per plant (42.61%) were significantly larger in two sensitive genotypes compared with tolerant genotypes, which recorded decreasing percentages of 8.36, 8.88, and 25.32% for shoot length, shoot fresh weight, and total fruit weight per plant, respectively. Root fresh weight and root dry weight of genotypes treated with SS, SOS, SOES, and SOBS, on the other hand, increased in comparison with control plants. Tomato fruits from stressed plants treated with SS, SOS, SOES, and SOBS had considerably higher levels of titratable acidity, ascorbic acid, and total phenolic compounds than irrigated plants during all stress stages. Under water stress conditions, the addition of oak leaf powder to soil, oak leaf extract, and biofertilizer improved the biochemical content of leaves in all genotypes. Furthermore, leaf lipid peroxidation was lower in plants treated with SOES and SOBS, and lower in the two tolerant genotypes than in the two susceptible genotypes. In conclusion, the application of SOS, SOES, and SOBS demonstrated a slight decrease in some morpho-physiological and fruit physicochemical traits compared with SS treatment. However, the application of oak leaf powder and oak leaf extract can be described as novel agricultural practices because they are low-cost, easy to use, time-consuming, and can meet the growing demands of the agricultural sector by providing environmentally sustainable techniques for enhancing plant resistance to abiotic stress. The usage of the combination of leaf crude extract, oak leaf powder, and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus should be investigated further under stress conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background The majority of attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared (ATR FT-IR) investigations of cotton are focused on the fiber tissue for biological mechanisms and understanding of fiber development and maturity, but rarely on other cotton biomass components. This work examined in detail the ATR FT-IR spectral features of various cotton tissues/organs at reproductive and maturation stages, analyzed and discussed their biological implications. Results The ATR FT-IR spectra of these tissues/organs were analyzed and compared with the focus on the lower wavenumber fingerprinting range. Six outstanding FT-IR bands at 1 730, 1 620, 1 525, 1 235, 1 050 and 895 cm−1 represented the major C=O stretching, protein Amide I, Amide II, the O–H/N–H deformation, the total C–O–C stretching and the β-glycosidic linkage in celluloses, respectively, and impacted differently between these organs with the two growth stages. Furthermore, the band intensity at 1 620, 1 525, 1 235, and 1 050 cm−1 were exclusively and significantly correlated to the levels of protein (Amide I bond), protein (Amide II bond), cellulose, and hemicellulose, respectively, whereas the band at 1 730 cm−1 was negatively correlated with ash content. Conclusions The resulting observations indicated the capability of ATR FT-IR spectroscopy for monitoring changes, transportation, and accumulation of the major chemical components in these tissues over the cotton growth period. In other words, this spectral technology could be an effective tool for physiological, biochemical, and morphological research related to cotton biology and development.

Nanotechnology has brought about significant progress through the use of goods based on nanomaterials. However, concerns remain about the accumulation of these materials in the environment and their potential toxicity to living organisms. Plants have the ability to take in nanomaterials (NMs), which can cause changes in their physiology and morphology. On the other hand, nanoparticles (NPs) have been used to increase plant development and control pests in agriculture by including them into agrochemicals. The challenges of the interaction, internalization, and accumulation of NMs within plant tissues are enormous, mainly because of the various characteristics of NMs and the absence of reliable analytical tools. As our knowledge of the interactions between NMs and plant cells expands, we are able to create novel NMs that are tailored, targeted, and designed to be safe, thus minimizing the environmental consequences of nanomaterials. This review provides a thorough examination and comparison of the main microscopy techniques, spectroscopic methods, and far-field super-resolution methodologies used to examine nanomaterials within the cell walls of plants. • This review describes the main microscopy and spectroscopy techniques for mapping nanomaterials (NMs) in plants. • The main microscopy techniques, spectroscopy methods and far-field super-resolution approaches were presented. • The challenges and perspectives related to the mapping of NMs were explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

It has been repeatedly found that plant biology is less attractive for students than other biology fields. We, therefore, focused on the opposite and, through an online questionnaire, we asked biology teachers at gymnasia throughout Slovakia how they teach plant biology and where they experience problems. Almost 30% of teachers characterized technical equipment as insufficient but use some visual aids for ca. 50% of lessons. Despite the dominant use of microscopy, teachers admit that students’ biggest shortcomings are found in the anatomy of organs, photosynthesis, ontogenesis and its regulation by exogenous/endogenous factors, or when connecting knowledge about tissues with their functions. About half of the teachers rate their knowledge of plant anatomy and physiology as sufficient, but these teachers rate only about 20% of their students in the same way. Based on the negative correlation between the use of aids and the lack of student knowledge, and, at the same time, the positive correlation between the activity of teachers and better technical equipment, we conclude that the mainly neglected technical infrastructure does not allow for a better practical education (e.g., only 13.7% of gymnasia have analytical balances and only 1.6% a spectrophotometer). Furthermore, almost 90% of teachers mentioned that online education during COVID-19 pandemic negatively affected students’ knowledge. We hope that our research can contribute to changes in the Slovak educational curriculum focused on plant biology in a more scientific direction and inspire research in other countries, with the aim of exchanging knowledge regarding the species diversity of plants around the world and their importance for people and the environment.

The objective was to isolate endophytic bacteria from plant species present in soils contaminated with mercury in southern Bolivar, Colombia, and to evaluate in vitro their tolerance capacity to different concentrations of mercury. From each sampling site, roots, stems, leaves and flowers of the plants present were collected. The concentration of mercury in soil and plant tissues was determined using the instrumental technique of cold vapor atomic absorption spectrophotometry. The amount of endophytic bacteria per tissue was determined as CFU/g of soil. The tolerance of endophyte bacterial isolates to different concentrations of mercury was performed in liquid Tris-low phosphate buffer (TLP) medium. The average mercury concentration in soil was 5.9 ± 5.2 and in tissues 4.1 ± 2.2 mg/kg. The amount of endophytic bacteria found ranged from 5.0 107 ± 3.0 104 CFU/ g of tissues. The isolates identified as Bacillus cereus strain ML259; Bacillus mycoides O-1 and Bacillus cereus strain LB1016, showed in vitro tolerance capacity up to 500 and 400 mg/mL of HgCl2. The predominant plant species found in the soil corresponded to Melochia parvifolia, accumulating mercury in concentrations of 4.06 in the root, 3.83 in the stem, 3.6 in the leaf and 2.33 mg/kg in the flower. This plant species becomes a mercury indicator and accumulator plant and a possible alternative to remediate mercury-contaminated soils using the bioremediation technique assisted by endophytic bacteria for the management of soils contaminated with this metal. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Phosphogypsum is a by-product of the phosphorus fertilizer production process and is typically stacked at the production sites. These stacks can potentially pose environmental hazards, which can be substantially reduced through reclamation by capping with soil and revegetation upon decommissioning. We conducted a study on a phosphogypsum stack using five soil capping depths (8, 15, 30, 46, 91 cm), an uncapped treatment, and five vegetation treatments (monocultures of four grass species Agrostis stolonifera L., Festuca ovina L., Deschampsia caespitosa (L.) Beauv., Agropyron trachycaulum (Link) Malte ex H.F. Lewis and one mix of the four species with Trifolium hybridum L.) to assess plant growth, health, rooting characteristics, and trace element uptake. Cobalt and nickel concentrations in plant tissue from plots with ≥ 15 cm soil capping were within ranges found at reference sites, whereas fluorine was three times elevated. Vegetation cover was significantly greater on capped than uncapped plots, being greatest for Agropyron trachycaulum (26%) and Festuca ovina (26%). Capping depths ≥ 15 cm had greater cover, biomass, and healthy plants than the 8 cm cover. Soil water content was similar in the 15–46 cm capping depth, with the lowest in the 91-cm caps. Fluorine, cobalt, and nickel were elevated in select plant tissue samples on the research plots relative to references, and cap depth affected tissue fluorine and cobalt concentrations but not nickel. Concentrations of these trace elements were lower than maximum tolerable levels for animal consumption. From this 5-year study, Agropyron trachycaulum and Festuca ovina and a soil cover depth of ≥ 15 cm are recommended for reclamation of phosphogypsum stacks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epichloë coenophiala, a systemic fungal symbiont (endophyte) of tall fescue (Lolium arundinaceum), has been documented to confer to this grass better persistence than plants lacking the endophyte, especially under stress conditions such as drought. The response, if any, of the endophyte to imposition of stress on the host plant has not been characterized previously. Therefore, we investigated effects on gene expression by E. coenophiala and a related endophyte when plant-endophyte symbiota were subjected to acute water-deficit stress. Plants harboring different endophyte strains were grown in sand in the greenhouse, then half were deprived of water for 48 h and the other half were watered controls. RNA was isolated from different plant tissues, and mRNA sequencing (RNA-seq) was conducted to identify genes that were differentially expressed comparing stress treatment with control. We compared two different plants harboring the common toxic E. coenophiala strain (CTE) and two non–ergot-alkaloid-producing Epichloë strains in tall fescue pseudostems, and in a second experiment we compared responses of E. coenophiala CTE in plant pseudostem and crown tissues. The endophytes responded to the stress with increased expression of genes involved in oxidative stress response, oxygen radical detoxification, C-compound carbohydrate metabolism, heat shock, and cellular transport pathways. The magnitude of fungal gene responses during stress varied among plant-endophyte symbiota. Responses in pseudostems and crowns involved some common pathways as well as some tissue-specific pathways. The fungal response to water-deficit stress involved gene expression changes in similar pathways that have been documented for plant stress responses, indicating that Epichloë spp. and their host plants either coordinate stress responses or separately activate similar stress response mechanisms that work together for mutual protection. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Availability of quality seeds in production of krisan (Chrysanthemum morifolium Ramat cv Dewi ratih) cultivation is still rare, therefore research on seed multiplication through tissue culture is needed. The media used in tissue culture is relatively expensive for home industry. This study aims to determine the respond of leaf and stem explants using foliar fertilizers (Growmore, Gandasil D and Mutiara) as an alternative media for callus inductions. This study used a Completely Randomized Design (CRD) consisted of 4 treatments: P0: ½ MS + 0,25 mg/l BAP, P1 (Growmore + 0,25 mg/l BAP), P2 (Gandasil D + 0,25 mg/l BAP), P3 (Mutiara + 0,25 mg/l BAP). The variables observed in this study included callus appearance time, callus color and callus texture. The result of this study indicated that the use of BAP (6-Benzyl Amino Purine) affected the time of callus formation and callus morphology. Callus was formed on leaf explants 13 days after planting while on stem explants 7 days after planting and compact texture. Growmore + 0,25 mg/l BAP treatment yields the best callus on leaf explant, while Gandasil D + 0,25 mg/l BAP treatment yields the best callus on stem explant.

Due to the emerging danger to the life of animals and people, today there is a turn to safe technologies for controlling weeds by physical methods, both from the point of view of ecology and food safety, which include the destruction of plants using an electric current, in particular, high-voltage electrical pulses. The purpose of the study presented in the article is to identify and evaluate the effect of high-voltage electrical pulses on the irreversible damage to the intracellular structures of the plant tissue of weeds and unwanted grasses during their electric weed control, characterizing and evaluating the parameters and modes associated with such processing. Experimental studies were carried out using a laboratory experimental setup that consists of a pulse voltage generator, a control circuit for a spherical forming spark gap, and schemes for measuring the electrical resistance of the plant tissue of the weed sample. The lesion level made it possible to control the depth of irreversible damage to the internal structure of the plant tissue of weeds by measuring its tolerance (the conductivity of the tissue increased with increasing damage to the cellular components of the tissue).The irreversible damage to the plant tissues of weeds for weeds of various biological groups, which is characterized by reaching the value of at least 4.0–7.5 degrees of damage to their tissues, can be acted on them with high-voltage electrical pulses in the treated tissue of an electric field intensity of at least 3.74 kV/cm, while ensuring specific processing electric energy for the reliable processing of weeds: for Euphórbia virgáta, thise quals 5.2…17.5 J/cm3; for Amaránthus retrofléxus, it is 3.5…7.7 J/cm3; for Cirsium arvense, it is 2.7…10.9 J/cm3;for Sónchus arvénsis, it is 3.7…15.8 J/cm3; and for Lactúca tatárica, it is 3.3…8.1 J/cm3.

Drying is one of the oldest methods of obtaining a product with a long shelf-life. Recently, this process has been modified and accelerated by the application of pulsed electric field (PEF); however, PEF pretreatment has an effect on different properties—physical as well as chemical. Thus, the aim of this study was to investigate the effect of pulsed electric field pretreatment and air temperature on the course of hot air drying and selected chemical properties of the apple tissue of Gloster variety apples. The dried apple tissue samples were obtained using a combination of PEF pretreatment with electric field intensity levels of 1, 3.5, and 6 kJ/kg and subsequent hot air drying at 60, 70, and 80 °C. It was found that a higher pulsed electric field intensity facilitated the removal of water from the apple tissue while reducing the drying time. The study results showed that PEF pretreatment influenced the degradation of bioactive compounds such as polyphenols, flavonoids, and ascorbic acid. The degradation of vitamin C was higher with an increase in PEF pretreatment intensity level. PEF pretreatment did not influence the total sugar and sorbitol contents of the dried apple tissue as well as the FTIR spectra. According to the optimization process and statistical profiles of approximated values, the optimal parameters to achieve high-quality dried apple tissue in a short drying time are PEF pretreatment application with an intensity of 3.5 kJ/kg and hot air drying at a temperature of 70 °C.

Peaches are grown in many Egyptian orchards for local and global fresh market sales. The interior fruit tissue breakdown (IFTB), often resulting in decayed peaches, is a severe problem during marketing. Therefore, to minimize FTB of peaches, in this study, gum arabic (GA) and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) were mixed with different concentrations of salicylic acid (SA) (0, 1, and 2 mM) and were applied as edible coating to extend the shelf life of peach fruits. Mature peaches were selected and harvested when peaches reached total soluble solid content (SSC: 8.5%) and fruit firmness of about 47 N. Fruits were coated and stored at room temperature (26 ± 1 °C and air humidity 51 ± 1%) for 10 days during two seasons: 2020 and 2021. Fruit coated with GA/PVP-SA 2 mM showed a significant (p < 0.05) inhibition in degrading enzyme activities (CWDEs), such as lipoxygenase (LOX), cellulase (CEL), and pectinase (PT), compared to uncoated and coated fruits during the shelf-life period. Hence, cell wall compartments were maintained. Consequently, there was a reduction in browning symptoms in fruits by inhibiting polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) activities. Thus, the fruit skin browning index showed almost no symptoms. The lipid peroxidation process and ionic permeability declined as well. The result suggests that, by applying GA/PVP-SA 2 mM as an edible coating, fruit tissue breakdown can be minimized, and the shelf life of peach can be extended up to 10 days without symptoms of tissue breakdown. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract Background The cellular morphology of plant organs is strongly related to other physical properties such as shape, size, growth, mechanical properties or chemical composition. Cell morphology often vary depending on the type of tissue, or on the distance to a specific tissue. A common challenge in quantitative plant histology is to quantify not only the cellular morphology, but also its variations within the image or the organ. Image texture analysis is a fundamental tool in many areas of image analysis, that was proven efficient for plant histology, but at the scale of the whole image. Results This work presents a method that generates a parametric mapping of cellular morphology within images of plant tissues. It is based on gray level granulometry from mathematical morphology for extracting image texture features, and on Centroidal Voronoi Diagram for generating a partition of the image. Resulting granulometric curves can be interpreted either through multivariate data analysis or by using summary features corresponding to the local average cell size. The resulting parametric maps describe the variations of cellular morphology within the organ. Conclusions We propose a methodology for the quantification of cellular morphology and of its variations within images of tissue sections. The results should help understanding how the cellular morphology is related to genotypic and / or environmental variations, and clarify the relationships between cellular morphology and chemical composition of cell walls.

Abstract Background To understand processes regulating nutrient homeostasis at the single-cell level there is a need for new methods that allow multi-element profiling of biological samples ultimately only available as isolated tissues or cells, typically in nanogram-sized samples. Apart from tissue isolation, the main challenges for such analyses are to obtain a complete and homogeneous digestion of each sample, to keep sample dilution at a minimum and to produce accurate and reproducible results. In particular, determining the weight of small samples becomes increasingly challenging when the sample amount decreases. Results We developed a novel method for sampling, digestion and multi-element analysis of nanogram-sized plant tissue, along with strategies to quantify element concentrations in samples too small to be weighed. The method is based on tissue isolation by laser capture microdissection (LCM), followed by pressurized micro-digestion and ICP-MS analysis, the latter utilizing a stable µL min−1 sample aspiration system. The method allowed for isolation, digestion and analysis of micro-dissected tissues from barley roots with an estimated sample weight of only ~ 400 ng. In the collection and analysis steps, a number of contamination sources were identified. Following elimination of these sources, several elements, including magnesium (Mg), phosphorus (P), potassium (K) and manganese (Mn), could be quantified. By measuring the exact area and thickness of each of the micro-dissected tissues, their volume was calculated. Combined with an estimated sample density, the sample weights could subsequently be calculated and the fact that these samples were too small to be weighed could thereby be circumvented. The method was further documented by analysis of Arabidopsis seeds (~ 20 µg) as well as tissue fractions of such seeds (~ 10 µg). Conclusions The presented method enables collection and multi-element analysis of small-sized biological samples, ranging down to the nanogram level. As such, the method paves the road for single cell and tissue-specific quantitative ionomics, which allow for future transcriptional, proteomic and metabolomic data to be correlated with ionomic profiles. Such analyses will deepen our understanding of how the elemental composition of plants is regulated, e.g. by transporter proteins and physical barriers (i.e. the Casparian strip and suberin lamellae in the root endodermis).

This review critically assesses the determination of low molecular weight volatiles by different methods, providing context for the development of suitable techniques to determine volatile content in plant tissue and soil samples as well as the associated analytical challenges. Although sensitive analytical methods have been reported in recent decades, studies on their application in modern investigative techniques are lacking. Herein, the latest sampling methods in volatile biochemistry, current advancements in the understanding of these analytes, and the significance of these findings for other types of volatiles are summarized. Gas chromatography, high-performance liquid chromatography, ion chromatography, thin-film microextraction, and real-time monitoring techniques are discussed and critically determined. This review concerns the methods most suitable for future research in this area., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Authors.)

Phenolic compounds, abundant secondary metabolites in plants, profoundly influence soil ecosystems, plant growth, and interactions with herbivores. Phenolic in soil microorganisms have the potential to impact a wide range of activities in plant-soil interactions. However, the existing methods for measuring microbial activity are typically time-consuming, intricate, and expensive. In this study, we propose modifications to the method used for the extraction and quantification of various types of phenolics in soil and plant tissues. There have been substantial advancements in research aimed at extracting, identifying, and quantifying phenolic compounds in the plant and soil samples. This study discusses the use of different methodologies in the analysis of phenolic compounds. In addition, we investigated the effect of phenolics on plant growth and cues in gall-forming under environmental disturbances.•This method is the optimum way to extract phenolic from soil and microbial activity in bulk and rhizosphere soil.•It can be used on any soil type and plant tissue, metabolites extracted from living organisms., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

Drought stress is one of the most significant abiotic stresses on the sustainability of global agriculture. The finding of natural resources is essential for decreasing the need for artificial fertilizers and boosting plant growth and yield under water stress conditions. This study used a factorial experimental design to investigate the effects of oak leaf extract, biofertilizer, and soil containing oak leaf powder on the growth and biochemical parameters of four tomato genotypes under water stress throughout the pre-flowering and pre-fruiting stages of plant development. The experiment had two components. The first component represented the genotypes (two sensitive and two tolerant), while the second component represented the treatment group, which included irrigated plants (SW), untreated and stressed plants (SS), treated plants with oak leaf powder and stressed (SOS), treated plants with oak leaf powder and oak leaf extract and stressed (SOES), and treated plants with oak leaf powder and biofertilizers and stressed (SOBS). When compared with irrigated or control plants, drought stress under the treatments of SS, SOS, SOES, and SOBS conditions at two stages and their combination significantly lowered shoot length (12.95%), total fruit weight per plant (33.97%), relative water content (14.05%), and total chlorophyll content (26.30%). The reduction values for shoot length (17.58%), shoot fresh weight (22.08%), and total fruit weight per plant (42.61%) were significantly larger in two sensitive genotypes compared with tolerant genotypes, which recorded decreasing percentages of 8.36, 8.88, and 25.32% for shoot length, shoot fresh weight, and total fruit weight per plant, respectively. Root fresh weight and root dry weight of genotypes treated with SS, SOS, SOES, and SOBS, on the other hand, increased in comparison with control plants. Tomato fruits from stressed plants treated with SS, SOS, SOES, and SOBS had considerably higher levels of titratable acidity, ascorbic acid, and total phenolic compounds than irrigated plants during all stress stages. Under water stress conditions, the addition of oak leaf powder to soil, oak leaf extract, and biofertilizer improved the biochemical content of leaves in all genotypes. Furthermore, leaf lipid peroxidation was lower in plants treated with SOES and SOBS, and lower in the two tolerant genotypes than in the two susceptible genotypes. In conclusion, the application of SOS, SOES, and SOBS demonstrated a slight decrease in some morpho-physiological and fruit physicochemical traits compared with SS treatment. However, the application of oak leaf powder and oak leaf extract can be described as novel agricultural practices because they are low-cost, easy to use, time-consuming, and can meet the growing demands of the agricultural sector by providing environmentally sustainable techniques for enhancing plant resistance to abiotic stress. The usage of the combination of leaf crude extract, oak leaf powder, and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungus should be investigated further under stress conditions.

Rocoto (Capsicum pubescens Ruiz & Pav.) is a native plant of Peru, used in the national gastronomy with great nutritional value; it has pharmaceutical and medicinal properties. The crop is susceptible to diseases caused by phytopathogens, which are spread by seeds of infected cultivars or seedlings. Through the use of biotechnological tools such as in vitro plant tissue culture, it is possible to obtain plants free of pathogens, of good quality and great agronomic potential. Therefore, the present work aimed to develop a methodology for the in vitro induction of callus from hot pepper leaves. In vitro germinated rocoto seedlings were used, from which the first true leaves were selected, which were sectioned into 1 cm explants and placed in different MS culture media added with 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D). The induction response to calllogenesis was evaluated in five treatments with different concentrations of 2,4-D (0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75 and 1 mg l-1), under conditions of 25 °C in the dark for 35 days. The culture media added with 0.75 and 1 mg l-1 of 2.4-D allowed to obtain 100% induction of calluses in the hot pepper leaves with 81% and 86%, respectively of grade 3 callus formation. This study, pioneer for the species, is good for the potential use of breeding programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The application of histological methods in meat composition analysis and identification of prohibited tissues and organs added to meat and meat products is still in the research phase, although there have been some promising results. The aim of this work was to assess the possibility of using histological and histochemical methods for analysis of kulen composition. In this research, six samples of kulen were examined, one of which was produced in domestic conditions, while the rest were commercial products sampled from local markets. The samples were carried through classical histological preparation. The obtained slides were stained with haematoxylin/eosin, Masson-Goldner, toluidine blue and periodic acid-Schiff/alcian blue. The content of muscle, fat and connective tissue was evaluated using histomorphometric analysis. Histological analysis of kulen composition determined the presence of the following structures: muscle, adipose and connective tissues, blood vessels, glandular epithelium, peripheral nerve, cartilage and plant tissue. The histomorphometric analysis showed that the kulen products contained on average 56±2.52% muscle tissue, 7.27±1.38% connective tissue and 19.82±3.24% adipose tissue. The results show that by applying histological methods it is possible to identify different permitted and prohibited animal tissues in kulen, and hence, it is possible to analyse the composition of kulen. It is also possible to confirm the presence of various plant tissues, but for their precise identification, additional histological methods are needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A biofuel cell (BFC) was fabricated by combining multiwalled carbon nanotube ‐platinum‐gold (MWCNT−Pt−Au) hybrid nanomaterial, glucose oxidase (GOx) and benzoquinone included carbon felt electrode (CFE) bioanode with apple tissue included CFE biocathode. The working parameters of bioanode were optimized both experimentally and chemometrically. For the biocathode, apple, banana and pear tissues were tried and best power output was obtained with apple tissue. By combining MWCNT−Pt−Au/GOx/CFE bioanode with apple tissue based biocathode, single cell, double cell with membrane and with salt‐bridge BFCs were formed. The best power output with highest current density were obtained with single cell BFC. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A method is described which uses cyclohexanediaminetetraacetic acid (CDTA) to produce numerous separated whole cells from plant tissue. CDTA chelates divalent cations that cross‐link the pectic polysaccharides of the middle lamella, allowing gentle separation of the cells without harsh physical treatments. These individual cells are ideal for observing starch granules in situ by microscopy without the requirement for fixation, embedding, sectioning, or prior starch extraction. Starch can easily be observed either unstained, or by polarizing optics, or after staining with iodide (I2/KI). Staining with I2/KI in combination with polarizing optics gives information on polarizing colors that indicate compositional differences within granules. Examples of the starch complement in developing, mature, and cooked rr wrinkled pea cells, and in banana and potato tissue are shown. The CDTA‐separation method is ideal for the survey of starch mutants and other cell components as it preserves cytoplasmic organization and prevents microbial degradation during storage. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peaches are grown in many Egyptian orchards for local and global fresh market sales. The interior fruit tissue breakdown (IFTB), often resulting in decayed peaches, is a severe problem during marketing. Therefore, to minimize FTB of peaches, in this study, gum arabic (GA) and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) were mixed with different concentrations of salicylic acid (SA) (0, 1, and 2 mM) and were applied as edible coating to extend the shelf life of peach fruits. Mature peaches were selected and harvested when peaches reached total soluble solid content (SSC: 8.5%) and fruit firmness of about 47 N. Fruits were coated and stored at room temperature (26 ± 1 °C and air humidity 51 ± 1%) for 10 days during two seasons: 2020 and 2021. Fruit coated with GA/PVP-SA 2 mM showed a significant (p < 0.05) inhibition in degrading enzyme activities (CWDEs), such as lipoxygenase (LOX), cellulase (CEL), and pectinase (PT), compared to uncoated and coated fruits during the shelf-life period. Hence, cell wall compartments were maintained. Consequently, there was a reduction in browning symptoms in fruits by inhibiting polyphenol oxidase (PPO) and phenylalanine ammonia-lyase (PAL) activities. Thus, the fruit skin browning index showed almost no symptoms. The lipid peroxidation process and ionic permeability declined as well. The result suggests that, by applying GA/PVP-SA 2 mM as an edible coating, fruit tissue breakdown can be minimized, and the shelf life of peach can be extended up to 10 days without symptoms of tissue breakdown.

Although knowledge of the microstructure of food of vegetal origin helps us to understand the behavior of food materials, the variability in the microstructural elements complicates this analysis. In this regard, the construction of learning models that represent the actual microstructures of the tissue is important to extract relevant information and advance in the comprehension of such behavior. Consequently, the objective of this research is to compare two machine learning techniques—Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) and Radial Basis Neural Networks (RBNN)—when used to enhance its microstructural analysis. Two main contributions can be highlighted from this research. First, a method is proposed to automatically analyze the microstructural elements of vegetal tissue; and second, a comparison was conducted to select a classifier to discriminate between tissue structures. For the comparison, a database of microstructural elements images was obtained from pumpkin (Cucurbita pepo L.) micrographs. Two classifiers were implemented using CNN and RBNN, and statistical performance metrics were computed using a 5-fold cross-validation scheme. This process was repeated one hundred times with a random selection of images in each repetition. The comparison showed that the classifiers based on CNN produced a better fit, obtaining F1–score average of 89.42% in front of 83.83% for RBNN. In this study, the performance of classifiers based on CNN was significantly higher compared to those based on RBNN in the discrimination of microstructural elements of vegetable foods. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Near‐infrared spectroscopy (NIR) associated with chemometric methods has been widely used in the determination of various compounds, as it is a fast, nondestructive, and analytical method with minimal sample preparation and universal application. In addition, the trend of miniaturization has allowed the development of new portable equipment, increasing the possibilities of point‐of‐use analysis at low cost. In this context, the objective of this study was to develop a portable analytical methodology using a low‐cost DLP NIRscan Nano spectrophotometer (Texas Instruments®) connected to a smartphone for data storage. For this, an app called NanoMetrix was developed, created natively for Android from Android Studio IDE, according to a software design standard known as Model‐View‐ViewModel (MVVM). To demonstrate the applicability of the method, 36 samples of plant tissue were analyzed to determine total nitrogen content. The calibration models were compared to those obtained with the SOLO+MIA software (Eigenvector Research, Inc.), 8.6.1. The results presented root mean square error of calibration (RMSEC) 1.90 and 1.82 g kg−1, root mean square error of prediction (RMSEP) 2.00 and 1.97 g kg−1, and R2pred 0.973 and 0.975, for the NanoMetrix application and the SOLO+MIA software, respectively. Therefore, the results indicate that the NanoMetrix integrated with the portable spectrophotometer, besides the acquisition of spectra, allows the processing of data in the field and reducing the time for the analysis and obtaining the results. Also, the chemometric associated with the NIR spectroscopy is a viable alternative to replace, or complement, the methods used for nitrogen determination. In this study, the NanoMetrix app was developed, intended for samples analysis using a low‐cost DLP NIRscan Nano spectrophotometer (Texas Instruments®). As a proof of concept, nitrogen content in plants tissue was determined, and the results were compared with those obtained with a commercial chemometric software. The results indicated that the NanoMetrix integrated with the portable spectrometer, besides the acquisition of spectra, allows the processing of data in the field and reducing the time for the analysis and obtaining the results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Amaranthus cruentus L. is a leafy vegetable that is cultivated mainly for its leaves and grains. Due to high demand for this crop in Nigeria, the need to boost its productivity becomes necessary. Field and laboratory studies were conducted during in two successive cropping seasons at the experimental farm and laboratory unit of the Department of Crop Science, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Benin, Benin City. Three cutting heights C1: (10 cm), C2: (15 cm), C3: (20 cm) and a control C0: (no cutting) and four rates of fertilizer application F0: (Control), F1: (10 t ha-1 poultry manure), F2: (150 kg ha-1 NPK15:15:15) and F3 (75 t ha-1 NPK 15:15:15 + 5 t ha-1 poultry manure) constituted the treatments. The treatments were in three replicate laid out in a (4 × 4) factorial arrangement in a randomized complete block design. Data collected were plant height (cm), leaf area (cm2), stem diameter (cm) and number of branches. Fresh and dry herbage yield were taken at harvest. Growth, yield, and quality of Amarathus cruentus were significantly influenced by cutting heights and fertilizer application. In both years, number of branches (3.50 and 6.01) were lowest at C0 compared with other treatments. Herbage fresh and dry yield (49.10 t ha-1 and 18.20 t ha-1) were highest at C3 and was consistent in both years. Similarly, the concentration of K, Ca, and Mg in plant tissue and the uptake of nutrients (N, P, K, Ca, Mg, and Na) increase at C3 compared with other treatments. F3 significantly (p