EVALUATION OF SEVERAL YIELD TRAITS FOR SOME REGENERANTS OF MOMORDICA CHARANTIA L. UNDER FIELD CONDITIONS

Momordica charantia L. is a valuable medicinal herb used in the treatment of many diseases, especially diabetes. The conditions of in vitro cultivation and the passage of specific stages of this technology determine the occurrence at the level of regenerants of some character changes which, although they are epigenetic, are valuable for the productivity of this species. Our research has been aimed at testing in the field crop conditions (three years 2014-2016) of 5 lines of bitter cucumber regenerants (Momordica charantia L.) obtained in vitro. The obtained results allow us to assert that through the in vitro culture it is possible to obtain the variability of certain production characters in the bitter cucumber, which is kept in the descendent and allows their use in order to improve the productive features of this species in the temperate climate zone.

Studies on stability of grains number from panicle to a collection of oats autumn (Avena sativa L.) genotypes

The study aimed at assessing stability the grains number from panicle to autumn oats, under the influence of climatic conditions. The study was conducted over a period of three years. The biological material consisted of 73 genotypes. The experimental data was obtained by performing biometric measurements. The experimental data was processed by various linear regression analysis modelesses: Finlay-Wilkinson, Hardwick-Wood, Muir, Wrike but also the concordance between the ranks of different models of appreciation. The values of grains number in panicle fluctuate according to the climatic conditions of the year, both as an average value and as intrapopulational variability. The Jeferson, Carie, Florina varieties, and the 4458, PA 725-4743, PA 822-818 lines exhibits a high dynamic stability associated with values above the average of the experience for the number of grains in panicle. In the case of this character, 53.10% of the genotype x environment interaction is due to heterogeneity of variances

STUDIES REGARDING THE VARIABILITY OF THE PLANT PRODUCTIVITY CHARACTERS OF THE BELL PEPPER (CAPSICUM ANNUUM VAR. TETRAGONUM)

The study tracked the evaluation of the characters that contribute to the plant production in a collection of bell pepper genotypes. The experimentation was done in field, under the usual technological conditions. The data collected by biometric measurements were statistically interpreted by variance analysis and by the setting of the selection indices (S, h2, ΔG). The biological material consisted of 20 landraces collected from the West of Romania. Most populations are similar to Globus variety in terms of fruit size. The Tomnatic II population is remarkable with many and small fruits, but also the Apateu I and Cenad populations which have the fruit weight on the plant significantly higher. For the fruit weight, the differences between the populations may be up to about 100 g (Şimian), which has the greatest heritability (0.83). In most populations, the heritability of this character is less than 0.50. The number of fruit per plant is influenced by environmental factors, but the expected genetic progress can be up to 5.98 fruit (Tomnatic II). The most common values are between 2 and 3 fruits. For the number of fruit per plant, few populations have a heritability of more than 0.50. The fruit weight on the plant can be improved by selection with a progress ranging from 21.43 g (Tomnatic I) to 340.73 g (Valcani). The heritability of this character is over 0.60 for nine populations. Considering these indices, the collected material is valuable for the selection process, but the selection must be longer. The studied populations of bell peppers are an important reservoir of genes for the breeding process, the variability of morphological characters being satisfactory

EVALUATION OF THE GENETIC DIVERSITY OF ALLIUM ASCALONICUM LANDRACES BASED ON MOLECULAR MARKERS

The aim of the research was to identify Allium ascalonicum land races with a good yield due to their morphological traits, with good adaptation capacity, with different genetic background, as a first step in identification of a suitable source for the production of secondary metabolites. Therefore 16 shallot landraces collected from different areas of Timis county were evaluated from phenotypic and molecular point of view. Thus the height, diameter, weight and bulb shape index were determined. For genetic fingerprint 8 ISSR (Inter Simple Sequence Repeats) markers were used. The extracted DNA was amplified with the specific primers, the fragments were separated by agarose gel electrophoresis and analyzed with the VisionWorks®LS, (UVP, England) software. 178 amplified fragments were registered, with an average of 22.25/primer, of which 174 were polymorphic (97.75% polymorphism). The matrix of similarity and the dendrogram were established based on UPGMA (Unweighted Pair Group Method with Arithmetic Mean) analysis. A considerable genetic diversity between landraces with different ecologic origin was observed, indicating that they have different genetic mechanisms for the yield traits and adaptation to the specific environmental conditions of the area. All the obtained results allowed the identification of local land races with a high production capacity which had different genetic background (Dolat 126a, Sanmartinu S. and Rudna 101.) Therefore the posibility to recognize genotypes with distinct secondary metabolites content it was increased

Vegetable Landraces: The “Gene Banks” for Traditional Farmers and Future Breeding Programs

Crop diversity of vegetable species is threatened by the current homogenization of agricultural production systems due to specialization of plant breeders and increasing globalization in the seed sector. With the onset of modern agriculture, most traditional vegetable cultivars were replaced by highly productive and often genetically uniform commercial breeds and hybrids. This led to the loss of landraces, especially in countries with a super-intensive agriculture. The agricultural biodiversity erosion represents a huge risk for food safety and security. Vegetable landraces are associated with the cultural heritage of their place of origin being adapted to local agro-ecological areas and are more resilient to environmental stress than commercial cultivars. The chapter aim to highlight the importance of keeping and using vegetable landraces as valuable sources of genes for traditional farmers, but also for future breeding processes. We analyze the historical role of landraces, genetic diversity, high physiological adaptability to specific local conditions in association with traditional farming systems, as well as the breeding perspectives and evaluation of genetic diversity based on molecular markers

Assessment of some morphological and physiological parameters in lettuce (Lactuca sativa l.) cultivated in hydroponic system

Lettuce is a valuable leaf vegetable for a well-balanced diet, since it is rich in nutrient elements, has low calories and provides dietary antioxidants. Compared to soil-based cultivation, the hydroponic system is an alternative associated with a shortening of growing cycles and a reduction of wasted water amount. The aim of this study was to analyze the growth of lettuce plants under hydroponic and soil cultivation systems, during three phenological growth stages (45; 47 and 49) according to BBCH scale. During the study different morphological and physiological parameters were evaluated: Plant height (PH); Stem diameter (SD); Fresh mass (FM); Dry mass (DM); Leaf area (LA); Chlorophyll content (CC); Transpiration rate (TR). The research was carried out using a complete randomized design with a 2 × 3 factorial arrangement of cultivation system and growth stages. Plants grown in hydroponic system presented higher values of most parameters, except for DM and TR. The cultivation system had the highest effect on PH, SD and LA. The highest variation between growth stages were observed for PH, LA and CC. Finally, we can conclude that lettuce plants cultivated under hydroponic system, presented better growth parameters associated with higher head weight and yield

The field yield of Momordica charantia L. regenerants obtained by in vitro cultures

Abstract Our research aimed at the cultivation in field conditions of regenerants from in vitro culture of 5 genotypes of bitter gourd (Momordica charantia L.). On the ground of the results we obtained, we can draw the conclusion that we can, through in vitro cultures, get variability of some yield characters in bitter gourd that can be exploited in order to improve the productive features of this species in temperate climate conditions areas

Physiological Aspects of Absorption, Translocation, and Accumulation of Heavy Metals in Silphium perfoliatum L. Plants Grown in a Mining-Contaminated Soil

Soil pollution by heavy metals as a result of mining activities is increasingly taking place. Once accumulated in soil, the heavy metals can then be dispersed, with serious effects on the environment and human health. It is therefore necessary to minimize, or even remove, all heavy metals from polluted areas, and one of the environmentally friendly and sustainable methods to do so is phytoremediation. A greenhouse pots experiment was conducted to evaluate the phytoremediation capacity of Silphium perfoliatum L. plants, in the vegetative growth stages, on a soil polluted with Cu, Zn, Cr and Pb, taken from a former mining area compared to an unpolluted soil (Us). The initial heavy metal content of polluted soil (Ps) was 208.3 mg kg−1 Cu; 312.5 mg kg−1 Zn; 186.5 mg kg−1 Cr and 195.2 mg kg−1 Pb. This shows that for Cu and Pb, soil concentrations exceed the intervention threshold, and for Zn and Cr, they are above the alert threshold. The removal efficiency, bioaccumulation factor, translocation factor, metal uptake and contamination factor index of Cu, Zn, Cr and Pb by S. perfoliatum L. were quantified to determine the bioremediation success. The data show that plants grown in Ps accumulated a significantly higher amount of Cu by 189% and Zn by 37.95% compared to Us. The Cr and Pb content of the plants recorded a progressive and significant increase from one developmental stage to another, being more intense between three and five leaves

Physiological Aspects of Absorption, Translocation, and Accumulation of Heavy Metals in <i>Silphium perfoliatum</i> L. Plants Grown in a Mining-Contaminated Soil

Soil pollution by heavy metals as a result of mining activities is increasingly taking place. Once accumulated in soil, the heavy metals can then be dispersed, with serious effects on the environment and human health. It is therefore necessary to minimize, or even remove, all heavy metals from polluted areas, and one of the environmentally friendly and sustainable methods to do so is phytoremediation. A greenhouse pots experiment was conducted to evaluate the phytoremediation capacity of Silphium perfoliatum L. plants, in the vegetative growth stages, on a soil polluted with Cu, Zn, Cr and Pb, taken from a former mining area compared to an unpolluted soil (Us). The initial heavy metal content of polluted soil (Ps) was 208.3 mg kg−1 Cu; 312.5 mg kg−1 Zn; 186.5 mg kg−1 Cr and 195.2 mg kg−1 Pb. This shows that for Cu and Pb, soil concentrations exceed the intervention threshold, and for Zn and Cr, they are above the alert threshold. The removal efficiency, bioaccumulation factor, translocation factor, metal uptake and contamination factor index of Cu, Zn, Cr and Pb by S. perfoliatum L. were quantified to determine the bioremediation success. The data show that plants grown in Ps accumulated a significantly higher amount of Cu by 189% and Zn by 37.95% compared to Us. The Cr and Pb content of the plants recorded a progressive and significant increase from one developmental stage to another, being more intense between three and five leaves