Medicinal and Environmental Indicator Species of Utricularia from Montane Forest of Peninsular Malaysia

The carnivorous Utricularia (Lentibulariaceae) is a small herb of multifarious wet habitats worldwide. Eleven of the 14 Peninsular Malaysian species range into the mountains. Distribution, disturbance adaptability and collection frequency were used to formulate their commonness category. Common (U. aurea, U. bifida, and U. minutissima) and fairly common (U. gibba and U. uliginosa) species are mostly lowland plants that ascend to open montane microhabitats, while the fairly common (U. striatula), narrow-range (U. caerulea pink form and U. involvens), rare (U. furcellata and U. scandens), and endemic (U. vitellina) species are restricted to mountainous sites. Common species that colonise dystrophic to oligotrophic man-made sites in late succession could serve as predictors for general health and recovery of wet habitats. Rarer species are often locally abundant, their niches situated around pristine forest edges. When in decline, they indicate the beginning of problems affecting the forest. Utricularia is reportedly nutritious, mildly astringent, and diuretic. Preadapted to nutrient-poor, waterlogged soils, U. bifida is suitable as an alternative for small-scale herb cultivation on low pH, wet poor soils usually deemed not suitable for any crops

Expression Level of Sh2 and Bt2 Genes in Some Advanced Corn Lines Under Tropical Environment

The rate-limiting step in starch synthesis entails the synthesis of ADP-Glc from Glc-1-P and ATP by AGPase. AGPase is a heterotetramer composed of two large subunits encoded by Sh2 and two small subunits encoded by Bt2. We examined the transcript level of each gene that encodes AGPase through quantitative real-time PCR (qRT_PCR) within endosperm and leaf tissues from 6 newer composite corn lines. The Sh2 and Bt2 genes presented upregulated expression levels in leaf and endosperm tissue. The highest expression level of these two genes in leaf tissues was observed in UM 1 with 6.96 fold and in UM 11 with 3.94 fold respectively. Meanwhile, the highest transcript level of Sh2 and Bt2 genes in endosperm tissues were observed in UM 2 with 5.96 fold and UM 1 with 7.36 fold respectively. The correlation coefficient between the expression levels of the Sh2 gene and the morphological traits in endosperm tissue indicated that it was significantly and positively correlated with ear length (0.75), ear weight (0.74) and yield (0.66). Meanwhile, the correlation coefficient results indicate that the expression level of Bt2 in endosperm tissue was significantly and positively correlated with1000 kernel weight (0.93), yield (0.90), ear weight (0.87) and ear length (0.87). In conclusion, via cross transformation approaches, two main yield-related genes (Sh2 and Bt2) were modified in the new advanced corn lines. Overexpression of Sh2 and Bt2 genes can increase the starch content through enhancing the activity of AGPase and subsequently the yield enhancement occurred

A phytosociological study on the community of palaquium gutta (Hook.f.) Baill. (Sapotaceae) at Ayer Hitam Forest Reserve, Selangor, Malaysia

A phytosociological study on the flora and vegetation community of Palaquium gutta (Hook.f.) Baill. was carried out in Compartment 13 of Ayer Hitam Forest Reserve, Selangor. The main objectives of this study were to identify, characterize and classify the P. gutta community which is naturally distributed in Ayer Hitam Forest Reserve. A total of 10 plots (30×30 m in size) were constructed according to the line transect method. The vegetation sampling and data analysis were done according to the Braun-Blanquet approach. The results showed that there were 59 species belonging to 54 genera and 34 families in the form of herbs, shrubs, understorey trees and also canopy tree layers. The most common species in the study area were P. gutta and Endospermum diadenum (Miq.) Airy Shaw. The phytosociological study identified a community of Palaquium gutta-Endospermum. diadenum along with two sub-communities known as Dracaena sp. sub-community and Streblus elongatus sub-community. The results also showed that most of the species belong to the Euphorbiaceae. This indicates that the forest is a secondary forest

Phyiso-chemical characteristics of soil at Sungai Udang Forest Reserve, Malacca, Peninsular Malaysia

A study was done to describe the soil characteristics and to determine the relationship between the soil properties of the forest reserve. A total of 25 plots were constructed and soil samples were collected from each plot of the study sites. A total of 1668 individual trees with diameter at breast height (DBH) of 5 cm and above were found in the 25 plots in Sungai Udang Forest Reserve, Malacca, Peninsular Malaysia. The overall floristic composition of the forest consists of 85 species belonging to 79 genera and 38 families. The soil in the studied area was acidic and dominated by clay loam which shows that the soil is suitable for the provision of nutrients to the plants. The correlation analysis between the physico-chemical characteristics of soil at all plots concluded that the correlation between the chemical content of soil in the area ranged from very weak to moderate. This is due to the fact that the strength of the correlation in this study for the absolute value of (r) ranged from as low as 0.007 (very weak) to 0.482 (moderate)

The taxonomic significance of leaf micromorphology in the Genus Melastoma L. (Melastomataceae)

A comparative leaf micromorphological study of Melastoma malabathricum, M. malabathricum var. alba and M. sanguineum (Melastomataceae) was carried out by scanning electron microscope. Characters such as epidermal cell shape, trichomes and stomatal type and distribution were observed. Non-glandular trichomes are present in all species examined. The stomata are all of paracytic type and dispersed randomly over the whole abaxial surface. The patterns of surface sculpturing and outer stomatal rim are unique in all the species examined. Leaf micromorphology has significant taxonomic value in the genus Melastoma and the present study has added some new taxonomic information for the genus Melastoma

Morphological and tissue culture studies of platycerium coronarium, a rare ornamental fern species from Malaysia

The genus Platycerium consists of about 18 species, commonly found in tropical and subtropical forests. Among the different species, Platycerium coronarium, P. platylobium, P. ridleyi and P. wallichi are found in Peninsular Malaysia, and P. coronarium is considered the most attractive ornamentally. Platycerium coronarium is an epiphytic fern, bears a gigantic morphology and is native to tropical areas of South America, Africa, Southeast Asia, Australia and New Guinea. Platycerium coronarium nests on the upper branches of the tallest trees in the forest. Due to having a uniquely-shaped fronds, they are famous for ornamental purposes, where they can be found in gardens, especially in tropical regions. Detailed morphological studies of this species are lacking. In the present work, data are reported aiming at defining both the macro- and micro-morphological characteristics of intact and in vitro P. coronarium. Data from scanning electron microscopy (SEM) revealed similar ultrastructures of both types of leaves, i.e., the presence of multicellular trichomes on both the abaxial and adaxial surfaces. Sunken stomata were also detected on the abaxial surface of the leaves. In addition, tissue culture studies were done to obtain an efficient regeneration system as well as to serve as an approach for conservation. Successful regeneration of sporophytes from gametophyte explants were observed in MS medium supplemented with 1.0-1.5 mg/l GA(3) and 30 g/l sucrose, at pH 5.8 under 16 hours light and 8 hours dark