In this paper the salt tolerance in Brassicas and some related species was compared. When seedlings germinated on sand cultures with liquid MS medium were considered, the relative germination rate, root length, shoot length and fresh seedling weight were significantly correlated with each other (P < 0.01), and only the relative shoot lengths were significantly different among the tested genotypes (P < 0.05); When both seedlings germinated on MS and MS plus 0.4% NaCl were considered, only the relative shoot length of seedlings germinated on MS was significantly different from that germinated on MS + 0.4% NaCl (P < 0.05), and also only the relative shoot lengths were significantly different among the tested genotypes (P < 0.01). Raphanus sativa cv. Changfeng, B. juncea cv. JC and Brassica napus cv. ZS 10 showed low salt tolerance in terms of relative germination rate, root length, shoot length and fresh seedling weight; B. oleracea cv. JF-1, Sinapis alba cv. HN-2 showed high salt tolerance in terms of relative germination rate, root length, shoot length and fresh seedling weight. Based on our result we suggest that relative shoot length might be convenient to rank the salt tolerance but cluster analysis based on multiple parameters of relative germination rate, root length, shoot length and fresh seedling weight might be more accurate in screening for salt tolerance in Brassicas and related species.

Water deficit is an environmental factor that constrains crops to express their ecophysiological potential and causes crop yield reduction. Eruca vesicaria has been reported to be one of the most drought-tolerant species in Cruciferae. In this study, polyethylene glycol-simulated drought tolerance was evaluated in one line of Brassica carinata, one line of Brassica napus and 249 Eruca lines based on the principal component analysis (PCA) and unweighted pair-group arithmetic average (UPGMA) cluster analysis. The PCA based on eight drought tolerance indices indicated that the first three components accounted for 85.46% of the total variation, with principal component (PC) 1 accounting for 43.89%, PC2 for 27.85% and PC3 for 13.73% of the total variation. The UPGMA cluster analysis indicated that B. napus cultivar Zhongshuang 9 and Eruca lines could be clustered into five major groups, with group 1 being, in general, drought sensitive, group 2 being slightly–medium drought tolerant, group 3 being drought tolerant, group 4 being highly drought sensitive and group 5 being highly drought tolerant. B. carinata cultivar XB1, as an outstander, showed high drought sensitivity. The UPGMA cluster dendrogram provides a good representation of the similarity matrix (r= 0.68). The drought-tolerant Eruca materials obtained in this study will be valuable for genetic improvement not only in Eruca itself, but also in Brassica crops since they are drought-tolerant lines from a drought-tolerant species.

ABSTRACT. ADP-glucose pyrophosphorylase (ADPGlcPPase) controls the first committed step of starch synthesis by catalyzing the biosynthesis of ADP-glucose from glucose-phosphate and ATP. It is a tetrameric protein consisting of two small and two large subunits. The small subunits have a catalytic function, while the large subunits regulate the enzyme activity. Cyperus esculentus (yellow nutsedge) is a perennial C 4 plant grown from rhizomes and tubers. Previous studies on yellow nutsedge have mostly focused on the morphology and cultivation of tubers, their application in food, and biochemical analyses of the tubers. In this study, the gene encoding the ADPGlcPPase small subunit (CeAGPS) in yellow nutsedge was cloned and characterized. The full-length CeAGPS cDNA sequence contained an 81-bp 5'-untranslated region (UTR), a 188-bp 3'-UTR, and a 1539-bp open reading frame encoding 512-amino acid residues. The genomic sequence of CeAGPS comprises a nine exon-eight intron structure similar to the previously reported cotton and Arabidopsis thaliana AGPS 18303©FUNPEC-RP www.funpecrp.com.br Genetics and Molecular Research 14 (4): 18302-18314 (2015) Cloning and characterization of AGPS in yellow nutsedge genes. The deduced translation product of the CeAGPS gene contained a well-conserved catalytic domain and regulatory elements typical of plant AGPS. Reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction amplification of the target gene in various plant parts using gene-specific primers indicated that the expression of CeAGPS was most abundant in the tuber, and relatively lower in nutsedge roots.

ABSTRACT. Nicotianamine (NA) is a ubiquitous metabolite in plants that bind heavy metals, is crucial for metal homeostasis, and is also an important metal chelator that facilitates long-distance metal transport and sequestration. NA synthesis is catalyzed by the enzyme nicotianamine synthase (NAS). Eruca vesicaria subsp sativa is highly tolerant to Ni, Pb, and Zn. In this study, a gene encoding EvNAS was cloned and characterized in E. vesicaria subsp sativa. The full-length EvNAS cDNA sequence contained a 111-bp 5'-untranslated region (UTR), a 155-bp 3'-UTR, and a 966-bp open reading frame encoding 322-amino acid residues. The EvNAS genomic sequence contained no introns, which is similar to previously reported NAS genes. The deduced translation of EvNAS contained a well-conserved NAS domain (1-279 amino acids) and an LIKI-CGEAEG box identical to some Brassica NAS and to the LIRLbox in most plant NAS, which is essential for DNA binding. Phylogenetic analysis indicated that EvNAS was most closely related to Brassica rapa NAS3 within the Cruciferae, followed by Thlaspi NAS1, Camelina NAS3, and Arabidopsis NAS3. A reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction indicated that EvNAS expression was greatest in the leaves, followed by the flower buds and hypocotyls. EvNAS was moderately expressed in the roots.

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