Veronica is a prominent genus belonging to the family Plantaginaceae. Six species samples came from different mountainous areas of AL-Sulaimaniyah, Northern Iraq, comprising V. anagalloides, V. anagallis-aquatica, V. beccabunga, V. minuta, Veronica persica, and V. polita. DNA genomic manually extracted from plant leaves, and the specific PCR fragments partially covering the internal transcribed spacer-1, internal transcribed spacer-2, and 5.8S rRNA, and internal transcribed spacer-2 sequences were options for the latest study that proceeded with primers ITS5 (5′ GGAAGTAAAAGTCGTAACAAGG-3′) and ITS4 (5′-TCCTCCGCTTATTGATATGC-3′) to amplify the samples of six different Veronica species. The electrophoresis migration for PCR analysis showed that the length of the amplified segment was about 600 bp for all the studied samples. An assumption from the generated tree was that the detected nucleic acid variants showed a noticeable effect on changing the evolutionary positioning of the investigated samples compared with the wild-type sequences. All the investigated rRNA sequences deposited in the NCBI web server acquired unique accession numbers for the analyzed S1 to S3 sequences. The deposited sequences received the GenBank accession numbers, i.e., OP363796.1, OP363795.1, OP363794.1, OP363793.1, OP363792.1, and OP363791.1, representing the six investigated isolates of the Veronica species, respectively.

Keywords: Veronica species, Plantaginaceae, ITS primers, DNA sequences, genetic variations

Key findings: The variation of the rRNA sequences can also help in Veronica characterization due to its possible ability to adapt to variable genetic diversity. The sequencing reactions indicated the precise identity after performing NCBI BLASTn for these PCR amplicons. Concerning the investigated ribosomal amplicons, the NCBI BLASTn engine showed 99% to 100% sequence similarities between the sequenced samples and the intended reference target sequences.

Seeking to promote the earliness traits in apples (Malus × domestica Borkh.), this study evaluated 246 half-sib descendants of their mature trees for pheno-morphology, pomological, and sensory attributes. From a productivity criterion, the gene pool performance ranked in 12 resistance and susceptibility classes to spring frost. The two selected groups comprised five and 23 descendants, assigned by high and moderate tolerance in 2019. In the following season, assessing 246 progenies for bloom intensity led to the selection of 80 outstanding hybrids. The earliness traits showed a high promotion of the appearance of new classes of earliness. The ripening time distribution of the bearing progenies consisted of six categories, namely, four extra-early (June 5 to 17), 18 far-early (June 22 to 30), 22 very early (July 2 to 9), 21 very early-early (July 11), nine early plus to control (July 19), and six progenies (July 25). Subsequent pomological and sensory analyses led to the choice of 18 progenies for high fruit set, well-formed fruits, different colors, and superior organoleptic qualities. The results authenticated the efficiency of breeding methods, supported by heritability and morphological markers to predict the earliness traits.

Keywords: Apple (Malus × domestica Borkh.), breeding, heritability, earliness traits, spring cold tolerance, morphological markers, phenological stages, fruit setting

Key findings: Promoting earliness traits were associated with large fruit size, red color, and apple acceptability. Five promising apple progenies with spring cold tolerance, late bloom-early, and dual-purpose continued for release.

Pogostemon cablin, an oil-producing plant, proceeded vegetative propagation due to limited natural pollination, leading to lower genetic variations. The presented study investigated the morphological diversity and productivity, specifically the ninth mutant vegetative (MV9) generation resulting from polyploid mutation induced by colchicine in the P. cablin var. Sidikalang. The study transpired between August 2022 and April 2023 at the Tissue Culture Laboratory, the Cikabayan Experimental Station, IPB University, Bogor, Indonesia. The experiment had a randomized complete block design (RCBD) arrangement with eight genotypes, including control as the single factor and three replications. Various characteristic measurements included essential oil yield growth and potential. The findings revealed that aneuploid mutants exhibited more leaves, primary, and secondary branches than the control plants and polyploid mutants (P < 0.05). Polyploid mutants (tetraploid and mixoploid) displayed longer and broader leaves, larger leaf surfaces, thicker leaves, and greater stem diameter (P < 0.05). Accumulation of leaves, primary, and secondary branches caused an increase in the patchouli plant’s fresh weight. Patchouli oil production per hectare indicated a correlation to leaf number (r = 0.48), primary branches (r = 0.41), secondary branches (r = 0.48), and essential oil yield (r = 0.87). The study also revealed the considerable genetic diversity among the patchouli mutants, paving the way to develop promising new plant lines, specifically to obtain superior patchouli with the highest biomass and oil.

Keywords: aneuploidy, colchicine, growth and essential oil traits, patchouli, polyploidy

Key findings: The patchouli (P. cablin) polyploid plants produced longer, broader, and larger leaves with bigger stem diameters. However, the aneuploid plants produced smaller but numerous leaves. Mutant lines emerged to have potential with higher biomass and patchouli oil.

Red rice (Oryza glaberrima L.) is a main food ingredient with some special characteristics and health benefits; therefore, enhancing its grain yield is necessary. However, the limited fertile land causes cultivation in the sub-optimal land, such as saline soil. Saline stress can cause damage to plant cells; hence, it is vital to apply exogenous antioxidants that can act as osmoprotectants. The presented study sought to determine the physiological characteristics of red rice under salinity stress conditions with ascorbic acid applications. The study commenced in a factorial separate plot design (SPD) with three features. The salinity levels (3-4 and >4-5 mho/cm) comprised the main plots, red rice cultivars (Inpari 24, Inpari 7, Pamelen, and MSP17) in the subplots, with the ascorbic acid concentrations (0, 500, 1000, and 1500 ppm) kept in the sub-sub-plots. The results showed that the studied red rice cultivars differed in responses to ascorbic acid concentrations under saline soil conditions. Cultivar MSP17 was the most tolerant genotype to salinity stress compared with the three other red rice cultivars based on physiological attributes. Applying ascorbic acid improved red rice genotypes’ physiological characteristics (especially chlorophyll content and nutrient uptake) under saline stress conditions.

Keywords: Red rice (O. glaberrima L.), cultivars, salinity, ascorbic acid, physiological characteristics, grain yield

Key findings: Ascorbic acid is vital in improving the physiological characteristics of red rice (O. glaberrima L.) genotypes under salinity stress conditions.

Amaranth is an indispensable C₄ agricultural crop with considerably reduced productivity under hypothermia loading. During seed ripening, chilling stress (1 °C–2 °C) can harm the photosynthetic organs in the plants and reduce the efficiency of low-molecular-weight defense systems. The studies on the content of low-molecular-weight antioxidants commenced in the leaves of the Amaranth cultivar Valentina cultivated in an open field in the post-stress period (after a chilling stress). After chilling at 2 °C in the post-stress period, older leaves of the main shoot displayed partial damage, while young leaves of the lateral shoots visually maintained a native appearance. The ascorbic acid (AA) content showed significant variations in the leaves. The content of possessing antioxidant properties revealed red-colored amaranthine decreased during this period, i.e., 1.5–1.9 times in young leaves, 3.5 times in leaves damaged by cold (DC), and non-damaged by cold (NDC) leaves showed a 1.1-times decrease. The decline in photosynthetic pigment content varied from 14% for carotenoids (Cars) to 60% for chlorophylls a (Chl a) and b (Chl b) in NDC leaves. The water and ethanol-soluble antioxidant contents improved with repeated cold stress (2 °C) in young leaves. The same pattern was also evident for the ascorbic acid and amaranthine content enhancement (20%–25% and 30%, respectively). The formation of hypothermia-induced tolerance in the leaves of different ages in autumn, which are the prime producers of low-molecular-weight antioxidants, signified a close relationship to the functioning of hydrophilic and hydrophobic antioxidants.

Keywords: Amaranthus tricolor L., red-colored Valentina cultivar, cold stress, low-molecular-weight antioxidants, amaranthine, ascorbic acid

Key findings: New data have been notable from the amaranthine pigment contributing to increasing the resistance of amaranth plants to chilling stress. Variations in the low-molecular-weight antioxidants’ content and functional activity, which have become traditionally resistance actors, were also evident.

Phalaenopsis is one of the most popular orchid genera, exhibiting a variety of flower morphologies. Ploidy level was a factor influencing the success of Phalaenopsis crossbreeding. This research aimed to determine the ploidy level by flow cytometry and correlation with morphological characteristics on six hybrid cultivars of Phalaenopsis (1702, 1819, 1981, 3903, 3904, and 3908). Flow cytometry analysis on young leaves and root tip cells was also carried out on P. amabilis, P. amboinensis, and P. schilleriana. Research results showed multiple peaks of fluorescence appeared on the flow cytometry histogram. The young leaves and root tip cells show the distribution of cells into different ploidy levels and indicate mixoploid and endopolyploid conditions of the cells in both leaves and root samples. This complexity makes it challenging to determine the ploidy level of each cultivar and the correlation between morphological characteristics and ploidy level, even though the weak positive correlation was prominent between flower numbers and genome size. These findings serve as foundational data on the cytogenetic background of the cultivars for orchid breeders in crossbreeding, selection of haploid plants, mutation analysis, and variety consistency monitoring.

Keywords: Phalaenopsis, DNA contents, flow cytometry, genome size, mixoploid, ploidy level, morphological characterization

Key findings: Flow cytometry analysis revealed a mixoploid condition; however, the ploidy level of hybrid cultivars and species may be triploid or tetraploid. A weak positive correlation between flower number and genome size was apparent, but no definitive morphological indicators for ploidy levels emerged.

Baccaurea is a group of fruit-bearing potential wild tropical plants. West Sumatra is one of the Indonesian provinces with a sizable forest area. However, the high deforestation rate threatens the germplasm, especially Baccaurea wild plants, before well exploring their potential. The study aimed to analyze the sequence characters and phylogenetics of Baccaurea species found in West Sumatra using ITS molecular markers. DNA extraction relied on the Kit protocol using ITS molecular markers. The study employed the MEGA X application for sequence analysis and kinship relationships. Results of the analysis based on sequence characters of Baccaurea‘s six species showed lengths ranging from 696 to 749 bp, the percentage composition of G + C bases (63.8%) and A + T bases (36.2%), the range of genetic distance (1%–5%), the number of conservative characters (549 bp), the number of informative characters (69 bp), and the point mutation in the nucleotide sequence (369 and 489). Meanwhile, the phylogenetic analysis using the ML method grouped the six species of Baccaurea to form a monophyletic clade with a bootstrap value of 100%-99%-100%. The results revealed for the first time the inclusion of ITS sequences of six Baccaurea species indigenous to West Sumatra in the NCBI database, which can benefit future investigations in identifying Baccaurea species and as a valuable reference for plant breeding in Baccaurea wild fruit plants’ development and conservation.

Keywords: Baccaurea wild fruit plants, ITS genes, phylogenetic analysis, sequence characteristics, West Sumatra

Key findings: The sequence data of six Baccaurea wild fruit species based on ITS markers found in West Sumatra are new entries for the NCBI database. The genetic basis identified in Baccaurea species will also be a valuable reference for plant breeders to conserve and further develop the Baccaurea wild fruit plants.

Amaranth (Amaranthus spp.) is an important food crop source of nutrients and bioactive compounds. Different species of amaranth showed considerable phenotypic variations and could possess diverse nutritional properties. The presented study strove to determine the diversity of amaranth collection for morphological and biochemical traits and their antioxidant potential for developing new cultivars adapted to the environmental conditions of Central Russia. The selected 16 amaranth accessions had high variability in morphological and biochemical traits. With red-colored leaves, amaranthine content ranged from 0.319^a to 2.031^f mg/g fresh weight (FW). The water-soluble antioxidant content ranged from 0.425^a to 1.439^h mg of gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/g FW. In amaranth accessions, the phenolic compound content in leaves varied from 2.700^a to 4.825^g mg GAE/g FW. In the amaranth collection, the total chlorophyll content ranged from 0.9946^a to 3.5467^j mg/g, and carotenoids from 0.2196^a to 0.8289ⁱ mg/g. A strong positive correlation (P ≤ 0.05) was evident between total chlorophyll and carotenoid contents (r≈0.90), plant height and inflorescence length (r≈0.79), and inflorescence length and seed weight harvested per plant (r≈0.76).

In summary, when evaluating the antioxidant levels in various samples, the Valentina cultivar, characterized by red leaves, appeared to have the highest amaranthine concentration. Both Valentina and Fakel cultivars exhibited the maximum overall antioxidant capacity. Additionally, the Valentina and Duimovochka cultivars emerged as the top accumulators of polyphenols. These findings highlight the significant antioxidant potential present in these specific cultivars.

Keywords: Amaranth (Amaranthus spp.), agricultural traits, antioxidant content, amaranthine, phenolic compounds, photosynthetic pigments

Key findings: In the latest study, the 16 Amaranth accessions belonging to eight species succeeded in evaluation for morphological and biochemical parameters. Based on the investigations, the different accessions identified are recommendable for breeding and developing new, improved amaranth cultivars and preferable sources of phytopigments and antioxidants at the seedling stage.

Physiological traits can help explain cassava’s (Manihot esculenta Crantz) health and identify superior genotypes for breeding programs. The study objective was to evaluate the performances of various cassava genotypes based on chlorophyll fluorescence, total crop dry weight, and storage root dry weight. The 100 cassava genotypes grown under field conditions ensued from May 2020 to May 2021 (2020–2021) and from May 2021 to May 2022 (2021–2022) at the Field Crop Research Station of Khon Kaen University, Thailand. The chlorophyll fluorescence measurements commenced 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after planting (MAP). Recording of storage root and total crop dry weights occurred at 12 MAP. The results revealed that the appropriate time to observe chlorophyll fluorescence was at 6 and 9 MAP, relating to cassava’s dry weight at the final harvest. Huay Bong 90 proved a superior genotype for storage root and total crop dry weights at 12 MAP and chlorophyll fluorescence at 6 and 9 MAP for both growing season years. A genotype CMR 38-125-77 also performed well in chlorophyll fluorescence for both growing seasons, and it was a distinct top genotype for the 2020–2021 growing season and ranked third for the 2021–2022 growing season based on total crop dry weight at 12 MAP. These genotypes could benefit as an alternative germplasm for cultivation and future breeding programs.

Keywords: Breeding, cassava (Manihot esculenta Crantz), dry weight, physiology, selection, storage root

Key findings: The appropriate growth stages to evaluate chlorophyll fluorescence that relate to dry weight at the final harvest of cassava (M. esculenta Crantz) germplasm were 6 MAP for F_v‘/F_m‘ and 6 and 9 MAP for F_v/F_m. Cassava germplasm classification for this study depended on F_v‘/F_m‘, F_v/F_m, total crop dry weight, and storage root dry weight. The desirable cassava genotypes for both growing seasons were Huay Bong 90 and CMR 38-125-77.

The article evaluated the genetics of six cucumbers (Cucumis sativus L.) cultivars and 30 hybrids based on morpho-yield traits. The dominant and epistatic gene effects managed the fruit weight in three cucumber hybrids (C-25/1, A-6, and A-9), while additive gene effects in three other hybrids were supreme. For productivity per plant, dominant genes with epistatic effects controlled these in three accessions, while additive effects played a special role in manifesting the trait in three other hybrid (C-25/1, A-6, and A-9) genes. Likewise, dominant genes with epistatic effects controlled the yield per plant trait in three accessions, while additive effects influenced the attribute in three other hybrids (C-25/1, A-6, and A-9). According to these traits, the promising hybrids were С-25/1 х С-25/2, С-26 х С-25/2, С-26 х С25/1, А-9 х С-26, and А-6 х С-25/1. The cucumber F1 hybrids C-26 x C-29, A-9 x A-6, and A-9 x C-25/2 showed characteristics of large fruits weighing 108.2 to 113.1 g. In the accessions, C-25/1, A-6, and A-9, the additive gene effects dominated the studied trait (σ2ĝi > σ2si). The superior-in-yield hybrid combinations were C-26 x C-29, A-9 x A-6, and A-6 x A-9, with a total fruit yield of 691 to 769 g per plant.

Keywords: Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.), diallel crosses, general and specific combining ability, female flowering, fruits, physiological maturity, productivity

Key findings: The study enunciated that in cucumber (C. sativus L.), the average fruit weight bore control from dominant genes with epistatic effects in three accessions (C-25/1, A-6, and A-9), and additive gene effects were vital in three other accessions. The fruit productivity per plant also had dominant and epistatic gene effects managing the trait in three accessions, while in three others (C-25/1, A-6, and A-9), the additive gene effects manifested most in the trait. The promising hybrids, viz., C-26 x C-29, A-9 x A-6, and A-6 x A-9, performing best were choices to serve as source material for further selection.