Papers - AKASHI Ryo
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Nagata M., Yamamoto N., Shigeyama T., Terasawa Y., Anai T., Sakai T., Inada S., Arima S., Hashiguchi M., Akashi R., Nakayama H., Ueno D., Hirsch A., Suzuki A.
Plant and Cell Physiology 56 ( 11 ) 2100 - 2109 2015.11
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal) Publisher:Plant and Cell Physiology
© The Author 2015. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Japanese Society of Plant Physiologists. All rights reserved. Establishment of a nitrogen-fixing symbiosis between legumes and rhizobia not only requires sufficient photosynthate, but also the sensing of the ratio of red to far red (R/FR) light. Here, we show that R/FR light sensing also positively influences the arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) symbiosis of a legume and a non-legume through jasmonic acid (JA) and strigolactone (SL) signaling. The level of AM colonization in high R/FR light-grown tomato and Lotus japonicus significantly increased compared with that determined for low R/FR light-grown plants. Transcripts for JA-related genes were also elevated under high R/FR conditions. The root exudates derived from high R/FR light-grown plants contained more (+)-5-deoxystrigol, an AM-fungal hyphal branching inducer, than those from low R/FR light-grown plants. In summary, high R/FR light changes not only the levels of JA and SL synthesis, but also the composition of plant root exudates released into the rhizosphere, in this way augmenting the AM symbiosis.
DOI: 10.1093/pcp/pcv135
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Rahman M., Rahman M., Nakagawa T., Abdullah R., Khadijah W., Akashi R.
Animal Feed Science and Technology 199 104 - 112 2015.1
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal) Publisher:Animal Feed Science and Technology
© 2014 Elsevier B.V. This study evaluated the effects of different levels of soya waste on the intake, growth rates, reproduction and feed conversion efficiency of adult goats, as well as the daily body weight (BW) gain of pre-weaning kids. Two experiments were conducted with Boer crossbred (Boer. ×. local) and Jermasia goats. In experiment (Exp.) 1, 20 goats were divided into four groups (A, B, C and D), with five goats in each group. Groups A, B and C were given soya waste at a rate of 0.5, 1.0 and 2.0% of BW/day on a dry matter (DM) basis. Group D received soya waste ad libitum. In Exp. 2, 14 Jermasia does were split into a control group and a treatment group, with seven does in each group. The control group was fed pelleted compound feed at a rate of 2.0% of BW/day, and the treatment group was fed soya waste at a rate of 2.0% of BW/day. In both experiments, the animals were offered Napier grass ad libitum. In Exp. 1, with the increased dietary level of soya waste, the animals' grass intake declined, but their intake of total DM and nutrients tended to increase. The intakes of DM, crude protein (CP) and metabolisable energy (ME) were higher (P < . 0.05) in Group C compared to Group A. The digestibility of DM and nutrients also tended to increase with the increased level of soya waste, and the digestibility of DM, organic matter, CP and neutral detergent fibre were higher (P < . 0.05) in Group C compared to Group A. The average daily BW gain increased (P < . 0.05) with the increased dietary level of soya waste. In Exp. 2, the DM and ME intakes of the does were the same in the control and treatment groups. However, the CP intake was higher (P < . 0.05) in the treatment group compared to the animals in the control group. The BW and reproductive performance of the does fed the treatment feed were similar (P > . 0.05) to those fed the control feed. The birth weight of the kids did not differ (P > . 0.05) between the control and treatment groups. However, the BW gain of the pre-weaning kids fed the treatment feed was higher (P < . 0.05) than that of the pre-weaning kids fed the control feed. Based on this 14-month long feeding study, high levels of soya waste (up to 2.0% DM of BW) did not have detrimental effects on the feed intake, weight gain and reproductive performance of goats, suggesting that soya waste supplementation is a viable replacement for scarce feedstuffs, such as grass, and expensive commercially produced compound feed.
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Yano T., Tanaka H., Kurino T., Yamamoto A., Kunitake H., Saeki Y., Akashi R.
Plant Root 9 ( 0 ) 6 - 14 2015
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal) Publisher:Plant Root
© 2015, Plant Root (JSRR). To analyze the function of SYNC1, an Arabidopsis asparaginyl-tRNA synthetase gene, the FOX-hunting system using super-growing roots (SR) from the legume species Lotus corniculatus was employed. One transformed line, FSL#121, was compared to parental SR and to an SR line harboring the empty vector (Control), all of which were grown in vivo using vermiculite pots. The level of several free amino acids was higher in FSL#121 than SR. Concomitantly, FSL#121 had a distinct phenotype of greater shoot length, stem diameter and shoot fresh weight compared with SR. Also, the root length, root diameter and fresh root weight were greater in FSL#121 than SR. Furthermore, the greater number of nodules in FSL#121 increased the nitrogen fixation activity per whole plant. Therefore, SYNC1 overexpression caused distinct changes in plant growth, increased the number of root nodules, and may be involved in increasing the amount of free amino acids, especially asparagine.
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Rahman M., Abdullah R., Wan Khadijah W., Nakagawa T., Akashi R.
Journal of Applied Animal Research 43 ( 3 ) 256 - 260 2014.10
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal) Publisher:Journal of Applied Animal Research
© 2014 Taylor & Francis. The effect of Napier grass and oil palm frond (OPF) supplemented with soya waste on the intake and growth performance of goats was evaluated. Twelve female cross-bred goats (Boer × local) were divided into three groups and randomly assigned to three experimental diets: (1) Napier grass ad libitum (NG), (2) OPF ad libitum (OPF) and (3) Napier grass ad libitum+ OPF ad libitum (NG-OPF). All goats in each group received soya waste at the rate of 1.3% of their body weight (BW). Dry matter intake per kg unit of BW was higher (P < 0.05) in the NG-OPF diet than in the NG or OPF diets. However, the crude protein intake per kg unit of BW was higher (P < 0.05) in the OPF or NG-OPF diet than in the NG diet. Animals on the OPF diet showed a lower (P < 0.05) daily BW gain followed by the animals on the NG and NG-OPF diets, but no variation (P > 0.05) was observed between the animals on the NG and NG-OPF diets. The results showed that the feeding of NG alone or NG-OPF combination to goats could lead to a better growth rate in these animals compared to feeding them with OPF alone.
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Himuro Y., Ishiyama K., Mori F., Gondo T., Takahashi F., Shinozaki K., Kobayashi M., Akashi R.
Journal of Plant Physiology 171 ( 13 ) 1127 - 1131 2014.8
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal) Publisher:Journal of Plant Physiology
Brachypodium distachyon (purple false brome) is a herbaceous species belonging to the grass subfamily Pooideae, which also includes major crops like wheat, barley, oat and rye. The species has been established as experimental model organism for understanding and improving cereal crops and temperate grasses. The complete genome of Bd21, the community standard line of B. distachyon, has been sequenced and protocols for Agrobacterium-mediated transformation have been published. Further improvements to the experimental platform including better evaluation systems for transgenic plants are still needed. Here we describe the growth conditions for Bd21 plants yielding highly responsive immature embryos that can generate embryogenic calli for transformation. A prolonged 20-h photoperiod produced seeds with superior immature embryos. In addition, osmotic treatment of embryogenic calli enhanced the efficiency of transfection by particle bombardment. We generated transgenic plants expressing Arabidopsis thaliana galactinol synthase 2 (AtGolS2) in these experiments. AtGolS2-expressing transgenics displayed significantly improved drought tolerance, increasing with increased expression of AtGolS2. These results demonstrate that AtGolS2 can confer drought tolerance to monocots and confirm that Brachypodium is a useful model to further explore ways to understand and improve major monocot crop species. © 2014 Elsevier GmbH.
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Rahman M., Abdullah R., Wan Khadijah W., Nakagawa T., Akashi R.
Sains Malaysiana 43 ( 7 ) 967 - 971 2014.7
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal) Publisher:Sains Malaysiana
The experiment was conducted to determine the feed intake and body weight (BW) change of Boer goats supplemented with a commercial concentrate pellet and combinations of concentrate and soya waste. Twelve male goats were divided into three groups. Each group was randomly allocated to each of the three treatment diets: Napier grass (Pennisetum purpureum) ad libitum and concentrate pellet at rate of 2.0% of BW, daily (T1); Napier grass ad libitum and concentrate pellet at rate of 1.4% of BW and soya waste at rate of 0.5% of BW, daily (T2) and Napier grass ad libitum and concentrate pellet at rate of 0.9% of BW and soya waste at rate of 0.5% of BW, daily (T3). The results indicated that supplementation of concentrate pellet together with soya waste (T2 or T3) significantly (p < 0.05) decreased intakes of grass dry matter (DM), total DM and total crude protein compared to the solely concentrate pellet group (T1). However, BW gain was significantly (p < 0.05) higher in T2 treatment compared with the T1 or T3 treatments. Supplementation of concentrate pellet with soya waste (T2 or T3) significantly (p < 0.05) improved the feed conversion efficiency and reduced the feed cost of goats compared with solely concentrate pellet group (T1). The results indicated that grass intake and feed cost can be reduced by replacing concentrate pellet with soya waste in the diet of goats where soya waste is available.
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Ishigaki G., Gondo T., Rahman M., Umami N., Akashi R.
Grassland Science 60 ( 1 ) 24 - 30 2014.3
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal) Publisher:Grassland Science
Ruzigrass (Brachiaria ruziziensis Germain et Everard cv. Kennedy) is an important forage grass in tropical and sub-tropical areas. Previously, we reported transgenic ruzigrass plants generated by our transformation system were sterile and tetraploid in spite of beginning with diploid plants. This study analyzed ploidy variation in embryogenic calli and the regenerants of diploid ruzigrass. The morphological traits and fertility were also investigated to develop a methodology for the production of stable transgenic lines. Embryogenic calli at different stages (2, 4, 6 and 12-month-old) were regenerated via somatic embryogenesis. An approach of flow cytometry (FCM) analysis was used to determine the ploidy level of embryogenic calli and regenerants of ruzigrass. FCM analysis revealed that embryogenic calli were spontaneously reduplicated at a high frequency and resulting regenerants were polyploids (tetraploid or octoploid), including 15 tetraploid regenerants (68%) and seven octoploid regenerants (32%) derived from 12-month-old embryogenic calli. These regenerants exhibited the morphological variations among different ploidy levels. The viability of pollen grains was significantly (P < 0.01) decreased in tetraploid and octoploid regenerants. Our findings indicated that clarification and resolution of ploidy variation in ruzigrass combined with ploidy level checking using FCM analysis before transformation steps is crucial for plant regeneration in transformed ruzigrass. © 2014 Japanese Society of Grassland Science.
DOI: 10.1111/grs.12040
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Identification of a novel flavonoid glycoside sulfotransferase in Arabidopsis thaliana Reviewed
Hashiguchi T., Sakakibara Y., Shimohira T., Kurogi K., Yamasaki M., Nishiyama K., Akashi R., Liu M., Suiko M.
Journal of Biochemistry 155 ( 2 ) 91 - 97 2014.2
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal) Publisher:Journal of Biochemistry
The discovery of sulfated flavonoids in plants suggests that sulfation may play a regulatory role in the physiological functions of flavonoids. Sulfation of flavonoids is mediated by cytosolic sulfotransferases (SULTs), which utilize 3′-phosphoadenosine 5′-phosphosulfate (PAPS) as the sulfate donor. A novel SULT from Arabidopsis thaliana, designated AtSULT202B7 (AGI code: At1g13420), was cloned and expressed in Escherichia coli. Using various compounds as potential substrates, we demonstrated, for the first time, that AtSULT202B7 displayed sulfating activity specific for flavonoids. Intriguingly, the recombinant enzyme preferred flavonoid glycosides (e.g. kaempferol-3- glucoside and quercetin-3-glucoside) rather than their aglycone counterparts. Among a series of hydroxyflavones tested, AtSULT202B7 showed the enzymatic activity only for 7-hydroxyflavone. pH-dependency study showed that the optimum pH was relatively low (pH 5.5) compared with those (pH 6.0-8.5) previously reported for other isoforms. Based on the comparison of high performance (pressure) liquid chromatography (HPLC) retention times between sulfated kaempferol and the deglycosylated product of sulfated kaempferol-3-glucoside, the sulfation site in sulfated kaempferol-3-glucoside appeared to be the hydroxyl group of the flavonoid skeleton. In addition, by using direct infusion mass spectrometry, it was found that the sulfated product had one sulfonate group within the molecule. These results indicated that AtSULT202B7 functions as a flavonoid glycoside 7-sulfotransferase. © 2013 The Authors.
DOI: 10.1093/jb/mvt102
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Feed intake and growth performance of goats supplemented with soy waste Reviewed
Rahman M., Nakagawa T., Abdullah R., Embong W., Akashi R.
Pesquisa Agropecuaria Brasileira 49 ( 7 ) 554 - 558 2014
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal) Publisher:Pesquisa Agropecuaria Brasileira
The objective of this work was to evaluate the effects of supplemental feeding of soy waste on the feed intake and growth rate of goats. Twenty male crossbred (Boer x local) goats were assigned to two isonitrogenous diet groups: one of commercial pellet and the other of soy waste. The commercial pellet (1.0%) and soy waste (0.8%) were provided on the dry matter basis of body weight (BW) per day, to the respective group of each diet. The soy waste group had lower daily intakes of total dry matter (0.79 vs. 0.88 kg) and organic matter (665.71 vs. 790.44 g) than the group fed pellet; however, the differences on daily intakes for grass (0.62 vs. 0.64 kg), crude protein (96.81 vs. 96.83 g), and neutral detergent fibre (483.70 vs. 499.86 g) were not significant. No differences were observed between groups for BW gain. The feed conversion ratio and feed cost per kilogram of BW gain were lower for the group fed soy waste than for the one fed pellet. Goats fed supplemental soy waste have a lower total dry matter intake, feed conversion ratio, and feed cost per kilogram of body weight gain than those fed commercial pellets.
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Muguerza M., Gondo T., Ishigaki G., Akashi R.
Asian Journal of Plant Sciences 13 ( 1 ) 8 - 17 2014
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal) Publisher:Asian Journal of Plant Sciences
Lignin is generally known as one of the major impediments for utilizing the potential of many forage plants because it limits digestibility and concomitantly, livestock productivity. Warm-season grasses yield high biomass but the digestibility is low due to their high lignin content. Cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase, a key enzyme that catalyzes the last stage in the lignin biosynthesis pathway, has been genetically altered in few grasses to increase their digestibility and forage quality. The aim of this study was to reduce the lignin content in a warm-season grass, bahiagrass (Paspalum notatum Flügge), by suppression of cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase gene expression. Using particle bombardment, cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase gene constructs with the antisense and RNAi vector under the control of the maize ubiquitin promoter were introduced into bahiagrass calli. The lignin content in most of the transgenic lines was significantly reduced, although the agronomic characteristics (plant height, leaf length, leaf width, tiller number, heading tiller and dry matter) differed between individuals. The in vitro dry matter digestibility of four of the nine transgenic plant significantly increased by 5.6-10.4% units. These results suggest that the molecular modification of the cinnamyl alcohol dehydrogenase gene function in the monolignol pathway significantly improved the feeding characteristics of the bahiagrass and that this approach could be used to improve the forage quality of other warm-season grasses. By utilizing their potential, novel cultivars could be developed that are amenable for intensified and sustainable grass forage production. © 2014 Asian Network for Scientific Information.
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Yano Tsubasa, Yamamoto Akihiro, Kunitake Hisato, Saeki Yuichi, Akashi Ryo
Plant Root 8 ( 0 ) 82 - 91 2014
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal) Publisher:根研究学会
For systematic functional analysis of genes, we attempted the application of the FOX-hunting system to super growing-roots (SR) of legume species <i>Lotus corniculatus</i> which was previously reported by Himuro et al. (2011). In this study, we investigated the functional analysis of FSL#35, which was expressed by the <i>rolB</i> gene derived from the <i>Agrobacterium rhizogenes</i> Ri plasmid. In monoculture roots grown in liquid media, the FSL#35 showed specific phenotypes that increased root length, lateral root number and root surface area compared with SR. These enhanced phenotypes of FSL#35 were caused by cell profile alteration, while increased total root length and increased lateral root number were caused by the expansion of cortex cells and increased pericycle cells, respectively. In addition, the FSL#35 root showed high and specific respiration activity compared with SR. These results suggest that distinct cell profiles of FSL#35 were induced by the alteration of respiration activity in root tissue. The enhanced root growth in the FSL#35 root might be induced by alteration of ROS metabolisms. Investigating the details of the <i>rolB</i> gene function, for example by phytohormone analysis, will elucidate the novel benefits of the <i>rolB</i> gene for agriculture.
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Development of a simple detection method for genetically modified papaya PRSV-YK Reviewed
Tanaka Hidenori, Kitazaki Yasuo, Nakamura Kosuke, Akiyama Hiroshi, Akashi Ryo
Breeding Research 16 ( 4 ) 158 - 161 2014
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal) Publisher:Japanese Society of Breeding
DOI: 10.1270/jsbbr.16.158
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Spontaneous appearance of polyploids in plants regenerated from embryogenic calli derived from seedling-meristems of ruzigrass (Brachiaria ruziziensis Germain et Everard) Reviewed
Genki Ishigaki, Takahiro Gondo, Mohammad M. Rahman, Nafiatul Umami, Ryo Akashi
Grassland Science 60 24 - 30 2013.12
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal)
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Identification and characterization of a novel kaempferol sulfotransferase from Arabidopsis thaliana Reviewed
Hashiguchi T., Sakakibara Y., Hara Y., Shimohira T., Kurogi K., Akashi R., Liu M., Suiko M.
Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications 434 ( 4 ) 829 - 835 2013.5
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal) Publisher:Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications
In plants, flavonoids have been shown to be subjected to conjugation modifications such as glycosylation, methylation, and sulfation. Among these modifications, sulfation is known as an important pathway in the regulation of the levels of endogenous compounds such as steroids. Although a large variety of flavonoid sulfates also exist in plants, the detailed biochemical characterization of Arabidopsis thaliana sulfotransferases (AtSULTs) remains to be fully clarified. We report here that uncharacterized AtSULT202E1 (AGI code: At2g03770), a SULT202E subfamily member, shows the sulfating activity toward flavonoids. The general characteristics of the enzyme were studied on the optimum temperature and pH, the effect of divalent cations, and the thermal stability with kaempferol as substrate. A comparative analysis of the sulfation of flavonoids by AtSULT202E1, AtSULT202B1 and AtSULT202A1 revealed that three AtSULTs have differential substrate specificities. Surprisingly, 3-hydroxyflavone was sulfate d only by AtSULT202A1 while 7-hydroxyflavone was highly sulfated by AtSULT202E1 and AtSULT202B1. These results indicate that flavonols might be sulfated in a position specific manner. In conclusion, our studies indicate that a novel AtSULT202E1 has the sulfating activity toward flavonoids together with AtSULT202B1 and AtSULT202A1. The existence of three flavonoid sulfotransferases in A. thaliana suggests that sulfation of flavonoids have an important role in regulation of their functions. © 2013 Elsevier Inc.
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Identification and characterization of a novel kaempferol sulfotransferase from Arabidopsis thaliana. Reviewed
Hashiguchi T., Sakakibara Y., Harab Y., Shimohira T., Kurogi K., Akashi R., Liud M-C., Suiko M.
Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications 434 ( 4 ) 829 - 835 2013.4
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal)
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Modification of the total soluble sugar content of the C4 grass Paspalum notatum expressing the wheat-derived sucrose:sucrose 1-fructosyltransferase and sucrose:fructan 6-fructosyltransferase genes Reviewed
Melody Muguerza, Takahiro Gondo, Midori Yoshida, Akira Kawakami, Fumihiro Terami, Toshihiko Yamada, Ryo Akashi
Grassland Science 59 196 - 204 2013.4
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal)
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Feed intake, digestibility and growth performance of goats offered napier grass supplemented with molasses protected palm kernel cake and soya waste Reviewed
Rahman M.M., Abdullah R.B., Wan Khadijah W.W., Nakagawa T., Akashi R.
Asian Journal of Animal and Veterinary Advances 8 527 - 534 2013.1
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal)
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Efficient nursery production and multiple-shoot clumps formation from shoot tiller-derived shoot apices of dwarf napiergrass (Pennisetum purpureum Schumach). Reviewed
Umami N., Gondo T., Ishigaki G., Rahman M.M., Akashi R.
Journal of Warm Regional Society of Animal Science, Japan 55 121 - 127 2012.12
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal)
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Efficient nursery plant production of dwarf cogongrass (Imperata cylindrica L.) through mass propagation in liquid culture. Reviewed
Umami N., Gondo T., Tanaka H., Rahman M.M., Akashi R.
Grassland Science 58 201 - 207 2012.12
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal)
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Umami N., Gondo T., Tanaka H., Rahman M., Akashi R.
Grassland Science 58 ( 4 ) 201 - 207 2012.12
Language:English Publishing type:Research paper (scientific journal) Publisher:Grassland Science
Dwarf cogongrass (Imperata cylindrica L.) was developed as a dwarf mutant through heavy-ion beam irradiation 7 years ago. The dwarf mutant could be expected to use as a new variety for a cover plant with low maintenance, although it has poor seed fertility. To establish an efficient nursery production system for dwarf cogongrass, we attempted mass propagation of it in liquid culture and investigated the genetic stability of its regenerants. Multiple-shoot clumps (MSCs) were initiated from apical meristems of dwarf cogongrass on Murashige and Skoog (MS) solid medium supplemented with 0.1 mg L -1 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) and 2.0 mg L -1 benzylaminopurine (BAP). Mass propagation conditions were established from MSCs cultured in MS liquid medium containing 0.05 mg L -1 2,4-D and 0.5 mg L -1 BAP. The fresh weight of the MSCs per flask increased by more than 16 times in 14 days of liquid culture. Two different sizes of MSCs were produced in liquid culture. When smaller MSCs ( < 2 mm in diameter) were transferred to half-strength hormone-free MS solid medium, plant regeneration occurred at high frequency (93.3%). These tissues showed high regenerative potential with approximately 350 green shoots recovered within 50 days from 60 regenerating clumps. Furthermore, root elongation was vigorous in the regenerants growing in the same medium. Regenerated plants were acclimatized in hydrated Jiffy-7 pellets for 30 days and then grown in soil as nursery plants. The plant height of regenerants was almost the same as original dwarf cogongrass and significantly lower than the wild type plants (P < 0.01). Analysis of amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) banding patterns generated using 10 primer combinations showed no major genetic variations among the regenerated plants and original dwarf cogongrass. © 2012 The Authors Grassland Science © 2012 Japanese Society of Grassland Science.
DOI: 10.1111/grs.12001