Herbicide effectiveness — a mean to improve quality of maize grain

Исследования влияния системного применения гербицидов при ресурсосберегающей обработке почвы на качественные показатели зерна кукурузы проведены на землях ОАО «Агросоюз» Рузаевского района Республики Мордовия в 2014–2016 годах. Установлено, что обработка посевов гербицидом «Дублон» (1,2 л/га) и баковой смесью «Дублон Голд» (0,07 кг/га) + «Балерина» (0,25 л/га) способствовала повышению содержания сырого протеина в зерне до 93,67 и 94,97 г/кг соответственно. Анализ содержания жира в зерне кукурузы выявил, что наибольшим оно было в контрольном варианте. Внесение препаратов «Дублон», «Дублон Супер», «Дублон Голд» и их сочетаний с «Балериной» статистически достоверно снижало концентрацию жира. Используемые пестициды достоверного влияния на увеличение содержания крахмала в зерне кукурузы не оказывали. Содержание клетчатки снижалось: при использовании препаратов «Дублон Супер», «Дублон Голд» и «Дублон» + «Балерина» её уровень был ниже контроля на 5–10%. В результате увеличения урожайности зерна кукурузы за счёт высокой эффективности гербицидов во всех вариантах опыта возрастал сбор протеина с 0,51 до 0,75 т/га. В исследованиях также установлено, что в вариантах с применением баковых смесей гербицидов «Дублон + «Балерина» и «Дублон Голд» + «Балерина» по сравнению с контролем валовой сбор крахмала, сахара, сырого жира был наивысшим. Между содержанием в зерне кукурузы сырого протеина, клетчатки, сырого жира, сахара и крахмала наблюдалась достоверная слабая положительная зависимость. Гербициды группы «Дублон» повышали концентрацию сахара до 32,6–33,3 г/кг. В результате повышенного содержания жира в зерне кукурузы уровень валовой энергии был наивысшим в контрольном варианте — 19,37 МДж/кг. При внесении гербицидов она снижалась вследствие повышения доли белка в органическом веществе зерна кукурузы. The investigation was carried out at the OAO “Agrosoyuz” (the Ruzaevskiy district, Republic of Mordovia) in 2014–2016. The effect of herbicide application was tested on maize under minimum tillage. Plant treatment with “Dublon” (1.2 l ha-1) as well as the mixture of “Dublon Gold” (0.07 kg ha-1) and “Balerina” (0.25 l ha-1) increased crude protein in grain up to 93.67 and 94.97 g/kg, respectively. The highest fat content was observed in the control. Application of “Dublon”, “Dublon Super”, “Dublon Gold” and their mixtures with “Balerina” significantly reduced fat accumulation. The preparations had no significant impact on starch formation. “Dublon Super”, “Dublon Gold” and “Dublon” + “Balerina” reduced fiber content by 5–10%. As a result of herbicide use grain productivity increased, and protein yield raised from 0.51 to 0.75 l ha-1. Mixtures of “Dublon” + “Balerina” as well as “Dublon Gold” + “Balerina” provided the highest gross yields of starch, sugar, and crude fat. Significant positive correlation was observed among crude protein, fiber, fat, sugars and starch. The “Dublon” herbicides positively affected sugar concentration up to 32.6–33.3 g/kg. Due to higher fat content gross energy yield was the highest in the control — 19.37 MJ/kg. Herbicide treatment reduced gross energy due to the higher protein content in grain organic matter.

Proteomics reveals the effects of drought stress on the kernel development and starch formation of waxy maize

Background Kernel development and starch formation are the primary determinants of maize yield and quality, which are considerably influenced by drought stress. To clarify the response of maize kernel to drought stress, we established well-watered (WW) and water-stressed (WS) conditions at 1–30 days after pollination (dap) on waxy maize (Zea mays L. sinensis Kulesh). Results Kernel development, starch accumulation, and activities of starch biosynthetic enzymes were significantly reduced by drought stress. The morphology of starch granules changed, whereas the grain filling rate was accelerated. A comparative proteomics approach was applied to analyze the proteome change in kernels under two treatments at 10 dap and 25 dap. Under the WS conditions, 487 and 465 differentially accumulated proteins (DAPs) were identified at 10 dap and 25 dap, respectively. Drought induced the downregulation of proteins involved in the oxidation–reduction process and oxidoreductase, peroxidase, catalase, glutamine synthetase, abscisic acid stress ripening 1, and lipoxygenase, which might be an important reason for the effect of drought stress on kernel development. Notably, several proteins involved in waxy maize endosperm and starch biosynthesis were upregulated at early-kernel stage under WS conditions, which might have accelerated endosperm development and starch synthesis. Additionally, 17 and 11 common DAPs were sustained in the upregulated and downregulated DAP groups, respectively, at 10 dap and 25 dap. Among these 28 proteins, four maize homologs (i.e., A0A1D6H543, B4FTP0, B6SLJ0, and A0A1D6H5J5) were considered as candidate proteins that affected kernel development and drought stress response by comparing with the rice genome. Conclusions The proteomic changes caused by drought were highly correlated with kernel development and starch accumulation, which were closely related to the final yield and quality of waxy maize. Our results provided a foundation for the enhanced understanding of kernel development and starch formation in response to drought stress in waxy maize.

Influence of the fermentation methods on the resistant starch formation by X-ray diffraction

This work consists of a study about the influence of the fermentation methods on the resistant starch (RS) formation. Crystalline phases at the white bread after production and during the staling were evaluated. The bakery formulation was proportionally the same for the two fermentation methods used, except for the yeast. A commercial dry yeast and sourdough were used for the direct method (DM) and indirect method (IM), respectively. The temperature and cooking time, as well as the packaging and storage, were kept constant for all samples. Characterizations were performed on both samples by XRD and FTIR-ATR. It is possible to affirm that the fermentation method greatly influences the crystalline and microstructural properties of bread, mainly on the RS. The bread produced by IM presented more significant changes in its microstructure and degree of crystallinity than bread made by DM. These microstructural differences may be directly related to the microorganisms present in the sourdough, which can influence the bread resistant starch during the cooking and storage time.