Although the only publication with a realistic claim to the title "The plant diver sity of Malesia" is Flora Malesiana itself, we have hesitatingly chosen this title for the present proceedings volume. Past, present and future work on the Flora Malesiana project was the subject of a successful symposium held in August 1989. This book contains only a selection of the papers presented at that meet ing, yet it covers a much greater diversity of themes than just the inventory of botanical diversity. It even goes beyond the boundaries of the vast Flora Malesi ana region in several of its chapters. The role of the founder of the Flora Malesiana Project, Professor C.G.G.J. van Steenis, repeatedly recurs in several chapters; not only as director of and contributor to the project, but also as a pioneer in the fields of Malesian vege tation, conservation and biogeography, and as an enlightened systematist whose ideas and practical recommendations for taxonomic delimitation still largely apply. Botanical information made available in regional and local floras is of vital im portance for applications such as the exploitation of natural forests on a sus tainable yield basis. for establishing gene banks for the benefit of agriculture. forestry and horticulture. and not in the least for nature conservation. Several chapters are devoted to these themes. Floristic studies are also at the basis of the biogeographical essays and vegetation studies included in this book."

Food legumes (pulses) playa role in human nutrition and more recently as animal feed, in the developing world. They contain minerals and vitamins essential for a balanced diet in humans. In many developing countries food legumes provide the necessary protein and amino acids (in predominantly vegetarian India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Myanmar and Sri Lanka) and supplement the protein diet of people in other countries. Since 1980-82 per capita consumption has declined by 6 % in developing countries where relative pulse prices have gone up and consumption of animal protein (eg milk) has increased. The importance of legumes as animal feed is increasing. The compound growth rate for feed use during 1980-95 was 7. 97% compared to 1. 5% growth for food use during the same period (Kelly et aI. , 1997). As an integral part of farming systems, food legumes, in rotation with cereals and tuber crops, assist in maintaining soil fertility and the sustainability of production systems (Rego et aI. , 1996). Owing to higher prices in comparison with cereals, food legumes are increasingly being grown to supplement farmers' incomes. The major food legumes grown in developing countries are: dry bean (Phaseolus vulgaris), faba bean (Vicia faba), dry pea (Pisum sativum), chickpea (Cicer arietinum), lentil (Lens culinaris), mung bean (Vigna radiata), black gram (Vigna mungo) pigeonpea (Cajanus cajan) and Lathyrns ( Lathyrus sativus). Oil crops such as groundnut (Arachis hypogaea) and soybean (Glycine max) are food legumes but are not discussed in this paper.

Having experienced unprecedented growth since the turn of the millennium, the dramatic expansion of resources and techniques in fungal genomics is poised to fundamentally redefine the study of fungal biology. In "Fungal Genomics: Methods and Protocols," expert researchers explore the three most likely fronts upon which the field will advance: the sequencing of more and more fungal genomes, the mining of sequenced genomes for useful information, and most importantly, the use of genomics sequences to provide a foundation for powerful techniques to explain biological processes. Much of the book is dedicated to explaining established and emerging genomics-based technologies in filamentous fungi, including gene expression profiling techniques, techniques for fungal proteomics as well as various case studies that could be adapted to a wide range of fungi. Written in the highly successful "Methods in Molecular Biology " series format, protocol chapters include brief introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step laboratory protocols, and key unpublished tips, potential pitfalls, common mistakes, and special considerations based on the unique experiences of the contributors.

Authoritative and cutting-edge, "Fungal Genomics: Methods and Protocols" provides fungal biologists at any stage of their careers a user-friendly resource for fungal genomics, especially as readers branch out into unfamiliar but exciting new areas of study."

Not since the late 1970s has a single work presented the biology of this heterogenous group of secondary alkaloids in such depth. Alkaloids, a unique treatise featuring leaders in the field, presents both the historical use of alkaloids and the latest discoveries in the biochemistry of alkaloid production in plants alkaloid ecology, including marine invertebrates, animal and plant parasites, and alkaloids as antimicrobial and current medicinal use . Highlights include chapters on the chemical ecology of alkaloids in host-predator interactions, and on the compartmentation of alkaloids synthesis, transport, and storage. Extensive cross-referencing in tabular format makes this volume an excellent reference.

In the seventeenth century, even the most elaborate and fashionable gardens had areas set aside for growing herbs, fruit, vegetables and flowers for domestic use, while those of more modest establishments were vital to the survival of the household. This was also a period of exciting introductions of plants from overseas. Using manuscript household manuals, recipe books and printed herbals, this book takes the reader on a tour of the productive garden and of the various parts of the house - kitchens and service rooms, living rooms and bedrooms - to show how these plants were used for cooking and brewing, medicines and cosmetics, in the making and care of clothes, and finally to keep rooms fresh, fragrant and decorated. Recipes used by seventeenth-century households for preparations such as flower syrups, snail water and wormwood ale are also included. A brief herbal gives descriptions of plants that are familiar today, others not so well known, such as the herbs used for dyeing and brewing, and those that held a particular cultural importance in the seventeenth century. Featuring exquisite coloured illustrations from John Gerard's herbal of 1597 as well as prints, archival material and manuscripts, this book provides an intriguing and original focus on the domestic history of Stuart England.

This book presents some of the most recent, novel and fascinating examples of transcriptional and posttranscriptional control of gene expression in plants and, where appropriate, provides comparison to notable examples of animal gene regulation.

This volume presents protocols that analyze and explore gene regulatory networks (GRNs) at different levels in plants. This book is divided into two parts: Part I introduces different experimental techniques used to study genes and their regulatory interactions in plants. Part II highlights different computational approaches used for the integration of experimental data and bioinformatics-based predictions of regulatory interactions. This part of the book also provides information on essential database resources that grant access to gene-regulatory and molecular interactions in different plant genomes, with a specific focus on Arabidopsis thaliana. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology series format, chapters include introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and tips on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Thorough and cutting-edge, Plant Gene Regulatory Networks: Methods and Protocols is a valuable resource for scientists and researchers interested in expanding their knowledge of GRNs.

Plant based biotechnology has come to represent a means of mitigating the problems of global food security in the twenty-first century. Products and processes in agriculture are increasingly becoming linked to science and cutting edge technology, to enable the engineering of what are in effect, designer plants. One of the most successful, non-chemical approaches to pest management and disease control is biological control, which seeks a solution in terms of using living organisms to regulate the incidence of pests and pathogens, providing a natural control' while still maintaining the biological balance with the ecosystem. This volume, (the first of two), addresses the different types of biocontrol for different pests, namely, crop diseases, weeds and nematodes, and details the biology of both the pest and its enemies, which is vital for efficient use of biological control. The book has numerous contributors who are authorities in their fields, and would be an asset to those who have interest in sustainable agriculture and crop productivity.

Chinese plant life is estimated to include up to 30,000 species and extends from the Himalayan snow line across a diversity of habitats to the lush tropical south. It is embraced by a culture going back more than 3000 years, providing plants for medicinal use and some of the most valued horticultural species. Although for many years access to Chinese plants was limited, the present situation provides an opportunity for a new and authoritative assessment of such botanical treasure-houses as Yunnan and Sichuan. The present book provides an overview of the subject and is fully referenced and indexed. It will be of interest to those working in agriculture, alternative medicine, plant conservation, ecology, genetics, horticulture, molecular biology and taxonomy.

After the 1986 and 1989 volumes, this is the third volume on biotechnology for propagation of trees. Comprising 28 chapters contributed by international experts the book deals with fruit, ornamental, and forest trees, such as Black cherry, Sour cherry, Pomegranate, Loquat, "Ficus," Yellow poplar, Horse chestnut, Judas tree, Linden tree, Saskatoons, Taiwan sassafras, Plane-tree, Rattans, Bamboos, Engelmann spruce, White spruce, Larches, Hinoki cypress, Western redcedar, and various types of pines, i.e. Jack, Carribean, Eldarica, Slash, Egg-cone, Maritime, Ponderosa, Eastern white, Loblolly pine. Trees III is an excellent reference book for scientists, educators, and students of forestry, botany, genetics, and horticulture, who are interested in tree biotechnology.

In the 100 years since the legume-Rhizobium symbiotic nitrogen fixation interaction was first described, interest in this field has grown rapidly. The types of studies have been cyclical in nature, involving a cross-section of disciplines. The availability of cheap nitrogenous fertilizers caused much of the biological nitrogen fixation research to become more theoretical in the developed world. The high cost of energy, coupled with environmental concerns and the interest in sustainable agriculture, has stimulated research in symbiotic nitrogen fixation. The development of modern genetic techniques has resulted in interdisciplinary research on plant-microbe interactions controlling nitrogen fixation. This has resulted in a better understanding of environmental factors influencing the nodulation process, chemical signalling between the symbiotic partners and the nature of the specificity between host plant and microsymbiotant. This volume summarizes the diverse research efforts in biological nitrogen fixation by presenting a collection of papers in the areas of physiology and metabolism, taxonomy and evolution, genetics and ecology.

The Dictionary contains the names of nearly 2500 plant species, in some cases including subspecies and varieties. Tropical crops from all parts of the world receive the same attention as those from the temperate zone. Common names are given not only in English, French, German, Portuguese and Spanish but also in many other languages, where such names are used in the technical literature. `Agronomic plants' comprise not only the agricultural and horticultural crops but also pasture plants, green manure, soil covers, trees used in agroforestry, and major weeds. Also included are plants which are presently being discussed as new crops, with considerable economic value. The Dictionary will meet the needs not only of scientists in agriculture, botany and geography but also those of agricultural extensionists, merchants in agricultural products and professional translators.

A review of the developments in the various branches of vegetation science with special attention to the Dutch contributions compiled to celebrate the one-hundredth meeting of the Commission for the Study of Vegetation of the Royal Botanical Society of the Netherlands

This book is the result of collaboration between botanists and food chemists, with the purpose of improving the knowledge of the main wild species of traditional use as foods in the Mediterranean area, focus on ethnobotanical aspects, natural production, uses and nutritional aspects. One of the novelties of the book would be the publication of complete food composition tables of more than 40 species, which are not usually included in nutrient databases of foods. Many of the data included comes from the chemical analysis of representative samples of these species and other are compiled from the scientific literature. Since this topic had not been fully studied, this book provides an interesting tool to be used with the purpose of the revalorization of wild food species, preservation of their traditional uses, and also as alternatives to improve the diversity of modern Mediterranean diets.

A. Scope of the study 5 B. Background 6 C. Desert shru b rangelands 7 1. Definition 7 2. World distribution of desert shrub vegetation 8 3. Resource value of desert shrubs 12 D. Iraq, a brief introduction to the country 14 1. Environment 14 2. Population 17 3. Land use 18 4. Vegetation 19 I. INTRODUCTION I. A. Scope of the study The degradation of renewable natural resources in the arid areas of South West Asia has become a matter of great concern. Locally the effects of careless utili zation of the land and its resources had been felt long ago. It is, however, only relatively recently that the gravity of the situation is being generally and fully realised. It is now well understood that action is required to save what is left and possibly to restore what was once there. Such action requires organization and coordination, but above all knowledge of the present state of the resources and the impact of utilization processes. Part of this knowledge is already available. The problems are not confined to this part of the world's arid lands, but exist equally well elsewhere. Especially over the last decades an ever increasing number of studies have been published dealing with aspects of arid zone research. Problem analyses were followed by compila tions of knowledge in particular fields (White 1956; Hills 1966; Mc Ginnies et al. 1967, 1969, 1971;KauI1970;Clawsonetal."

Biological fixation of nitrogen by organisms and associations other than those concerned in the legume-Rhizobium symbiosis has attracted increasing attention since the firstintemationalworkshop on the theme at Piracicaba, Brasil, in 1979. Approximately 150 scientists gathered on September 2-8, 1984, at the Hanasaari Cultural Centre near Helsinki, Finland, for the third international meeting on nitrogen fixation with non-legumes. Forty-two papers and 39 posters were presented; 32 of the papers have been broughttogetherin this publication. The Symposium was generously sponsored by the FinnishNational Fund for Research and Development (SITRA) in connection with a large project on biological nitrogenfixation and utilization ofnitrogen extending from 1980 to 1985. The Symposium was organized jointly by SITRA, which dealt with all practical matters very efficiently and with impressive concern for the welfare of the participants, and Societas Biochemica, Biophysica et Microbiologica Fenniae, the society of Finnish microbiologists, which made valuable contributions on scientific matters. As in the previous symposium at Banff, Canada, in 1982 the programme did not involve parallel sessions~ all participants had the opportunity of listening to all presentations. Consequently, the FIN- NIF Symposium profited from a steady audience and the consistency this gave to the discussions. In view of the growing interest in N-fixation with non-legumes and the continuous broadening of the field, such an arrangement may not be possible in the future. I thank all participants for their contributionsto both oral sessions and poster presentations, and hope that this publication will become a frequently quoted source of knowledge.

Microbial toxins are secondary metabolites that accumulate in the organism and, to a large extent, are metabolically inactive towards the organism that produces them. The discovery of penicillin, a secondary metabolite of Penicillium notatum West (= P. chrysogenum Thom), in 1929 marked a milestone in the development of antibiotics (microbial toxins). In the intensive studies that followed this discovery, scientists chemically characterized several new molecules (toxins) from secondary metabolites of microbes, some having a definite function in causing pathogenesis in plants. Toxins are also known to playa significant role in inciting animal (human) and insect diseases and as plant growth regulators. Many common toxins have also been isolated from different microbes exhibiting a wide spectrum of biological activity. Toxins are broadly divisible into several characteristic groupings - polyketides, oxygen heterocyclic compounds, pyrons, terpenoidS, amino acids - diketopiperazines, polypeptides etc. Recent research has indicated that these toxins play an important role in plant pathogenesis, disease epidemics, plant breeding, biological control of plant pathogens and insect pests, induced resistance, plant-pathogen interactions etc. Toxins produced by weed pathogens are exploited as lead molecules in developing environmentally friendly herbicides.