Sebacinales have emerged as a fascinating order with mutualistic plant-fungal symbionts that consists of exclusively beneficial fungi. This volume of Soil Biology presents an overview of the current results in Sebacinales research with a focus on the potential of these fungi in crop improvement and stress tolerance. The authors demonstrate that Sebacinales are not only extremely versatile in their associations with roots, but are also almost universally present as symptomless endophytes. With this extraordinary diversity, Sebacinales with the key fungus Piriformospora indica might possess remarkable significance in natural ecosystems. Their biotechnological applications are expected to improve the quality of crops while maintaining ecologically and economically sustainable production systems.

This book describes the various applications of microorganisms in improving plant growth, health and the efficiency of phytochemical production. The chapters trace topics such as the role of PGPRs in improving salt stress and heavy metal tolerance in plants; the prevention and control of plant diseases; boosting soil fertility and agriculture productivity; the induction of secondary metabolite biosynthesis in medicinal and aromatic plants; the enhancement of phytochemical levels, and the action mechanisms, diversity and characterization of PGPRs. The reviews will be of interest for scientists in the fields of agriculture, microbiology, soil biology, plant breeding and herbal medicinal products.

"Diagnostics in Plant Breeding" is systematically organizing cutting-edge research reviews on the development and application of molecular tools for the prediction of plant performance. Given its significance for mankind and the available research resources, medical sciences are leading the area of molecular diagnostics, where DNA-based risk assessments for various diseases and biomarkers to determine their onset become increasingly available. So far, most research in plant genomics has been directed towards understanding the molecular basis of biological processes or phenotypic traits. From a plant breeding perspective, however, the main interest is in predicting optimal genotypes based on molecular information for more time- and cost-efficient breeding schemes. It is anticipated that progress in plant genomics and in particular sequence technology made recently will shift the focus from "explanatory" to "predictive" in crop science. This book assembles chapters on all areas relevant to development and application of predictive molecular tools in plant breeding by leading authorties in the respective areas.

Climate change is expected to have a drastic impact on agronomic conditions including temperature, precipitation, soil nutrients, and the incidence of disease pests, to name a few. To face this looming threat, significant progress in developing new breeding strategies has been made over the last few decades. The second volume of Genomics and Breeding for Climate-Resilient Crops describes various genomic and breeding approaches for the genetic improvement of the major target traits. Topics covered include: flowering time; root traits; cold, heat and drought tolerance; water use efficiency; flooding and submergence tolerance; disease and insect resistance; nutrient use efficiency; nitrogen fixation; carbon sequestration; and greenhouse gas emissions.

Climate change is expected to have a drastic impact on agronomic conditions including temperature, precipitation, soil nutrients, and the incidence of disease pests, to name a few. To face this looming threat, significant progress in developing new breeding strategies has been made over the last few decades. The first volume of Genomics and Breeding for Climate-Resilient Crops presents the basic concepts and strategies for developing climate-resilient crop varieties. Topics covered include: conservation, evaluation and utilization of biodiversity; identification of traits, genes and crops of the future; genomic and molecular tools; genetic engineering; participatory and evolutionary breeding; bioinformatics tools to support breeding; funding and networking support; and intellectual property, regulatory issues, social and political dimensions.

The book is about the seed development in the model and crop plants. Seed development is a key step of the plant life cycle that determines the nutrient value of seeds - the life for human civilization, growth, and development. The nutrient value of seeds is mainly due to storage reserve products such as carbohydrates, lipids (triacylglycerols), and proteins. The book primarily focuses on application of the 21st century high-throughput technologies transcriptomics, proteomics, metabolomics, and systems biology in near complete understanding of the various processes involved in seed development in different crop plants. The book reveals how such technologies have revolutionized our understanding of the multilayer processes and regulations involved therein by generating large-scale datasets. Accumulated datasets provide basic knowledge to develop integrated strategies to eventually improve the nutritional value of plant seed and crop yield, a critical goal in food security issues around the globe.

Microalgae are one of the most studied potential sources of biofuels and bioenergy. This book covers the key steps in the production of renewable biofuels from microalgae - strain selection, culture systems, inorganic carbon utilisation, lipid metabolism and quality, hydrogen production, genetic engineering, biomass harvesting, extraction. Greenhouse gas and techno-economic modelling are reviewed as is the 100 year history of microalgae as sources of biofuels and of commercial-scale microalgae culture. A summary of relevant basic standard methods used in the study of microalgae culture is provided. The book is intended for the expert and those starting work in the field.

Manyexcitingdiscoveriesinrecentdecadeshavecontributednewknowledgeto ourunderstandingofthemechanismsthatregulatevariousstagesofplantgrowth anddevelopment. Suchinformation,coupledwithadvancesincellandmolecular biology,isfundamentaltocropimprovementusingbiotechnologicalapproaches. Twovolumesconstitutethepresentwork. The?rst,comprising22chapters, commenceswithintroductionsrelatingtogeneregulatorymodelsforplantdev- opmentandcropimprovement,particularlytheuseofArabidopsisasamodelplant. Thesechaptersarefollowedbyspeci?ctopicsthatfocusondifferentdevelopmental aspectsassociatedwithvegetativeandreproductivephasesofthelifecycleofa plant. Six chapters discuss vegetative growth and development. Their contents considertopicssuchasshootbranching,buddormancyandgrowth,thedevel- ment of roots, nodules and tubers, and senescence. The reproductive phase of plantdevelopmentisin14chaptersthatpresenttopicssuchas?oralorganinit- tionandtheregulationof?owering,thedevelopmentofmaleandfemalegametes, pollengerminationandtubegrowth,fertilization,fruitdevelopmentandripening, seed development, dormancy, germination, and apomixis. Male sterility and self-incompatibilityarealsodiscussed. Volume2has20chapters,threeofwhichreviewrecentadvancesinsomatic embryogenesis,microsporeembryogenesisandsomaclonalvariation. Sevenofthe chapterstargetplantprocessesandtheirregulation,includingphotosynthatepartiti- ing,seedmaturationandseedstorageproteinbiosynthesis,theproductionandregu- tionoffattyacids,vitamins,alkaloidsand?owerpigments,and?owerscent. This secondbookalsocontainsfourchaptersonhormonalandenvironmentalsignaling (aminocompounds-containinglipids,auxin,cytokinin,andlight)intheregulationof plantdevelopment;othertopicsencompassthemoleculargeneticsofdevelopmental regulation,includingRNAsilencing,DNAmethylation,epigenetics,activationt- ging,homologousrecombination,andtheengineeringofsyntheticpromoters. Thesebookswillserveaskeyreferencesforadvancedstudentsandresearchers involved in a range of plant-orientated disciplines, including genetics, cell and molecularbiology,functionalgenomics,andbiotechnology. August2009 E-C. PuaandM. R. Davey v Contents PartI CellDifferentiationandDevelopmentInVitro 1 DevelopmentalBiologyofSomaticEmbryogenesis ...3 R. J. Rose,F. R. Mantiri,S. Kurdyukov,S-K. Chen,X-D. Wang, K. E. Nolan,andM. B. Sheahan 1. 1 Introduction ...3 1. 2 BasicRequirementsforInVitroSE ...4 1. 3 ExplantandStemCellBiology ...5 1. 3. 1 Genotype ...5 1. 3. 2 ExplantCells ...6 1. 4 EarliestEventinEmbryogenesis-AsymmetricCellDivision ...8 1. 4. 1 CellWallinEstablishmentofPolarity,DivisionAsymmetry andCellFate ...8 1. 4. 2 DivisionAsymmetryintheInitiationofSE ...10 1. 4. 3 AsymmetricDivisionandtheSuspensorinSE ...10 1. 5 StressComponentintheInitiationofSE ...11 1. 5. 1 ReactiveOxygenSpecies ...11 1. 5. 2 Stress-RelatedHormoneSignalling ...12 1. 6 HormonesandtheInitiationofSE ...13 1. 7 InductionofSEbyOver-ExpressionofLeafyCotyledon TranscriptionFactorsandTheirRelationshiptoSEInductionand Repression-theGAConnection ...14 1. 8 ABA,StressandGA ...16 1. 9 SolubleSignalsandCell-CellInteractionsthatPromoteSEin SuspensionCultures ...16 1. 9. 1 SecretedProteinsthatIn?uenceSE ...16 1. 9. 2 AGPSignallinginSE:MechanismsandInteractionsBetween SignallingPathways ...17 1. 9. 3 Cell-AsymmetricCellDivision ...8 1. 4. 1 CellWallinEstablishmentofPolarity,DivisionAsymmetry andCellFate ...8 1. 4. 2 DivisionAsymmetryintheInitiationofSE ...10 1. 4. 3 AsymmetricDivisionandtheSuspensorinSE ...10 1. 5 StressComponentintheInitiationofSE ...11 1. 5. 1 ReactiveOxygenSpecies ...11 1. 5. 2 Stress-RelatedHormoneSignalling ...12 1. 6 HormonesandtheInitiationofSE ...13 1. 7 InductionofSEbyOver-ExpressionofLeafyCotyledon TranscriptionFactorsandTheirRelationshiptoSEInductionand Repression-theGAConnection ...14 1. 8 ABA,StressandGA ...16 1. 9 SolubleSignalsandCell-CellInteractionsthatPromoteSEin SuspensionCultures ...16 1. 9. 1 SecretedProteinsthatIn?uenceSE ...16 1. 9. 2 AGPSignallinginSE:MechanismsandInteractionsBetween SignallingPathways ...17 1. 9. 3 Cell-Manyexcitingdiscoveriesinrecentdecadeshavecontributednewknowledgeto ourunderstandingofthemechanismsthatregulatevariousstagesofplantgrowth anddevelopment. Suchinformation,coupledwithadvancesincellandmolecular biology,isfundamentaltocropimprovementusingbiotechnologicalapproaches. Twovolumesconstitutethepresentwork. The?rst,comprising22chapters, commenceswithintroductionsrelatingtogeneregulatorymodelsforplantdev- opmentandcropimprovement,particularlytheuseofArabidopsisasamodelplant. Thesechaptersarefollowedbyspeci?ctopicsthatfocusondifferentdevelopmental aspectsassociatedwithvegetativeandreproductivephasesofthelifecycleofa plant. Six chapters discuss vegetative growth and development. Their contents considertopicssuchasshootbranching,buddormancyandgrowth,thedevel- ment of roots, nodules and tubers, and senescence. The reproductive phase of plantdevelopmentisin14chaptersthatpresenttopicssuchas?oralorganinit- tionandtheregulationof?owering,thedevelopmentofmaleandfemalegametes, pollengerminationandtubegrowth,fertilization,fruitdevelopmentandripening, seed development, dormancy, germination, and apomixis. Male sterility and self-incompatibilityarealsodiscussed. Volume2has20chapters,threeofwhichreviewrecentadvancesinsomatic embryogenesis,microsporeembryogenesisandsomaclonalvariation. Sevenofthe chapterstargetplantprocessesandtheirregulation,includingphotosynthatepartiti- ing,seedmaturationandseedstorageproteinbiosynthesis,theproductionandregu- tionoffattyacids,vitamins,alkaloidsand?owerpigments,and?owerscent. This secondbookalsocontainsfourchaptersonhormonalandenvironmentalsignaling (aminocompounds-containinglipids,auxin,cytokinin,andlight)intheregulationof plantdevelopment;othertopicsencompassthemoleculargeneticsofdevelopmental regulation,includingRNAsilencing,DNAmethylation,epigenetics,activationt- ging,homologousrecombination,andtheengineeringofsyntheticpromoters. Thesebookswillserveaskeyreferencesforadvancedstudentsandresearchers involved in a range of plant-orientated disciplines, including genetics, cell and molecularbiology,functionalgenomics,andbiotechnology. August2009 E-C. PuaandM. R. Davey v Contents PartI CellDifferentiationandDevelopmentInVitro 1 DevelopmentalBiologyofSomaticEmbryogenesis ...3 R. J. Rose,F. R. Mantiri,S. Kurdyukov,S-K. Chen,X-D. Wang, K. E. Nolan,andM. B. Sheahan 1. 1 Introduction ...3 1. 2 BasicRequirementsforInVitroSE ...4 1. 3 ExplantandStemCellBiology ...5 1. 3. 1 Genotype ...5 1. 3. 2 ExplantCells ...6 1. 4 EarliestEventinEmbryogenesis-AsymmetricCellDivision ...8 1. 4. 1 CellWallinEstablishmentofPolarity,DivisionAsymmetry andCellFate ...8 1. 4. 2 DivisionAsymmetryintheInitiationofSE ...10 1. 4. 3 AsymmetricDivisionandtheSuspensorinSE ...10 1. 5 StressComponentintheInitiationofSE ...11 1. 5. 1 ReactiveOxygenSpecies ...11 1. 5. 2 Stress-RelatedHormoneSignalling ...12 1. 6 HormonesandtheInitiationofSE ...13 1. 7 InductionofSEbyOver-ExpressionofLeafyCotyledon TranscriptionFactorsandTheirRelationshiptoSEInductionand Repression-theGAConnection ...14 1. 8 ABA,StressandGA ...16 1. 9 SolubleSignalsandCell-CellInteractionsthatPromoteSEin SuspensionCultures ...16 1. 9. 1 SecretedProteinsthatIn?uenceSE ...16 1. 9. 2 AGPSignallinginSE:MechanismsandInteractionsBetween SignallingPathways ...17 1. 9. 3 Cell-CellInteractionandRelevancetoSEinSuspension Cultures ...18 vii viii Contents 1. 10 DevelopmentProgramAfterSEInduction ...19 1. 11 ConcludingRemarksandaModelBasedonStudiesin Medicagotruncatula ...19 1. 12 SEandBiotechnology ...20 References ...21 2 MicrosporeEmbryogenesis ...27 A. Olmedilla 2. 1 Introduction ...27 2. 2 DiscoveryoftheProductionofHaploidsbyAntherCulture ...29 2. 3 StrategiesfortheInductionofMicrosporeEmbryogenesis ...29 2. 4 In?uenceofDifferentFactorsinMicrosporeEmbryogenesis ...30 2. 4. 1 Genotype ...30 2. 4. 2 DonorPlantPhysiology ...31 2. 4. 3 StageofPollenDevelopment ...

Crop production in greenhouses is a growing industry, especially in mild climates, and is very important for the population as a source of income and clean, fresh food. Greenhouses create optimal climate conditions for crop growth and protect crops from outside pests. At the same time greenhouse production increases water use efficiency and makes integrated production and protection (IPP) possible. This book provides technical instructions for practice (what to do and what not to do) and gives answers to the question: How to produce more clean crops and better quality with less water, less land and less pesticide. Suitable greenhouse constructions and their design, adapted to local climates in subtropical, tropical and arid regions and infrastructure conditions are presented. The necessary climate control measures - light transmittance, ventilation, cooling, heating, and CO2 enrichment - and physical measures for pest control, as well as methods for using solar energy to desalinate salty water are described. The results of theoretical research are transferred into methods for practical use, so that readers are equipped to solve their problems in practice as well as to get stimulation for further research and development.

The volume on Industrial Crop Breeding will be part of the series, Handbook of Plant Breeding. This volume will focus on the emerging area of plant breeding for sustainable production of transportation fuels and bio based products using the current advances in the field. The book is scheduled to consist of a total number of 30 chapters divided into four sections. The sections will emphasize crops being considered for different challenge areas including oil crops for biodiesel; sugar, starch and cellulosic crops for biofuel; crops for bio products and issues and future prospects. A chapter introducing the first three sections will also be included. Outstanding scientists for each crop species are proposed as senior authors, who may invite co-authors to contribute part of a chapter to provide additional expertise or perspective. The proposed authors will represent various national and international institutions to get a more diverse view on the topic and somehow get a global view on the common issues that researchers on industrial crops are facing. The book will comprise primarily of specific issues, available germplasm, breeding techniques, and potential geographical areas of production pertaining to individual crops being considered for industrial uses. We hope to encourage the proposed authors of new crops to provide an estimate of the crop readiness for commercial development and discuss the limitations. This book will be will be of interest and envisioned to serve as an updated reference to researchers in both academic and industrial setting, to students and teachers of plant breeding and to policy makers who are looking for alternative solutions to dependency on imported petroleum products.

This volume examines the interrelated fields of food security, energy security and sustainable agriculture as the key to a stable global agricultural platform and is arranged in six parts. The first part is focused on policy considerations relating to food and energy security and sustainable agriculture. The authors from this part include Former Under Secretary of Agriculture Gale Buchanan, Former Under Secretary of Energy Raymond Orbach (Chapter 1), Stephen Hughes, Bryan Moser and William Gibbons (Chapter 2) and Thomas Redick (Chapter 3). Part II addresses soil and water, which are two of the key components in secure and sustainable food production. Authors from this part are Jerry Hatfield (Chapter 4) and Mahbub Alam, Sharon Megdal et al. (Chapter 5). The third part covers sustainable and secure food production specifically addressing genetically modified traits in Chapter 6 (James McWilliams) and omega-3 fatty acids in Chapter 7 (Jay Whelan et al.). Agronomic implications relative to food security and sustainable agriculture are described in Part IV. Authors include Ravi Sripada, Pradip Das et al. (Chapter 8), Duska Stojsin, Kevin Matson and Richard Leitz (Chapter 9) and S.H. Lee, David Clay and Sharon Clay (Chapter 10). International sustainable agriculture and food security is addressed in Part V with authors Jeff Vitale and John Greenplate (Chapter 11), Julie Borlaug et al. (Chapter 12) and Sylvester Oikeh et al. (Chapter 13). The final part covers the use of chemicals in sustainable agriculture and food/energy security with Leonard Gianessi and Ashley Williams communicating the role of herbicides and Harold Reetz emphasizing the importance of fertilizers both in maximizing crop yields to maintain a sustainable secure source for food production."

Experience shows that biotic stresses occur with different levels of intensity in nearly all agricultural areas around the world. The occurrence of insects, weeds and diseases caused by fungi, bacteria or viruses may not be relevant in a specific year but they usually harm yield in most years. Global warming has shifted the paradigm of biotic stresses in most growing areas, especially in the tropical countries, sparking intense discussions in scientific forums. This book was written with the idea of collecting in a single publication the most recent advances and discoveries concerning breeding for biotic stresses, covering all major classes of biotic challenges to agriculture and food production. Accordingly, it presents the state-of-the-art in plant stresses caused by all microorganisms, weeds and insects and how to breed for them. Complementing Plant Breeding for Abiotic Stress Tolerance, this book was written for scientists and students interested in learning how to breed for biotic stress scenarios, allowing them to develop a greater understanding of the basic mechanisms of resistance to biotic stresses and develop resistant cultivars.

Morphological, biological, biochemical and physiological characteristics have been used for the detection, identification and differentiation of fungal pathogens up to species level. Tests based on biological characteristics are less consistent. Immunoassays have been shown to be effective in detecting fungal pathogens present in plants and environmental samples. Development of monoclonal antibody technology has greatly enhanced the sensitivity and specificity of detection, identification and differentiation of fungal species and varieties/strains. Nucleic acid-based techniques involving hybridization with or amplification of unique DNA have provided results rapidly and reliably. Presentation of a large number of protocols is a unique feature of this volume.

Microbial plant pathogens causing qualitative and quantitative losses in all corps are present not only in the infected plants, but also in the environmental comprising of soil, water and air. The vectors present in the environment spread the microbial pathogens to short and/or long distances. Detection of microbial pathogens rapidly and reliably by employing suitable sensitive applicable for different ecosystems. The pathogens have to be identified precisely and differentiated and quantified to plan appropriate short- and long-term strategies to contain the incidence and spread of diseases induced by them. This book aims to present all relevant and latest information on the detection techniques based on the biological, biochemical, immunological and nucleic acid characteristics of microbial pathogens presents in the host plants, as well as in the natural substrates that support the survival and perpetuation of the pathogens.

The need for the development of techniques based on the characteristics of the viral proteins and genomic nucleic acids was realized in order to detect, identify, differentiate and quantify viruses in the infected plants/planting materials with or without symptoms of infection. Immunoassays have been successfully applied for the detection of viruses in crop and weed host plant species as well as in the vectors. Nucleic acid-based techniques have been demonstrated to be the most reliable and sensitive tests for detection, identification and differentiation of viruses and viroids present in plants and planting materials.. Inclusion of numerous protocols in appropriate chapters as appendix is a unique feature of this volume.

Grassland produces feed for livestock, improves soil fertility and structure, protects water resources and may contribute to climate change mitigation through carbon storage and to biodiversity preservation. It simultaneously maintains sustainable economic outputs for farmers and provides ecosystem services. Turf similarly c- siderably contributes to our environment by adding beauty to our surroundings, providing a safe playing surface for sports and recreation. The species diversity present in most grasslands and turfs is a functional div- sity contributing to the previously mentioned agronomic and environmental bene?ts. The species belong to different functional groups and the adequate species com- sition may maximise the agronomic performance through a higher production and a better quality and the environmental bene?ts through symbiotic nitrogen ?xation or sources of pollen and nectar to pollinators. In a given grassland or turf, the genetic diversity available in each variety contributes to this economic and environmental performance, but also to the stability of these performances including the stability of the resistance against pathogens and pests. Natural grasslands share many species with the sown swards. They may be regarded as favourable sites for in situ preservation of genetic diversity as well as valuable sources of diversity for breeding.

This book provides comprehensive information on the latest tools and techniques of molecular genetics and their applications in crop improvement. It thoroughly discusses advanced techniques used in molecular markers, QTL mapping, marker-assisted breeding, and molecular cytogenetics.

This volume continues the series of books on "Plant Pathology in the 21st Century", and contains the papers given at the 10th International Congress of Plant Pathology (ICPP 2013) held in Beijing, August 25-30, 2013 concerning seed health. Many pathogens are transmitted throughout infected seeds and propagation material .The fact that propagation material production is very much concentrated in few establishments, favors the quick spread of new diseases throughout seed commercialization. This phenomenon is very much accelerated in a globalized system. The book covers case studies of contamination, aspects of detection and diagnosis as well as disease management strategies, with special emphasis towards seed treatments with unconventional products. This book will be useful for all plant pathologists as well as students in advanced courses.

Development of transgenic crop plants, their utilization for improved agriculture, health, ecology and environment and their socio-political impacts are currently important fields in education, research and industries and also of interest to policy makers, social activists and regulatory and funding agencies. This work prepared with a class-room approach on this multidisciplinary subject will fill an existing gap and meet the requirements of such a broad section of readers. Volume 2 with 13 chapters contributed by 41 eminent scientists from nine countries deliberates on the utilization of transgenic crops for resistance to herbicides, biotic stress and abiotic stress, manipulation of developmental traits, production of biofuel, biopharmaceuticals and algal bioproducts, amelioration of ecology and environment and fostering functional genomics as well as on regulations and steps for commercialization, patent and IPR issues, and compliance to concerns and compulsions of utilizing transgenic plants.

Sustainable horticulture is gaining increasing attention in the field of agriculture as demand for the food production rises to the world community. Sustainable horticultural systems are based on ecological principles to farm, optimizes pest and disease management approaches through environmentally friendly and renewable strategies in production agriculture. It is a discipline that addresses current issues such as food security, water pollution, soil health, pest control, and biodiversity depletion. Novel, environmentally-friendly solutions are proposed based on integrated knowledge from sciences as diverse as agronomy, soil science, entomology, ecology, chemistry and food sciences. Sustainable horticulture interprets methods and processes in the farming system to the global level. For that, horticulturists use the system approach that involves studying components and interactions of a whole system to address scientific, economic and social issues. In that respect, sustainable horticulture is not a classical, narrow science. Instead of solving problems using the classical painkiller approach that treats only negative impacts, sustainable horticulture treats problem sources.

The Saccharinae clade of the Poaceae (grass) family of flowering plants includes several important crops with a rich history of contributions to humanity and the promise of still-greater contributions, as a result of some of the highest biomass productivity levels known, resilience to drought and other environmental challenges that are likely to increase, amenability to production systems that may mitigate or even reverse losses of ecological capital such as topsoil erosion, and the recent blossoming of sorghum as a botanical and genomic model for the clade. In Genomics of the Saccharinae, advances of the past decade and earlier are summarized and synthesized to elucidate the current state of knowledge of the structure, function, and evolution of the Sorghum, Saccharum, and Miscanthus genera, and progress in the application of this knowledge to crop improvement. As a backdrop, it is important to understand the naturally occurring diversity in each genus, its organization and distribution, and its evolutionary history. Genomic tools and methods for Saccharinae biology and improvement have improved dramatically in the past few years - a detailed summary of these tools and their applications is a central element of this book. Application of genomic tools to priorities in crop improvement, including understanding and manipulating plant growth and development, composition, and defense, as well as increasing the quality and productivity of seed/grain, sugar, biomass, and other value-added products under a range of conditions and inputs, are addressed. In particular, as the first native African crop to emerge as a genomic model, sorghum offers an excellent case study of challenges and opportunities in linking new advances in biosciences to solving some of Africa's major agricultural problems. Several members of the clade, exemplified by Sorghum halepense (Johnsongrass) offer insights into weediness and invasion biology. The first sequence for a member of the clade, sorghum, as well as progress and challenges toward sequencing of additional members and the new opportunities that this will create, are also explored. Indeed, the very complexities that have hindered study of some clade members also offer intriguing opportunities to gain insight into fundamental questions such as roles of polyploidy in agricultural productivity and post-polyploidy evolution.

The future of agriculture strongly depends on our ability to enhance productivity without sacrificing long-term production potential. An ecologically and economically sustainable strategy is the application of microorganisms, such as the diverse bacterial species of plant growth promoting bacteria (PGPB). The use of these bio-resources for the enhancement of crop productivity is gaining worldwide importance. Bacteria in Agrobiology: Crop Ecosystems describes the beneficial role of plant growth promoting bacteria with special emphasis on oil yielding crops, cereals, fruits and vegetables. Chapters present studies on various aspects of bacteria-plant interactions, soil-borne and seed-borne diseases associated with food crops such as rice, sesame, peanuts, and horticultural crops. Further reviews describe technologies to produce inoculants, the biocontrol of post harvest pathogens as a suitable alternative to agrochemicals, and the restoration of degraded soils.

This book provides insights into some of the key achievements made in the study of Lotus japonicus (birdsfoot trefoil), as well as a timely overview of topics that are pertinent for future developments in legume genomics. Key topics covered include endosymbiosis, development, hormone regulation, carbon/nitrogen and secondary metabolism, as well as advances made in high-throughput genomic and genetic approaches. Research focusing on model plants has underpinned the recent growth in plant genomics and genetics and provided a basis for investigations of major crop species. In the legume family Fabaceae, groundbreaking genetic and genomic research has established a significant body of knowledge on Lotus japonicus, which was adopted as a model species more than 20 years ago. The diverse nature of legumes means that such research has a wide potential and agricultural impact, for example, on the world's protein production.

The entire range of the developmental processes in plants is regulated by a shift in the hormonal concentration, tissue sensitivity and their interaction with the factors operating around them. Out of the recognized hormones, attention has largely been focused on five - Auxins, Gibberellins, Cytokinin, Abscisic acid and Ethylene. However, the information about the most recent group of phytohormone (Brassinosteroids) has been incorporated in this book. This volume includes a selection of newly written, integrated, illustrated reviews describing our knowledge of Brassinosteroids and aims to describe them at the present time. Various chapters incorporate both theoretical and practical aspects and may serve as baseline information for future researches through which significant developments are possible. This book will be useful to the students, teachers and researchers, both in universities and research institutes, especially in relation to biological and agricultural sciences.

With the predicted increase of the human population and the subsequent need for larger food supplies, root health in crop plants could play a major role in providing sustainable highly productive crops that can cope with global climate changes. While the essentiality of roots and their relation to plant performance is broadly recognized, less is known about their role in plant growth and development. "Root Genomics" examines how various new genomic technologies are rapidly being applied to the study of roots, including high-throughput sequencing and genotyping, TILLING, transcription factor analysis, comparative genomics, gene discovery and transcriptional profiling, post-transcriptional events regulating microRNAs, proteome profiling and the use of molecular markers such as SSRs, DArTs, and SNPs for QTL analyses and the identification of superior genes/alleles. The book also covers topics such as the molecular breeding of crops in problematic soils and the responses of roots to a variety of stresses.