The aim of this work was to estimate the general and specific combining ability of peppers by measuring fruit quality and yield traits. This experiment was carried out on the garden field from Universidade Federal de Viçosa (UFV), Minas Gerais State-Brazil. Eight lines of Capsicum baccatum belonging to the UFV Horticultural Germplasm Bank were chosen based on their broad genetic and phenotypical background variation and then they were crossed in a complete diallel way. The F 1 seeds of the 56 hybrids and eight parents were planted in the field in a randomized complete block design. The data were submitted to ANOVA and the means were grouped by Scott-Knott test (P B 0.01). Significant variation for fruit quality and yield components was observed among parents and F 1 generation. Analysis of variance for the combining ability showed that GCA effects exhibited significant difference and SCA effects of the crosses were significant, except for the height of first bifurcation. For almost all characters both additive and non-additive effects influenced the performance of hybrids.

The melt rheological properties of both linear and branched polyethylene were investigated by use of narrow molecular weight distribution fractions and experimentally polymerized samples. Studies carried out in steady shear and in oscillatory shear yielded information concerning both the melt viscosity and the melt elasticity as a function of molecular structure, where the latter was characterized by various solution property techniques. The 3.4–3.5 power dependence of the low shear limiting viscosity on molecular weight was confirmed for linear polyethylene. The effect of long‐chain branching on rheological properties was defined both at constant molecular weight and at constant molecular weight distribution and coupled with variation of molecular weight.

The hot peppers belonging to the species C. baccatum are completely restricted to Latin America and comprise the most popular hot pepper consumed as fresh or as processed paprika in Andean countries. The objective of this study was to characterize the phenotypic diversity among 40 landrace accessions of C. baccatum based on morphological fruit quality traits and yield components, and to determine the correlation between these characters and their contribution for the genetic variability. The accessions were analyzed for 14 fruit and plant descriptors. Plants were arranged as randomized complete block with three replicates. Collected data were initially subjected to analysis of variance and if the F-test was significant at P B 0.01, the averages were grouped by Scott-Knott criteria. The heritability in a broad sense and phenotypic correlation were calculated. The phenotypic divergence and relative importance were estimated by multivariate analysis. Significant differences for all traits were observed by F-test (P B 0.01). The range of heritability values were between 83.2 and 99.1. The landraces were grouped in seven different clusters. Major fruit width, fruit weight and fruit dry matter were the only fruit traits with positive correlation with yield. Plant width, height, first bifurcation height and fruit set were positive correlated between them and with yield. Based on the data, the most divergent accessions were 4 and 24, which could result in higher heterotic effect in eventual hybridizations between them. The results of this study showed that spice and vegetable type specific varieties can be developed from C. baccatum.

On the basis of the biological compounds that they metabolize, plant peroxidases have long been implicated in plant growth, cell wall biogenesis, lignification, and host defenses. Transgenic tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum L.) plants that underexpress anionic peroxidase were generated using antisense RNA. The antisense RNA was found to be specific for the anionic isoenzyme and highly effective, reducing endogenous transcript levels and total peroxidase activity by as much as 1600-fold. Antisense-transformed plants appeared normal at initial observation; however, growth studies showed that plants with reduced peroxidase activity grow taller and flower sooner than control plants. In contrast, previously transformed plants overproducing anionic peroxidase were shorter and flowered later than controls. Axillary buds were more developed in antisensetransformed plants and less developed in plants overproducing this enzyme. It was found that the lignin content in leaf, stem, and root was unchanged in antisense-transformed plants, which does not support a role for anionic peroxidase in the lignification of secondary xylem vessels. However, studies of wounded tissue show some reduction in wound-induced deposition of lignin-like polymers. The data support a possible role for tobacco anionic peroxidase in host defenses but not without a reduction in growth potential.

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Studies regarding seed maturation are important to determine the ideal fruit development stage for harvesting in order to obtain high-quality seeds. Changes in sweet pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) seed quality were monitored during seed development in order to identify the stage of maximum quality of the seeds and the optimum harvest date. Fruits harvested from 20 to 75 days after anthesis (DAA) with step of five days were grouped according to maturity stage (green, yellow, red and intense red color outside). Before seed extraction, the fruit weigh, diameter and length were determined. Seed water content, seed dry weight, 1.000-seed weight, germination, first count, speed emergence index, seedling length, accelerated aging and electrical conductivity tests were performed. Mass maturity of the seeds was attained at 75 DAA, when seed water content was 47.3 % and the fruits were red. Sweet pepper seeds with high germination and vigour should be harvested when fruits are completely red outside, at 75 DAA

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Storage temperature affects the rate and extent of wound-healing in a number of root and tuber crops. The effect of storage temperature on wound-healing in sugarbeet (Beta vulgaris L.) roots, however, is largely unknown. Wound-healing of sugarbeet roots was investigated using surface-abraded roots stored at 6 and 12°C for 28 days. Surface abrasions are common injuries of stored roots, and the storage temperatures used are typical of freshly harvested or rapidly cooled roots. Transpiration rate from the wounded surface and root weight loss were used to quantify wound healing. At 12°C, transpiration rate from the wounded surface declined within 14 days and wounded roots lost weight at a rate similar to unwounded controls. At 6°C, transpiration rate from the wounded surface did not decline in the 28 days after injury, and wounded roots lost 44% more weight than controls after 28 days storage. Melanin formation, lignification, and suberization occurred more rapidly at 12°C than at 6°C, and a continuous layer of lignified and suberized cells developed at 12°C, but not at 6°C. Examination of enzyme activities involved in melanin, lignin, and suberin formation indicated that differences in melanin formation at 6 and 12°C were related to differences in polyphenol oxidase activity, although no relationships between suberin or lignin formation and phenylalanine ammonia lyase or peroxidase activity were evident. Wound-induced respiration was initially greater at 12°C than at 6°C. However, with continued storage, respiration rate of wounded roots declined more rapidly at 12°C, and over 28 days, the increase in respiration due to injury was 52% greater in roots stored at 6°C than in roots stored at 12°C. The data indicate that storage at 6°C severely slowed and impaired wound-healing of surface-abraded sugarbeet roots relative to roots stored at 12°C and suggest that postharvest losses may be accelerated if freshly harvested roots are cooled too quickly.